By RJ Walters, Editor
A buffet of spiritual food has been prepared with care — now it is only a question of who will come and sit at the table.
The Volunteers In Mission (VIM) Festival of Opportunities will offer a wealth of ideas and training on April 10 at Brighton First UMC and there’s still time to get registered.
The Detroit and West Michigan Conferences have put together a day of speakers and sessions to help equip and inspire people to serve in a myriad of different ways in places all over the globe.
The festival will take place from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and the keynote speaker is Rev. Don Gotham, a member of the executive committee of the Michigan Area Haiti Task Force and the vice chair of the Detroit Conference Board of Global Ministries.
Gotham has been heavily involved in mission outreach for 15 years and he recently returned home to St. Clair following a January trip to Haiti.
“It seems like Haiti was a pretty popular topic among volunteers recently and he was stranded following the earthquake there, so we felt it was appropriate to have him,” said John Walls, a VIM coordinator for the Detroit Conference.
What makes the festival so valuable is the number of options available:
VIM Leader Training
There will be a four-hour study of the VIM training manuals and basic training for people who want to become leaders. It will equip attendees with resources for selecting a project, organizing a team and leading them into either a domestic or overseas mission. The cost of this training is $35 with lunch provided.
Early Response Team
This is a four-hour introduction on how people can get certified to help provide relief to local communities when there is a clear need for aid in the aftermath of an emergency. ERT’s clear debris, rebuild structures, prepare food and counsel people, among other things. It is a United Methodist organization looking to grow and make a difference. The cost of ERT training is $25 with lunch provided.
Break Out Groups
People more interested in the wide-range of mission possibilities available to them and their churches will have plenty to chew on here. These will be melting pots of culture and experience as those who have started mission projects and volunteered in the past will present new challenges people may want to take on.
Not only will there be speakers chronicling mission work that can be done in places such as Poland, Haiti, Liberia, and Nicaragua to name a few — but there will be speakers from all over the state talking about ongoing work to be done in Michigan.
There will be people speaking about projects in Flint, Detroit, Grand Rapids, and even as far away as the Upper Peninsula. There will be something for all tastes, with well over a dozen different projects to consider. It will be $10 to participate in breakout sessions and enjoy lunch.
“Really there are a lot of people who want to help out and serve but they just don’t know what’s available,” Walls said. “This gives people who have been on trips a chance to share what they’ve learned and guide the rest of us.”
Walls said the registration deadline is April 6 for those who want a lunch, but the festival will accept latecomers who simply want to learn.
To register for the event contact Suzanne Walls at pastorsuew@yahoo.com or 248-459-6851. There are also registration forms available at the Detroit Area and West Michigan Conference Web sites.
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