Volunteers from Gilroy paint the new youth center at Grace Baptist Church in Dallas, Ore.
The Reverend Tim Howe, pastor of Gilroy's First Baptist Church, explains his congregation's mission activities by quoting from Acts 1:8, where Jesus tells his followers: " ... You shall bear witness to me in Jerusalem, all over Judea and Samaria, and away to the end of the earth."
The members of this Gilroy church are noted for their work in town, particularly through strong support of St. Joseph's Family Center and feeding the homeless during the winter at the National Guard Armory. Also, they support foreign missions, including an annual trip to Mexico.
This month they focused on the "middle" part of the model, not at home and not in a foreign country, when 18 adults, youth and children traveled to Grace Baptist Church in Dallas, Ore. This once-thriving congregation had fallen on hard times, and the mission trip was to help the church reinvigorate its programs to serve the people of its community.
Dallas is a city of some 15,000 residents, located about 15 miles west of Salem, the state capitol. Situated in a rural area, Grace Baptist is built on five acres, much of the land empty field.
The Gilroyans worked on three important projects during their week in Oregon:
- First was a community garden. The churches in Dallas cooperate to run a food bank to help feed the community's hungry. It was decided to use a 100- by 140-foot plot of the church's land to grow produce.
Corn, beans, tomatoes, garlic and squash had been planted earlier in the summer. The visitors helped weed the site, water the plants and pick the produce. So far, 430 pounds of vegetables have been harvested, so they are on target to exceed the goal they had set of 1,000 pounds.
- The second project was to help construct a youth center. Winters are long and wet in Oregon, and this building will give the community's teens a safe place to congregate for wholesome, fun activities.
An old barn already stood on the property; it had no floor and the walls had holes. The Gilroy church sent money ahead to purchase new siding, and while in Dallas they tore off the old boards, replaced them with new siding, and painted inside and out. Games and furniture have already begun to be donated for use in the new facility.
- The third project was to offer a vacation Bible school to residents. Since Gilroy FBC had operated a successful program called Outrigger Island earlier in the summer, the visitors replicated the experience in Dallas. School activities included:
- Bible stories
- Craft time (making items related to the Hawaiian theme, like canoe paddles)
- Snacks
- Recreation with a variety of inside and outside games
- Music which included CDs with the songs learned during the week
- A final evening with a program for parents to see what their children had been doing.
Pastor Howe feels that this week in Oregon is an example of what missions are about: "Going somewhere to be of service to others." The Gilroy group left feeling grateful for the opportunity to make new friendships and help others meet the needs of their community while introducing some people to the Lord.
For more information about this trip or other activities at First Baptist Church of Gilroy, call (408) 847-6000.
Chuck Flagg Chuck Flagg is a retired teacher with a passion for religion. Write him c/o The Dispatch, P.O. Box 22365 Gilroy, CA 95021.
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