williamsburg christadelphian foundation fall 2013 newsletterserving the household of faith & preaching the good news to the World

WCF—Meeting Needs With SolutionsWCF continues to respond to the funding requests of brethren from around the globe. This digital newslet-ter provides a glimpse of the different ways where donated funds and volunteer effort are channeled to meet diverse needs. Whether it be paying the hospital bills of a critically ill sister in SE Asia, or supporting a Learn to Read the Bible Effectively Seminar in Canada, the Foundation directors strive to fulfill WCF’s charter objectives of serving the Household of Faith and preaching the Good News to the world. The directors seek to insure that support is appropriate to the need. For example, sometimes ‘helping hurts’ if a First World strategy is applied to a Third World problem. As we patiently await the return of our Lord who will set all things right, WCF is thank-ful for your continuing financial support, prayers, volunteer commitments and especially the blessings of our Heavenly Father on these endeavors in His service.

Kapalpal Christadelphian School, VanuatuWhere’s Vanuatu? These picturesque islands are in the South Pacific, about 1,500 miles from Australia. This beautiful archipelago is not only noteworthy because of its stunning landscape, but also because of the spiritual inroads that have been made to spread the Good News.

The Kapalpal Christadelphian School is located on the island of Tanna in Vanuatu. The school opened its doors in 2009 and was begun in support of a brother who was volunteer teaching. The school, originally built to accommodate 70 children, was soon overburdened

IN THIS ISSUE• Building a School in Vanuatu• A Home Away from Home—The Bethézer Dorms• The First Christadelphian Haitian Conference• A White Fields Worker Profile• Support for Preaching in New Zealand• WCF Videos on Demand• Update on the Clermont Good News Centre• Supporting Small Ecclesias—Kansas City• WCF Financials

with 200 students! A second building was added in 2010 and this year, a junior secondary school has been established. The extra classes for high school have meant that space has again become a major issue. Thanks to volunteer workers and funding supplied by WCF, this summer a new building was constructed of earth-bags and timber. The students in the high school range in age from 12–20. Such an age range is not unusual in Vanuatu, where non-compulsory education can be interrupted for many reasons. The school follows the curriculum provided by the Vanuatu education department. Since Kapalpal is considered by the authorities to be a ‘mission’ school, the brethren have the freedom to teach the Good New of the Scriptures. In the primary school, Sunday School lessons are also

taught and a Bible camp is held annually.The new building is made in good part of earth

bags—synthetic bags filled with dirt. The upper half of the building is made of timber and is covered by an iron roof. Because the cost of getting materials to the island is high it was decided to employ local materials—bags of dirt and timber. Not only did this reduce building costs, but it was also a design that the local community could afford and replicate. The bags of earth would also in turn provide better protection from the cold, wind and rain compared to thatch and bamboo. It is anticipated that if built well, the earth bag homes should last much longer than those made of traditional materials. This project was facilitated by a grant of $20,000 from WCF.

The Bethézer Dormitories— A Home Away From HomeWCF has been a supporter of the Christadelphian Bethézer Fund since 2009. This Fund’s board currently operates two dormitories in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. These dorms are designed to provide 38 male and female post-secondary students free accommodation in a safe environment to facilitate their pursuit of an education in the capital. Many of these students come from the surrounding provinces and do not have the resources to cover expenses beyond basic tuition.

In addition to providing the dormitory premises, the students also have:

• Access to cooking facilities and basic ingredients (with a food fund for the poorer students)

• A spiritual education program in conjunction with the Bible Education Center in the city

• A health, nutrition and financial literacy program• An in-house basic first aid and counseling service. Recently, a limited agricultural program to support

local families has also been instituted. The Bethézer dorm students have strongly supported the 6 AM optional Bible class before their day’s activities. These students comprise more than half of the baptisms in Cambodia, all arising from a ‘touch’ initiative.

WCF has assisted Bethézer by providing funding for both ongoing expenses and one time capital costs. This support has not only allowed Bethézer to continue operating over the years, but also to improve the facilities and services offered to the students.

This year, the Bethézer Dormitories requested funding from WCF to cover the ‘Nutrition and Development Program’. This includes fellowship meals for students, a food fund for the poorer students, maintenance of a health and safety fund, and various dormitory development costs. A grant of $9,560 has been provided by WCF.

The First Christadelphian Haitian ConferenceThe ecclesia in Carrefour, Haiti has flourished since the catastrophic earthquake in 2010. The tireless work of Brother Esmath Sainval has engaged the local community in different ways:

• Through the establishment of a primary school in conjunction with Meal-a-Day of the Americas

• Through the creation of a neighborhood youth group

• By hosting a day-long presentation for over 120 ministers and religious leaders of local churches

The purpose of that presentation was to encourage them to critically look at their doctrines in light of Bible teaching. All of these activities have heightened local interest and led this past September to the inaugural Christadelphian Bible Conference on the island. Although this Conference was primarily geared towards the ecclesia in Haiti, invitations were also extended to interested friends and associates. Brethren John Pople and Bruce Parker presented a number of adult classes assisted by a cohort of energetic brothers and

sisters from North America: Matt Drabenstott, Janine Finlay, Rachel Johnson, Lori Rayner, Maggie Schlageter; coordinated by Bro Steve Johnson.

Such projects rely on outside funding because of the limited resources of resident local brethren. Everything from meals and transportation to advertising circulars and chairs needed to be purchased. Estimated costs of $6,000 were initially covered by a WCF underwriting guarantee and subsequently defrayed by earmarked donations.

Sister Tammy, making a “noticeable and heartwarming” difference.

A White Field Worker ProfileSister Tabby RyanTabitha (Tabby) Ryan is planning to return to Kamukuywa, Kenya in January 2014 for a year’s stay to teach at the Agape in Action Academy. A teacher by profession, Tabby wrote, I will be teaching the first principles course as part of the school curriculum and also helping out leading Bible studies at night time with the students that live at the school. Sunday School teaching and visits to other ecclesias will also form part of the work I do there. I believe it is important as much as possible for the locals to run their ecclesial activities, however, as there are only two qualified Christadelphian teachers in the school I think I can be of great value there. Also, as being the only female Christadelphian teacher I believe I will be able to have a real positive impact on the female students in particular.

Having self-funded previous mission work in Cambodia and an earlier trip to Kenya, Tabby has clear set objectives. I hope to provide my teaching skills for the school and encourage the students who live there. On my

last visit, the deputy principal spoke to me and said that the difference in the students over the month we were there was noticeable and heartwarming. Having a younger adult around to whom they could ask questions and discuss the Bible with was something that really positively impacted the students.

Personally, I hope to gain a lot of experience and information about the conditions in Kenya so that upon return to Australia I can advocate for the brethren living

here. After studying teaching for four years I am excited to be able to put my qualifications and experience to work in a Christadelphian school where I can not only teach my relevant subject areas but also teach Bible studies and first principles. I hope to return home motivated to encourage others to preach.

If you are interested in working in the mission field for 6 months or longer and require funding to make this a reality, consider applying as a White Field Worker. The applications can be downloaded from our website, http://wcfoundation.org/wf/white-field-application/

Support for Preaching in New ZealandThe brothers and sisters of the Hastings, NZ ecclesia are preparing to host a national preaching campaign, which will be held, God willing, January 2–8, 2014.

Although the campaign will be hosted by the Hastings ecclesia, they’ve received strong volunteer support from many ecclesias throughout New Zealand, and the brethren are hoping that this might spark a resurgence in preaching campaigns in the country. In particular, the young people are being strongly encouraged to attend; it is hoped that the experience of preaching in such an open and exciting environment will be invaluable to their spiritual development. The campaign is based on the theme of “The Bible for Life” with their slogan being “Live Life with Hope”.

In conjunction with the public talks, the brethren

are planning to rent a storefront where they will be running a variety of ‘hands-on’ workshops dealing with topics such as addiction, marriage, parenting and finances—topics that focus on the practical outworking of the Christian faith, run by qualified brothers and sisters. As with any venture such as this, finances play a very important role. Renting an appropriate venue, marketing the campaign together with food, hospitality and accommodation can all add up quickly. To help defray these costs, WCF was approached for financial assistance. The Foundation was pleased to respond with a grant of $4,000 as requested by the 2014 Hastings Campaign steering committee.

If your ecclesia is planning a public outreach effort, the cost of which exceeds ecclesial resources, you are invited to ask WCF to serve as a funding partner.

Update— The Clermont Good News CentreLast year WCF provided a grant of over $35,000 to the COPT volunteer project team to address much needed repairs and improvements at the Clermont facility. The property is home to the Clermont ecclesia and also includes a residence. The property was terraced to control water runoff; a retaining wall was installed to increase the area of usable land and a proper walkway was laid to accommodate infirm members. Sanitary improvements, garden plots and accommodations for a resident caretaker were also part of the overall plan. After some deliberation it was deemed best to build a new structure on leased land to house the Clermont Good News Centre, rather than repair the existing building.

Pictured is the new building fronting the street and protected by the surrounding retaining wall. Three young friends look forward to this welcome addition to their community. Many thanks are extended to Brother Grant Larsen—project supervisor and master builder—together with his team of dedicated volunteers!

Now Available— WCF Videos On DemandThe WCF website has been upgraded to now feature video on demand. The Foundation has produced a number of videos to serve as educational and outreach tools. Many of these titles are available in various languages; some are even closed-captioned. The full-length videos can be previewed online or downloaded. Go to http://wcfoundation.org/resources/on-demand-wcf-videos/ and view our offerings.

If you’d like DVDs for your personal or ecclesial outreach efforts be sure to visit the WCF Store. Go to store.wcfoundation.org. Perhaps consider screening one of the videos in ‘God’s Family Around the World’—

Russia, Jamaica, India, El Salvador or Ireland—at an ecclesial lunch-and-learn.

WCF FinancialsJanuary 1–November 22, 2013Income: $710,509Expenses:Pastoral & Preaching: $861,396Welfare: $153,298Services: $10,912Administrative: $12,580Other: $17,403Total Expenses: $1,055.589Net Income: ($345,080)

The projects highlighted in this Newsletter—and others like them—are dependent upon the generosity of our donors. Kindly consider assisting WCF in its service to the Household of Faith and preaching the Good News to the world through your prayers, ideas and financial support.

Donations may be sent to our treasurer, Brother Ray Pratt P.O. Box 88 Deland, IL 61839.

Supporting Small EcclesiasKansas CityBrothers and Sisters who may be seeking employment and are willing to relocate or who may be looking for a new avenue to serve in the Lord’s vineyard are invited to consider strengthening a small ecclesia. This issue features the Kansas City Ecclesia.

Looking for a wonderful place to live and worship? Please consider Kansas City. You will find jobs in everything from health care to engineering to IT. Among the excellent companies that call KC home are Cerner, Garmin, Hallmark, H&R Block, and Sprint. Kansas City enjoys one of the lowest costs of living among U.S. major cities. We have outstanding public schools, colleges and universities. We have beautiful rolling vistas along the Missouri River—and the best barbecue in the

nation. Above all, you will find a small ecclesia with a big heart and a loving spirit. We welcome families seeking a new home. For more information please contact Bro. Mark Drabenstott: mark.kc@sbcglobal.net.

Looking for a wonderful place to live and worship? Please consider Kansas City.