Story by Jennifer Miller
Who would have ever thought that a worldwide pandemic would completely transform how Seventh-day Adventist schools reach kids for Jesus while maintaining high educational standards? On March 16, Pennsylvania Conference transitioned to distance learning, due to a mandate from the governor’s office.
Story by ADRA Staff
The Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA), the global humanitarian arm of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, in partnership with Adventist Community Services, (ACS), delivered more than 20 pallets of essential medical supplies and protective gear to healthcare workers at Adventist HealthCare White Oak Medical Center in Silver Spring. The 180-bed acute care hospital has been serving critically ill patients affected by COVID-19 in the Montgomery and Prince George’s counties since the pandemic began.
Story by Tiffany Doss
You don’t need to be enrolled in college to take a 101 class in the intricacies of gardening, maneuvering remote controlled helicopters, creating stained glass or baking bread. Members at Potomac Conference’s Harrisonburg and Charlottesville churches in Virginia have been tuning in weekly via Zoom to discover what hidden talents fellow district members can teach each other.
Story by Mario Thorp
For this year’s spring evangelism series, Carlos Torres, the Personal Ministries director for the New Jersey Conference, and a team of 16 young adults, led the “Encuentros de Fe y Esperanza” (Encounters of Faith and Hope) program—a study of Jesus in the gospels and a doctrinal bridge to the Seventh-day Adventist message.
Each night more than 200 families across the United States and Latin America listened to the Word of God from their electronic devices. After the meetings, the viewers were encouraged to connect with Adventists willing to talk about any subject matter they wished.
Story by Tamyra Horst
Those who know Jeannette Dare can testify she has a love and passion for people and a desire to care for them in practical ways. Dare brought this passion and care to her work as Pennsylvania Conference’s Adventist Community Services director for the last 13 years. Since 2007 she has worked to equip and encourage churches to meet the needs of their communities in practical ways, believing this would open doors for sharing the gospel. She helped churches plan programs and events with low costs adapted to their specific location.
Story by LaTasha Hewitt
Earlier this year, the Yeboah family of Allegheny East Conference's Philadelphia Ghana church had their lives turned upside down when their 7-year-old daughter, Jayzlyn, was hit by a car after exiting a school bus. As a result, she suffered a major brain injury causing her to be hospitalized for six months.
Doctors said her condition was grim and she needed to be airlifted to another hospital. But the unfavorable weather stood in the way. Doctors told the family they would have to transport her via ground travel and would need them to sign a waiver. “That’s when we knew how bad she was,” says Dickson Yeboah, Jayzlyn’s father.
Alors que la première vague de la pandémie de COVID-19 frappait le centre de l’Atlantique, les dirigeants des Services Communautaires Adventistes et de la réponse aux catastrophes (ACS) de toutel’ Union de Columbia sont intervenus pour répondre à des besoins accrus.
« Pour la première fois, de nombreuses familles ont dû chercher où trouver de la nourriture pour mettre sur leur table », explique Frank Bondurant, vice-président pour le développement des minis- tères à l’Union de Columbia, qui supervise les efforts au niveau de l’Union. « Il y a une énorme demande d’épicerie dans nos services communautaires, nos garde-manger et nos centres de collecte. »
Story by Andre Hastick
In mid-March, teachers and students across the conference were unable to meet in their respective school buildings due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. To adapt to this new reality, educators in all 11 Chesapeake Conference schools began offering comprehensive distance learning experiences for their students.
“We saw it coming and prepared ahead of time,” says Janesta Walker, superintendent of schools for Chesapeake. “We met with the teachers right before spring break to discuss what school would look like in a few weeks, and started providing online resources such as Zoom, Google Classroom and Schoology.”
Story by Lauren Brooks
On Friday, May 8, 2020, Kettering College held a virtual commencement ceremony for their spring graduates instead of an in-person ceremony, which was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Story by V. Michelle Bernard
At the start of the coronavirus pandemic, Columbia Union Conference leadership expected a 40 percent drop in tithe for the January–May 2020 quarter. “God has turned it around and has been gracious,” said Emmanuel Asiedu, Columbia Union treasurer, who reported only about a 4.5 percent drop in tithe (not all conferences experienced a drop) at a Columbia Union Conference Executive Committee meeting July 8 (via Zoom).