NewsNuggets Page 65

09 Dec

CAMPION ACADEMY IMPACTS COMMUNITY FAMILY TO BE BAPTIZED

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By Muriel Indermuehle with Jill Harlow – Loveland, Colorado … After attending public schools all her life and starting her freshman year online due to COVID, Lily Testardi knew it was time for a change. She longed for a closer community in high school, so she asked her parents if they would consider sending her to boarding school.

Her father, Richard Testardi, told her to look into it and replied, “It’s a possibility, provided it is a Christian boarding school we can trust.”

Lily searched for Christian boarding schools near where they were living in Boulder and found Campion Academy. They were familiar with the area because they had previously lived in Berthoud and were excited to learn that Campion was continuing to provide in-person learning.

Richard explained, “We scheduled a tour the next day, and could instantly tell that Campion was different, that it was a place where people truly loved God and others.” The Testardis were not Seventh-day Adventists but were open to learning more about the church.

“It also felt like a place out of time,” Richard continued. “Students were less distracted and shallow than anything we had experienced recently, especially anything from public schools. Kids were not constantly on their phones, were friendly to adults, and actually had jobs in addition to school. And there were even rules (mostly about sex and drugs) that you could break and get kicked out for. Contrast that to our public schools that nearly celebrate any form of dysfunction, experimentation, or rebellion.”

In January, Richard, his wife Isobel, and Lily moved back to Berthoud and enrolled Lily as a dorm student at Campion Academy to complete her freshman year. “For the first time, we actually felt like we could trust a school with Lily’s well-being, even for overnight trips, even for trips out of the country,” Richard reflected.

The positive experience Lily had at the academy caused her and her parents to want to study the beliefs of Seventh-day Adventists. Richard shared, “We started a crash course to understand the Seventh-day Adventist denomination and found one pleasant surprise after the next (along with no shortage of controversy in this world of social media hyperbole). We found that everything hinged on Jesus, the Bible, and love! We have been totally welcomed and never judged.”

Lily, along with her mother Isobel and her father Richard, were baptized at the Campion Church on November 6th. At her baptism, Lily shared, “I know that God’s way is much better than anything I could have come up with on my own, and I know I am ready to enter into this covenant with Jesus.”

–Muriel Indermuehle, a member of the Campion Adventist Church, with Jill Harlow,  communication director for Campion Academy; photo by Anndrea Taylor

08 Dec

REFLECTION: CHRISTMAS PRESENCE

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By Jaclyn King … “When they saw the star, they were overjoyed beyond measure. Entering the house, they saw the child with Mary His mother, and falling to their knees, they worshiped Him. Then they opened their treasures and presented Him with gifts: gold, frankincense, and myrrh.“ – Matthew 2:10-11

The tradition of giving and receiving Christmas presents brings excitement to families, friends, and loved ones all over the world. Children in millions of households cheerfully anticipate the moment they patiently waited for all year — when they can finally unwrap the festive, colorfully packaged boxes and bags that hold the promise of happy treasures. Spouses carefully select the perfect gift for the other, and friends show their gratitude to one another by choosing something that represents the other person and their bond. We present each other with Christmas gifts in hopes of making connections and spreading joy.

While we’re busy picking out the perfect Christmas presents for those we hold dear, it’s easy for our minds to become entangled with the wrapping paper, boxes, bags, and bows — overlooking the real treasure therein and what it means. The tradition of giving Christmas presents began on that very first Christmas when Jesus was born. Three wise men were “overjoyed beyond measure” upon beholding God’s presence, and they gave to Him what they could — “gold, frankincense and myrrh” — as an act of worship and great love. Those earliest Christmas presents represented an exchange of a spiritual kind. God gave us the greatest gift, His Son in human form, and feeling the love of His Christmas presence, the wise men gave back to Him as a natural outpouring of their overwhelming joy. The value of their gifts had more to do with how and why they were given rather than their material worth. Giving what they had and what they could to Him, they did what God desires from each of us.

It’s often said that “God is love” and “Christmas is love.” Love is the force that causes the natural outpouring and desire to give — to honor people, connections, and relationships — bringing our relationship to God Himself full circle. Whenever we give from a place of love, whatever it may be, the gift comes from and is given back to God through caring for another person whom He loves. 1 Chronicles 29:14 reflects this truth with, “For all things come from You, and from Your own hand we have given to You,” while James 1:17 tells us, “Every good and perfect gift comes down from the Father who created all the lights in the heavens.” By remembering these verses, we become more aware of and reverent to His presence as every good and perfect gift that we give or receive is deemed holy.

Could it be that giving of ourselves is less about material presents and more about heavenly presence? A gift truly given with the intent to love, to heal, and to nurture is not only a way to make ourselves present for another, but to usher in God’s presence to that sacred space. Whether your Christmas present is a sweater to keep a loved one warm, a homecooked dinner to nourish a family in need, a toy for a child on your street, or an evening spent with someone who needs a friend, know that your presence — your act of being there, caring and giving what you can — is the real gift made possible by God’s love. When someone gives to you in this way, feel God loving you through that special person.

This Christmas season, as you check off your shopping list, try to think of your gift-giving not as an obligation but as an act of love and devotion. Turn your presents into prayers as you choose them, as you make them, as you wrap them and as you give them. Remember the first Christmas presents given by the three wise men as they stood in awe of the Son of God’s presence while Mary lovingly held Him. They traveled a long way to be there — to be present. It was their being there with Jesus that completed the gift that was already given — Him. Emmanuel, God is with us. That is Christmas presence.

–Jaclyn King contributes as an editor and writer for AdventHealth Mission Strategy, as well as AdventHealth Press. She also teaches writing and literature courses as an adjunct professor at AdventHealth University. She holds a Master’s degree in English, is mother to Julian and is passionate about living and encouraging a CREATION Life! Photo supplied.

This article was originally published on AdventHealth Creation Life website. https://blog.creationlife.com/christmas-presence/

07 Dec

COMMENTARY: GRATEFUL

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By Doug Inglish … I know it’s after Thanksgiving, but I’m grateful that I have a job and that I love it, but it would have been nice to have had the time to do this article when it was requested. Instead, I got to hop around to several cities on the first stops of our Town Hall meetings, then to my brother’s house to spend time with my siblings, kids, and dad.

During that time, I had many opportunities to reflect on what made me thankful. Of course, you can guess what a lot of them are, and maybe those things are so common as to be cliché, but that doesn’t mean we should take them for granted.

I get along with my brothers, and my dad is still sharp at age 91, and my kids are active in church, and I’m closing in on 40 years of a continuing honeymoon, and I live indoors, eat plenty, and have good health. I think I can check all the boxes and say I am grateful for all of them.

But it wasn’t just my vacation time when I was able to reflect on blessings. In the days leading up to my time off, I was in many hotels and on a lot of airplanes, away from my wife and not getting good rest. Eating on the road usually means a lot of poor choices with limited options, which was undoubtedly a factor. Meetings ran long after sunset, and I had to get up early to get through security for a flight. Through it all, I was aware of some special blessings that are mine.

I work for the Rocky Mountain Conference, so those days on the road, I saw a lot of beautiful landscapes. I went to meetings with people who care enough about the church’s mission to show up and talk with us about it. We had lots of good stuff to share with them, like a strong financial picture, a newly organized church, some baptisms, and some ordinations.

And I spent those days with Mic Thurber and Darin Gottfried, men of sound judgment and exemplary character who love the Lord and are dedicated to making good decisions and doing the Lord’s will, and who are, by the way, delightful to be around. Already it is becoming evident that we consider it a privilege to share the journey with each other, and we look forward to seeing how the Lord is using our pastors, teachers, and lay leaders to spread the gospel. We may tremble at the thought of leading those terrific people, but we know that we are not alone. We have a healthy constituency, we have solid leadership on all our committees, we have each other, and we have the Lord as our guide. More than that, we cannot ask.

I hope that when you think about your place in God’s work, that you too are grateful for what He has given you to fulfill your role. I pray that you can say that your fellow elders, or Sabbath School teachers, or school board members are godly, dedicated people with whom you delight to work. I pray that you have a budget to accomplish what must be done. I pray that you see growth.

Yes, I was grateful during the holiday. Very, very grateful. But even the tiring trip before my vacation was full of opportunities to be aware of my blessings, which made my return to the office also a happy moment.

May each act of service that you do for the church’s mission likewise be a blessed experience.

–Doug Inglish is RMC vice president of administration and stewardship director; photo by Unsplash

07 Dec

CODY COWBOYS BUILD FLOAT FOR ANNUAL CHRISTMAS PARADE

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By Samantha Nelson — Cody, Wyoming … The Cody Cowboys Pathfinders have been busy building and creating their first-ever Christmas float for the annual Cody holiday parade.

The young Pathfinders wanted to find a way to help people in the community focus on Christ’s birth this holiday season, so the float, built on a trailer bed, featured the traditional manger scene with Pathfinders dressed as the characters in the story.

While some of the kids were a little nervous at first, they got into their characters as they boarded the float, which was driven by Troy Jeffers, Cody Cowboys Pathfinder leader, through downtown Cody.

“It was a cool experience getting to be a piece of the fun on the float,” Kat, Pathfinder club member, said.

Another Pathfinder, Micah, enjoyed the experience and is looking forward to next year’s event.  “It was fun, and I’d like to do it again.”

Large crowds, gathered on each side of the street, eagerly clapped for the floats and echoed the shouts of “Merry Christmas!” and “God Bless You!” with their own return shouts.

Sherry Taylor, Powell Adventist Church member, was grateful to the community for remembering the real reason for the Christmas season.

“The Cody parade started with Jesus and the manger scene by the Cody Pathfinder group, and ended with Jesus and the manger scene from another group (except for Santa at the end), but both sides of the street clapped for Jesus, not Santa. It was awesome to see and hear; Jesus is still the reason for the season in Wyoming,” she said.

As the parade neared the end of the route, the Cowboys were having fun, and they were thinking ahead to next year in hopes of building an even bigger and better float, possibly with live animals.

“The float was a great way to bring our Pathfinder group together, and it was so much fun,” Cedar Jeffers, Cody Cowboys Pathfinder Teen Leadership trainee, said.

–Samantha Nelson is the Cody Cowboys Pathfinder Club secretary/treasurer; photos by Hardy Tyson, Janet Liptrap, Kris Black, and Loralei Jeffers

Cedar Jeffers and Katarina Black working on the banner.

01 Dec

PRESCHOOLERS ARE BACK AT HMS RICHARDS SCHOOL

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By Airi Nomura – Loveland, Colorado … HMS Richards Adventist School’s preschool program is back and growing.

Last year, the preschool program was suspended due to the pandemic, and many families were choosing to keep their youngest children at home.

Since its reopening in August, the program has seen a steady influx of students. Currently, there is only one full-time and a few part-time openings available.

Kristie Smith, preschool director and kindergarten teacher, reflecting on the influx, said, “I see God working as we keep getting more students. We are expecting two more in the next month. We need to have a certain number of students to be able to pay for our teacher’s salaries, and the Lord just keeps sending the students that we need to have here.”

The preschool program is partly combined with the kindergarten class; the unique curriculum allows the preschoolers to learn in a fun and advanced educational environment.

“We have kids in this classroom from ages three to six. For some subjects, such as math, we separate students according to age level, but for most subjects, they are combined,” Smith said.

She also explained that the teachers can adapt the curriculum for each student’s individual needs, but the combination allows younger students to work on a higher level. “Since the preschool students are often in the same class as the kindergarten students, I am able to challenge them more as they are ready,” Smith remarked.

The HMS preschoolers and kindergartners take full advantage of their unique location on Campion Academy’s campus. They walk and explore the grounds of the campus every day, as they learn outside of the classroom.

“We do a lot of outdoor education. We are learning about different types of plants or trees, and [we] identify them by their leaves,” said Smith. “We often go on letter walks, where we go over to the church, and we get to find things that begin with the letter that we are learning about.”

When asked what she loves about the school, one of the preschoolers shared, “I like being at my desk and learning. I enjoy playing with my friends, eating lunch, and playing on our playground.”

One of the greatest needs preschool and kindergarten classrooms have is substitute teachers. If you feel you could help meet this need, please email [email protected]

–Airi Nomura is a Campion Academy senior; photo supplied

30 Nov

CAMPION STAFF TURNED INTO COMEDIANS AT TALENT SHOW

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By Elizabeth Jureckova – Loveland, Colorado … Campion Academy’s staff didn’t shy away from the cheesy and embarrassing to provide laughter and needed stress relief before semester finals on November 20 at the Staff Talent Show.

Erin Johnson, English teacher, and Lindsey Santana, teacher and librarian, got the show started by comparing British and American English language and culture. Students enjoyed the cracking act.

The show continued with the audience being treated to the magical talents of Dean Helm, vice president of finance for Campion, aka Helmdini, in which he made props spontaneously appear and disappear and magically saved Lacy from the “lions”. The student involvement in Helmdini’s show created extra suspense and excitement among the students on stage and in the audience.

In a video episode of Miss Communication, Jill Harlow, communication director for Campion, shared some erroneous advice on communicating with teenagers, such as proper punctuation in texts, lengthy emails, and keeping up with the latest musical trends. Miss Communication even danced to ska music in her video, to the great amusement of the students.

After bringing the audience to their feet in a lively performance of an original rap song about Reeder’s mustache, McDiss (Carlos Santana) and Santana Hybrid (Molly Santana, women’s dean) made an exciting announcement: the girl’s dorm population will increase by one because they’re expecting another baby.

“The whole show was really fun and full of laughs, but my favorite part was the Santanas’ announcement,” said Jovanna, Campion student. “I’m happy for them, and it was special that we all got to be a part of that.”

During the show, Shannon Brown, guidance counselor with deadpan delivery, shared some very corny jokes with Jessica Rios, Bible teacher.

“I was nervous about my performance because I didn’t know if people would enjoy my jokes, but everyone was very supportive, so I enjoyed it very much. Overall, the talent show was well done and made for a wonderful evening,” Brown said.

The evening also featured many other stage acts such as Val Allen’s song about students’ favorite things at Campion, the pastors’ drawing contest, Clouzet’s “sheesh” harmonies, Principal Don Reeder as the puppet in a ventriloquist act led by Lonnie Hetterle, former RMC director of education who had practice with the gig with Ed Barnett former RMC president, and of course Jordan Dubini, men’s dean, who provided constant entertainment as the master of ceremonies.

The evening provided the chance to relax and enjoy some funny minutes before the students went back to studying for their semester finals.

–Elizabeth Jureckova is a Campion senior; photos supplied

30 Nov

CAMPION STUDENTS THANKFUL FOR ADOPT-A-STUDENT PROGRAM

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By Love Pickle – Loveland, Colorado … After a semester of receiving anonymous gifts each Sabbath, Campion Academy girls got to meet the generous families behind the Adopt-a-Student program over a Thanksgiving fellowship meal on November 20.

Campion Church members created the Adopt-a-Student program to express their love to students by bringing them weekly heart-warming gifts and treats to church. The adopted families hid their identity until the Thanksgiving meal.

Faith, a junior, expressed, “It was super fun meeting my adopted family. I wanted to see a face behind the person who gave me gifts.”

At the special gathering, students had the chance to share their appreciation for their adoptive families.

“My adopted family was the Kasts, and I had no idea. It was very nice to get to know and talk with my adoptive family while eating lunch together. I am glad I could thank them because their gifts always made my day,” Airi, senior, said.

The program has impacted many students through small acts of kindness by the Campion Church members.

The Campion Academy boys are looking forward to experiencing the Adopt-a-Student program next semester.

–Love Pickle is a senior at Campion Academy; photos supplied

30 Nov

NEWDAY CHURCH AND PARKER HOSPITAL FEED 120 FAMILIES

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By Agape Hammond – Parker, Colorado … Through a collaborative partnership, Parker Adventist Hospital and Newday Adventist church provided Thanksgiving meal boxes to 120 families in need in the Parker, Colorado community.

Newday Adventist Church has lots to be thankful for this season. On Saturday, November 20, Newday held their first-ever ThankFULL Free Farmer’s Market, a partnership between Parker Adventist Hospital and Newday.

The ThankFULL Free Farmer’s Market began after Lisa Cardinal, executive pastor at Newday, witnessed the need at the summer food giveaways.

“The number of people coming to get the fruits and veggies kept increasing. We knew the holidays would be difficult,” Cardinal said. This need, along with the partnership Newday has with Parker Adventist Hospital, drove the idea forward.

And so, the project grew. From an idea to more than 120 complete meals, including turkey, for families that otherwise might not have had Thanksgiving this year.

The look on people’s faces as they picked up their boxes of stuffing, canned yams, cranberry sauce, and of course, the big turkey, was evidence that the project was appreciated and valued by the community. It wasn’t just the people receiving the food who were blessed, but those around them as well. “You are helping so many people here; we are so grateful,” commented one community member.

Remarking on the event, Katrina White, a volunteer at Newday, said, “Our mission is to impact the community in such a positive way that if we [Newday] were no longer here, people would notice our absence.”

Milvia Lee, Newday church attendee who helped coordinate the event, loved that the whole church participated, “Everyone used their gifts in different ways. I like being able to contribute to my church.”

There is a real sense of community when Newday Adventist Church and Parker Adventist Hospital get together to help. It was a group effort with eight small groups contributing food and packing 40 of the boxes, Parker Adventist Hospital packing 90 boxes, and many others in the church loading and handing out the boxes.

–Agape Hammond is director of social media and communications at Newday Adventist Church; photos supplied

29 Nov

LA VIDA MISSION THANKFUL FOR DONATED ITEMS

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RMCNews with Dorie Panganiban – Farmington, New Mexico … La Vida Mission is thankful for the two large donations of food, supplies, and household items received in November to distribute to the Navajo Reservation.

The first donation included 26 pallets of items from the Partnership with Native Americans organization. The items included assorted food and groceries, hundreds of cases of bottled water, personal care items, personal protection equipment, cleaning supplies, and essential household commodities.

La Vida Mission staff and volunteers prepared boxes and bags from the donated items to give to 200 families at the November 19 drive-through Thanksgiving giveaway.

Dorie Panganiban, La Vida Mission office manager, expressed gratitude for the donations, saying, “Thank you, Partnership with Native Americans, for always supporting us in all our community outreach programs and initiatives and for making this possible.”

A week after receiving the considerable donation for the Navajo community family, another wave of donations arrived from the annual RMC La Vida Mission supply drive.

The annual drive, organized by Cathy Kissner, RMC Adventist Community Service director, allows churches in RMC to donate items to help with the operation of La Vida Mission.

Items ranged from office and school supplies, assorted food and groceries for the cafeteria and dorms, health, hygiene and personal care items, laundry and cleaning supplies including paper products like napkins, toilet paper, and paper towels, clothes and bedroom articles, furniture and appliances and other miscellaneous items.

“Words are inadequate to express our gratitude and thanks to Mike and Cathy Kissner, the administration of Rocky Mountain Conference, and our awesome brothers and sisters from the different churches in the conference for supporting this project and initiative,” Panganiban said

RMC members can continue to support the work of La Vida Mission by donating items throughout the year by ordering through Amazon. Please use the following address for donations:

La Vida Mission Annual Drive
700 County Road 7730 Lake Valley
Crownpoint, NM 87313

To view a video of the Thanksgiving drive-through give away, please click here https://vimeo.com/651177536

–RMCNews with Dorie Panganiban is La Vida Mission office manager; photos supplied

29 Nov

$3500 RAISED AT ANNUAL CASPER CHURCH BAKED GOOD SALE

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By Gabriela Vincent – Casper, Wyoming … The Casper, Wyoming church family gathered on November 21 for fun and fellowship, and to outbid each other for their desired baked goods at the annual baked goods sale.

A tradition looked forward to by many; the sale is designed to help raise funds to support Mountain Road Christian Academy (MRCA). By the end of the sale, more than $3500 had been raised, many items having a winning bid of $200 or more.

One of the most popular items was a rhubarb crisp donated for auction by MRCA principal Traci Pike. The item caused a bidding war between Shayne Vincent, pastor of the Casper district, and the Current family. Vincent was continually outbid and was disappointed when he lost the final bid.  What he didn’t know was that the Currents were purchasing the crisp for him. He was pleasantly surprised when they handed him the dessert.

“This tastes exactly like my grandma’s rhubarb crisp,” Vincent said after tasting it.

Fried mushrooms, fried cauliflower, nachos, hot dogs, and other concessions for the extravaganza were prepared by the Gage family, Liz Cornett and family, and Lyla McDonald.

The Casper Adventist Church is grateful for the generous donations of friends and church family at their annual baked goods sale and appreciates the volunteers who baked the delicious desserts as well as those who purchased them.

–Gabriela Vincent is the wife of Shayne Vincent, lead pastor of the Casper, Wyoming district; photos supplied.

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