News

APPLE/IPHONE photo taken by James Mitchell found on Flickr

Editorial by Gary Gibbs

With the invention of the iPhone, Steve Jobs, co-founder of Apple, revolutionized the way the world communicates. Yet, days before he died, Jobs wept as he confessed to his adult daughter, Lisa, “I didn’t spend enough time with you when you were little.”

This weekend several hundred pastors are gathering at the Columbia Union "Transformational Evangelism" Conference in Columbia, Md. In addition to listening to inspiring speakers and innovative ways pastors are ministering, they will vote on which innovative young adult projects they will help fund.

Weigh in on the project you think will best help evangelize the community. (And that other churches could use too!) Vote by “liking” or “loving” your favorite video on facebook.com/columbiaunionvisitor.

Story by Washington Adventist University Staff / Image by feirern1

Washington Adventist University (WAU) congratulates Olivier Nsengiyumva, Ph.D., on the recent co-publication of his research on environmentally friendly plastic. This publication was part of the work conducted through his doctoral studies with his advisor Stephen A. Miller.

Story by V. Michelle Bernard

Starting July 1, Alison Jobson will start her new role as associate director for Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) Pre-K at the Columbia Union Conference in Columbia, Md. Since July 2016, Jobson has served as the elementary vice principal at Ohio Conference’s Spring Valley Academy (SVA) in Centerville.

Senior and volunteer Maddie Wymer from the Highland Adventist School grooms a dog at Fancy Paws.

Story by Valerie Morikone

After Mountain View Conference’s (MVC) mission statement was created in 2018, a survey was sent to MVC committee members, pastors, teachers and leaders. After the data was compiled, the results were presented to the MVC Executive Committee in December for further clarity. The conference administration team then took the information and created a single document reflecting the prayerful thoughts and ideas of those surveyed. In January 2019, the Executive Committee unanimously approved the document shown below.

Junior Sh’Dai Forrester and freshman Miya Fields serve food in the cafeteria.

Story by Tracey Jackson

The school day is over, but not for students who attend Allegheny East Conference's Pine Forge Academy (PFA). Junior Joseph Cheatham, a student supervisor for the gym custodians, has “learned to work hard and how to get a job done,” in the PFA Career Readiness Program.

Chestertown (Md.) church members organize plans and pray over their community territory.

Story by Andre Hastick

Earlier this year, more than 260 lay-leaders and pastors from 25 churches in the Chesapeake Conference attended the MissionWorks workshop, led by the North American Division Evangelism Institute (NADEI) and the Chesapeake Evangelism Department. The keynote speaker for the weekend, Russell Burrill, former director of NADEI, shared inspiring messages that reminded members and pastors of the essentiality of following a biblical model for church and outreach.

Story by Tina Sheesley

Adventist HealthCare Shady Grove Medical Center is one of the first hospitals in Maryland to perform spine surgery using the Mazor X™ Robotic Guidance Platform. The tool brings surgeons new capabilities when treating patients with debilitating spine conditions.

The platform gives surgeons planning tools, analytics and guidance during surgery, allowing greater precision when treating scoliosis, degenerative disc disease, herniated disc, hunchback and many other spine conditions.  Neurosurgeon Dr. Amin Amini performed Shady Grove’s first operation using the platform in February. Shady Grove is one of the only hospitals in the Washington, D.C., region with the system.