Category: Community Development

Damage Assessment of Homes on Saipan and Tinian

Post author By Laura
Post date November 28, 2018

The Seventh-day Adventist churches on the islands of Saipan and Tinian joined us in the Typhoon Yutu Relief Efforts in their respective communities. Church members who participated in the Disaster Assessment class conducted by Derrick Lea, NAD ACS DR director, assessed homes that were severely damaged by the Typhoon. Based on the degree of damage done to homes, families were given vouchers for building materials to help rebuild their homes.

From November 16 – 19, the Tinian SDA Church volunteers assessed homes in their community, and ended up providing vouchers to 61 households. These vouchers were especially beneficial to those families who were still waiting to get assistance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) or other non-profit organizations. Pr. Paulo Restauro, Jr., pastor of the Tinian SDA Church, was extremely grateful to his church members and ACS personnel for their wonderful service to the community.

We had volunteers from the Saipan SDA Church who also lent their assistance in handing out vouchers to their community. They started assessing homes early this month, and concluded its voucher distribution on November 25. The volunteers were led by their director, Dr. Warren Creed, who runs the SDA Dental Clinic on Saipan, and coordinator, Shack Manuel. They visited 219 houses in Koblerville and San Antonio, where each received vouchers ranging from $100 to $500, depending on the extent of the damage. The vouchers can be redeemed at a local hardware store in exchange for building materials, or other household items.

The residents were overwhelmed with joy and truly appreciative of the help they received. One resident who was very thankful for receiving a $500 voucher said, “Our house was totally wrecked and my priority is to buy some building materials”. The volunteers were also glad that they could be of service even though they had limited resources to work with. Dr. Creed said, “I wish we could do more. It’s hard to say ‘no’ to people who are in need.” In total, ACS provided $100,000 to assist the Typhoon survivors: $20,000 worth of vouchers were distributed on Tinian and $80,000 on Saipan.

Community Development Disaster Response Hurricanes Rebuilding

Michigan Students Assist in Rebuild Project

Post author By Laura
Post date April 16, 2018

A group of eleven missionary students from Michigan State University – CAMPUS ministries made the most of their spring break by volunteering their time and services towards the Rebuild Project in Houston, Texas. On March 1, Thursday, they took off for their week-long mission trip. Going into the trip, they were not entirely sure what to expect and what was expected of them, However, the students reported that the whole experience turned out to be a beautiful blessing for all of them.

The students worked in a Buddhist community called Rosharon, that was severely impacted by Hurricane Harvey. A lot of the people were either from Cambodia or Laos and they didn’t have any flood insurance. Their homes and property were completely destroyed. Some of them were living in wood sheds covered with tarp. Nevertheless, the students praised and thanked God for sparing their lives and for sending numerous people there to help rebuild homes in the community.

The student missionaries were able to stay onsite right in the community. Several families had agreed to open up their homes for the year to accommodate volunteers, missionaries, and humanitarian aid workers who would be providing assistance with hurricane relief in the community. Some of the tasks the students undertook were tearing down old houses in order to build new ones, painting, remodeling, driving the skid steer, cleaning out homes, and picking up garbage. In addition, they had the privilege of meeting the beautiful residents of the community who were grateful and appreciative of their services. The students not only showed their love and compassion to them, but also to their precious animals.

The students also enjoyed working in partnership with other groups and relief organizations. Most of the people who were there to help in this area were Christians, so it was a blessing for them to be able to meet other believers, and see how God is also using them to reach the people in the community of Rosharon. “It was a week filled with very dirty work and little running water, but I saw God’s goodness throughout it all, and it was an experience I’ll never forget,” said Chris Matts, one of the student missionaries. He added, “Pray for those in our world that are in need of the things that we so often take for granted. It was truly an eye opening experience to see that you don’t have to travel outside of our country to help those who are in need. It was an incredible trip that opened our eyes to the humility and love of Jesus, the spiritual battle that we’re in, our own desperate need for Christ, and it showed us that God can still use us just as the broken vessels we are to do His work.”

Click here to see photos from their mission trip.

Community Development Educational

Improving Community Outreach in Jamaica

Post author By Laura
Post date April 10, 2017

**Dr. May-Ellen Colon**
Giving her presentation on community outreach services. Credits: Andrew Johnson

ACS leaders from the General Conference and the North American Division spent a few days in Jamaica to help our fellow church members in improving their community outreach ministries, through the Flip Classroom workshop sessions. The team consisted of Dr. Sung Kwon, Executive Director of NAD ACS, Dr. Sharon Aka, Associate Director of NAD Adventist Learning Community (ALC), and Dr. May-Ellen Colon, Director of ACS International, from the General Conference. The general sessions were provided by Dr. Colon and Dr. Kwon; and the ALC classes were given by Dr. Aka.

For the Sabbath worship service, Dr. Colon and Dr. Kwon spoke on how we, as Adventists, should transform our communities by reaching out and ministering to them. Dr. Kwon went on to add that we need to get out of our comfort zone within the four walls of the church and focus on serving those outside of these walls. “We have become inward focused instead of outward focused. We have become a self-serving entity instead of serving God and his people. The gospel is not about preaching from the head, but it is about connecting to people heart to heart,” said Dr. Kwon.

On Sunday, Dr. Aka led out in the meeting with ACS leaders in the Jamaican Conferences, where she gave them an orientation of the Community Services & Urban Ministry Certification Program on the ALC platform. She also demonstrated how to access instructional videos and material that would help them in improving their community service ministry.

Read full article here.

**Dr. Sung Kwon**
Speaking at the Andrews Memorial SDA Church for the Sabbath Worship Service. Credits: Andrew Johnson

**Dr. Sharon Aka**
Giving an overview of the Adventist Learning Community website. Credits: Andrew Johnson

Community Development Local Conference NEWS

STEAM Ahead – ACS Ministry

Post author By Laura
Post date August 29, 2016

STEAM Ahead @ Discovery Junction is one of the latest outreach ministries of Adventist Community Services in the Upper Columbia Conference. This six-month old ministry constitutes of an after-school enrichment program, as well as summer camp learning opportunities every year. STEAM is an integration program that will engage students hands-on in the field of science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics. They’ve had a six-week course for two hours a day that included Forensic Science, Biology, and Lego Robotics. The students have also planted 4 x 4 gardens which are producing successfully. Other activities include music, games, arts and crafts, building bird houses, character-building activities, and etc.

Now that public schools have started for the new school year, the program will get going once again. A local engineering firm has offered to regularly send engineers to teach a segment probably once a month. They have also included programs for senior citizens and English language study lessons for non-native speakers. “Since Discovery Junction houses 12 new computers, I see potential for ESL classes or Eldercare enrichment,” says Patty Marsh, ACS Director of Upper Columbia Conference. The Spokane Better Living Center now includes a fall-prevention exercise class that meets twice a week for their over 60 age group (Eldercare).

After receiving the Compassion Grant of $15,000 from the NAD Ministerial Department to continue making a difference in the community, they would like to make a promotion video in the next few months. They are excited about their new venture and are looking for volunteers who could offer their assistance and expertise in various activities, so Discovery Junction can expand. Click here to read more about the program: http://www.uccsda.org/News/News2016-08-17