Story by Tiffany Doss
“We are here, because talking saves lives,” said Jose Rojas at the opening of We Stand For All, a forum at Potomac Conference’s Sligo church in Takoma Park, Md., designed to discuss if the church should have a role in social justice—a question that has become more prevalent following a rally on the National Mall where nearly 1,000 Adventists stood together for prayer and peace.
Statement from the Pennsylvania Conference
Thursday night at approximately 9:15 pm a fire was spotted in one of the barns that a local farmer uses to store his equipment and some bales of hay on the campus of Blue Mountain Academy (BMA), Hamburg, Pa. Due to the dry summer and a recent heat wave that made matters worse, it appears a spontaneous combustion occurred, causing the fire.
Very quickly local volunteer fire departments were dispatched and brought the fire under control. At no time were any of our students at risk, as the barn is a one quarter mile from campus. A special thank you goes out the men and women of the local fire departments that braved extreme heat to extinguish the fire.
Story and photos by LaTasha Hewitt
In the 1940s, Elder John H. Wagner, Sr., former Allegheny Conference president, envisioned a boarding school in the North where African-American high school students could attend without the racial issues of schools in the South. After purchasing the 575-acre Rutter Estate near Pottstown, Pa., the conference opened Pine Forge Institute on September 9, 1946, with 90 students.
Last weekend the school, now Pine Forge Academy (PFA), celebrated Alumni Weekend and 70 years of existence during the weekend themed “Legacy of Excellence.”
Story by Kermit Netteburg
More than 300 people attended the inaugural service of the Beltsville church’s second campus on Tech Road in Silver Spring, Md., this past Sabbath morning. The church now refers to the original Potomac Conference church in Beltsville, Md., as the the Ammendale campus and the new site as the Tech Road campus.
Organizers stopped counting at 305 people. “We just couldn’t keep track after that,” says Will Johns, associate pastor, who serves as the campus pastor for the Tech Road site. He added that more than half the people were not from the Ammendale campus. (The Ammendale campus will celebrate its 60th anniversary in two weeks, September 17.)
Story by Cristina Macena
It’s not just the adults at the Bridgeton Spanish church in Bridgeton giving weekly Bible studies to their neighbors.
Every week Jaffet Vazquez, a fourth-grader at Vine Haven Adventist School in Vineland, teaches the children that live on Walnut Street more about the Bible and his best friend, Jesus. His mother, Susana Vazquez, prayerfully went to every mother on the street and asked permission for their children to attend Bible studies at her home. Many said yes and about 13 children ages 5-10 meet at the Vazquez home weekly for Bible studies. Jaffet uses what he has learned in class from his teacher, Violeta Molina, and Pastor Raul Rivero, Bible class teacher, to share with his friends about God’s love and gift of salvation.
Young adults from across the Columbia Union Conference will gather next spring with the purpose of empowering young adult leaders to engage in life-changing ministry. Plan now to attend.
Date: March 31 – April 2, 2017
Location: Hilton in Arlington, Va.
Website: youngadultsummit.org
Historia de V. Michelle Bernard
Historia de V. Michelle Bernard
Tras las recientes inundaciones en West Virginia, en donde 23 personas perdieron la vida y miles quedaron despojados de sus casas, el personal de los Servicios Comunitarios Adventistas de la Asociación Mountain View y de la Unión de Columbia coordinaron los esfuerzos de asistencia. El equipo organizó y financió una bodega en Belle, West Virginia, al sur de Charleston, donde las victimas recibieron los artículos necesarios. Los equipos de respuestas a desastres llegaron de otras partes del país para trabajar en la bodega. La Unión de Columbia también envió a seis capellanes quienes brindaron apoyo espiritual y emocional a los residentes en el área de White Sulfur Springs.
Historia de V. Michelle Bernard
Tara VinCross, directora de la Escuela Urbana de Evangelismo REACH de la Unión de Columbia ubicada en Philadelphia, ha aceptado el llamado a ser la pastora principal de la iglesia Azure Hills en Grand Terrace, California.
“Tara ha hecho una contribución valiosa al involucrar a los adultos jóvenes en experimentar la misión”, dice Dave Weigley, presidente de la Unión de Columbia. “Al ser la fundadora y directora de REACH, ella ha demostrado un excelente liderazgo porque creó un espacio donde los jóvenes adultos pueden experimentar un aprendizaje experiencial—un método valioso para involucrar a los jóvenes adultos”.
Download the September 2016 Sundown Calendar for the Columbia Union here.
