ALBERTA CONFERENCE
TOWN
HALL MEETING 2 0 2 1
Our Mission:
To reach Alberta and the Northwest Territories with the distinctive, Christ-centred, Seventh-day Adventist message of hope and wholeness.
Introduction 4
Agenda 5
ADMINISTRATION REPORTS
President’s Report 7
Executive Secretary/Vice President’s Report 8
CFO/Treasurer’s Report 12
DIRECTOR REPORTS
ABC Christian Store Report 19
Communication/IT/Media Report 21
Education Report 26
Foothills Camp Report 28
Compassion Ministries 2020 and 2021 Report 30
Ministerial/Evangelism/Church Planting Report 32
Planned Giving & Trust Services/Philanthropy 34
Risk Management/Property Management/ Transportation Safety and Compliance Report 36
Youth Ministry Report 38
Uniformed Ministries Report 40
Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
CONTENTS
VOLUNTEER REPORTS
Alberta Adventist Prison Ministry Organization (AAPMO) Report 43
Prayer Ministries Report 46
Central Alberta Church Planting Report 48
Church Plant Coordinator Southern Region Report 49
SAGE Report 49
Women's Ministry Retreat Coordinator Report 50 3
Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
INTRODUCTION Dear Town Hall Participant, Thank you so much for taking the time from your busy schedule to attend this Town Hall Meeting. Your attendance indicates a real interest and commitment on your part. The purpose of a town hall meeting is to hear reports from Administration as well as directors on what has been taking place in the Alberta Conference over the last three years and plans for the balance of this session. An opportunity will be given to ask any questions you might have concerning these reports. Many inquiries have already been submitted by email and will likely be addressed in the administrative and departmental reports given. This meeting will not be the occasion for taking questions that uniquely pertain to only a single church, as this will not be of interest to everyone. It is better to address these specific questions in a meeting with local church personnel. We look forward to being with you very soon.
Pastor Gary Hodder President of the Alberta Conference of the Seventh-day Adventist Church
4
Welcome – Gary Hodder Worship – Gary Hodder Officer's Reports •
Gary Hodder – President
•
Wayne Williams – Executive Secretary/ Vice President for Administration
•
Keith Richter – CFO/Treasurer
Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
AGENDA
Introduction of Directors/Reports •
George Ali – Ministerial & Evangelism Director
•
Enock Oduro – Compassion Ministries Volunteer Coordinator
•
Lynn McDowell – Planned Giving & Trust Services/Philanthropy Director
•
Troy McQueen – Foothills Camp Director
•
Lyle Notice – Youth Director
•
Eric Ollila – Communication, IT, Media Director
•
Llew Werner – Risk Mananagment, Project Development
•
Gail Wilton – Education Director
•
Larry Wilton – ABC Christian Store Manager
Questions & Answers Adjournment/Prayer
5
ADMINISTRATION REPORTS
Motto—Prepare a people for the soon return of Jesus Key directives for Alberta Conference during this session: 1. Evangelism continued to be a dominant priority •
Largest budget per member of any conference in Canada.
•
Continue to grow at about 2%—goal is to reach 3% short- term and 5% long-term.
•
Recently passed the 12,000-member mark; next milestone will be 13,000-member mark.
2. Education and youth remain a strong focus of our work in Alberta
•
Summer Camp Programs.
•
Youth Director initiated programs — events and Mission trips.
4. Native Work: •
Mamawi Atosketan Native School (MANS) is our only native school in Alberta and all of Canada.
•
Over 200 children from the Maskwacis community attend MANS K-12 school.
•
We have hopes of putting a church in Maskwacis over the next few years.
•
Over 1,300 students in 2021 — growing at about 5% per year.
•
Currently have 11 schools.
•
•
Recently contributed $250,000 of special support toward these schools.
Desire to see more of our own buildings in the Conference.
•
Increase support from $10,000 to $100,000 towards this objective.
3. Youth Support: •
Schools, see #2 above.
•
Alberta Conference provides one chaplain to each of its high schools, in addition to providing 1.5 chaplains to Burman University.
•
Youth programs for various ages: Adventurers, Pathfinders, Master Guides.
Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
President’s Report
5. New Churches:
6. Foothills Camp: •
Many new improvements.
•
Additional plans to accommodate more of our members to participate in camp.
7. Parkview Adventist Academy — Burman University has asked the Alberta Conference to assume responsibility to build a facility and run this school going forward.
Submitted by Gary Hodder President
7
Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
Secretariat Statistical Report November 29, 2021
Alberta Conference Year-to-Date Membership Comparison (2015-2021) 12400 12200 12000 11800 11600 11400 11200 11000 10800 10600
11879 11265
12111
12217
12251
11881
11567
Ending Count
2015 2
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
As of September 28, 2021
Alberta Conference Year-to-Date Growth Comparison (2015-2021)
2.5
1.88
2
1.5
2 1.42
1.37
1
0.36
0.5
0
-0.19 2015
2016
-0.5 3
8
As of September 28, 2021
2017
2018
2019
2020
0.04 2021
Alberta Conference Year-to-Date Baptism Comparison (2015-2021) 102
173
65
151 216
192 222
2015
4
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
Year
Baptism
2015
173
2016
216
2017
222
2018
192
2019
151
2020
65
2021
102
Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
Secretariat Statistical Report
2021
As of September 28, 2021
Alberta Conference Year-to-Date Added By Comparison (2015-2021) 250 216 200 150
222 192
173
168
151
134
100 65
64
50 19 0
Baptism
36 11
73
2016
2017
2018
91
54
49 43
25 28
Professon Of Faith
2015
5
126
102
2019
Letter Received
2020
2021
As of September 28, 2021
9
Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
SECRETARIAT STATISTICAL REPORT
Alberta Conference Year-to-Date Dropped By Comparison (2015-2021) 200 166 150
100 58 50
45
62 59 30
43
43 37
48
50
60
57 51
45
42
14 6
0
Letter Granted
Deceased
46 19
14
29
Removed
6
2016
2017
2018
As of September 28, 2021
Submitted by Wayne Williams Executive Secretary/VP for Administration
10
2019
2020
2021
29
15
-3
-50
2015
52
46
Missing -18
THE NEW ALBERTA CONFERENCE BRANDING GUIDELINES ARE AVAILABLE ONLINE
albertaadventist.ca/branding
Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
CFO/Treasurer’s Report GROSS/NET TITHE 18000000
16000000
14000000
$17,063,055
16,641,291
$16,604,797
$16,331,312
$17,500,284
$16,318,769
$16,903,434
$15,562,520 $14,158,898
$14,590,294
12,376,810
12,327,801
12,169,429
11,577,524
12000000 10,557,498
12,183,976
12,769,055
13,121,736
12,709,271
10,854,539
10000000
8000000
6000000
4000000
2000000
0
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
TITHE INCREASE 12%
10%
10% 8%
7%
7%
6%
4.6%
4%
3%
2.6%
2% 0.2% 0% -2% -4%
12
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
-0.1% 2017
2018
2019
2020
-1.9% -3.4%
2020
REVENUE COMPARISON $18 $16 $14 $12
Millions
$10 $8 $6
13.36
13.66
15.22
14.27
15.32
15.21
16.82
15.99
15.05
15.65
$4 $2
Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
CFO/Treasurer’s Report
$2011
2012
2011
2013
2012
2014
2013
2014
2015
2016
2015
2017
2016
2017
2018
2018
2019
2019
2020
2020
REVENUE COMPARISON 18000000 16000000 14000000 12000000 10000000 8000000 6000000 4000000 2000000 0
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
-2000000 Revenues
Net Tithe
Subsidies
Donations
Investment Earnings
Other
Dept Fees and Sales
Residence Rent Income
Matured Deferred Gifts
Restricted Revenue
Total Revenue
13
EXPENDITURE COMPARISON $18 $16 $14 $12 Millions
Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
CFO/Treasurer’s Report
$10 $8 $6
11.25
13.27
14.74
15.53
16.29
16.13
15.29
16.27
16.51
$4
15.73
$2 $2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
EXPENSE INCREASE 18000000 16000000 14000000 12000000 10000000 8000000 6000000 4000000 2000000 0
14
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
Expenditures
Church Mini stries
Educational
Retirement
Special Servi ces
Other Programs
Administration
Conv/Mtgs
BLDG/Equip
Campground
Rental Residence
Total Expenditures
2020
2020 PERCENTAGE OF EXPENDITURES PER FUNCTION Administration-Office Resources 10%
Campground 4%
BLDG/EQP Oper 1%
Rental Residence 1%
Conventions and Meetings 0%
Other Programs 5% Special Services 2%
Church Ministries 42%
Retirement and Other 9%
Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
CFO/Treasurer’s Report
Educational 26%
ANNUAL EXPENSE COMPARISON $9,000,000 $8,000,000 $7,000,000
Amount
$6,000,000 2015
$5,000,000
2016 2017
$4,000,000
2018 2019
$3,000,000
Series13 $2,000,000 $1,000,000 $-
Church Mini stries
Educational
Retirement Special Servi ces
Other Programs
Administration
Conv/Mtgs
BLDG/Equip
Campground
Rental Residence
Area
15
Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
CFO/Treasurer’s Report
NET UNRESTRICTED ASSETS 16,000,000 14,426,846 14,000,000
13,404,633 12,758,996
13,095,479
12,000,000
11,316,078 10,186,016
10,000,000
9,877,626
9,774,103
9,797,697
9,709,101
2017
2018
2019
2020
8,000,000
6,000,000
4,000,000
2,000,000
0
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
ABC FINANCIAL COMPARISON 2000000
1500000
1000000
500000
0
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
-500000 Total Revenue
16
COGS
Admin/Office Resources
Bldg/Equip
Total Expenses
Net Income/Loss
CONSOLIDATION SCHOOLS/EDUCATION Revenue
Revenue
Expense
Expense
(Loss)
Conference Owed
Actual
Budgeted
Actual
Budgeted
Net Profit
Accounts Receivable
2016-17 11,559,477.00
10,080,800.00
12,169,743.00
9,991,315.00
- 610,266.00
2,108,375.00
2017-18 11,644,779.08
10,254,123.00
11,914,585.00
9,897,213.00
- 269,805.92
2,080,890.00
2018-19 13,930,621.00
10,933,785.00
14,422,534.00
10769383
- 491,913.00
2,495,439.00
2019-20 13,607,296.00
13,441,597.00
13,725,458.00
13,306,486.00
- 118,162.00
1,777,093.00
2020-21 13,958,159.28
12,640,981.05
12,334,642.35
12,320,463.51
1,623,516.93
619,742.40
Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
CFO/Treasurer’s Report
** We have reduced revenue by $550,658.92 as this amount was a one-time building project donation.
Submitted by Keith Richter CFO/Treasurer
17
DIRECTOR REPORTS
MISSION AND PURPOSE The idea of an Adventist Book Centre has been a key element within the Seventhday Adventist Church from its earliest beginnings. Church pioneers quickly recognized the need and engaged in printing materials, not only for the spiritual nourishment and growth of its members, but to reach beyond its doors into the surrounding communities. In the spirit of the pioneers, the ABC Christian Store, formerly Adventist Book Centre, continues its mission to church members and seeks out new avenues for reaching into the larger community around us.
STAFFING In 2001, when I first began working at the ABC, we had about 12 employees. Over the years, several things have happened that have had an impact on staffing needs. Today, we have only six employees: Penny Van Petten Part-time Janitorial (also bags bulk foods) Sol Arizelle Agdon Part-time Sales Associate Ruby Casipe Head Sales Associate/Order Desk/ Customer Service/Shipping Ken McPherson Bookmobile Operator Laurie Stickle Assistant Manager/Accountant Larry N. Wilton Manager
BOOKMOBILE OPERATION/ FEBRUARY FOOD SALE The ABC Christian Store in Alberta continues to operate a successful bookmobile program. Ken McPherson, who has been looking after that program since February 2002, is in Edmonton and Calgary with the bookmobile each month. Since the beginning of COVID, the bookmobile has visited other areas in both the Alberta and Man/Sask conferences in April, July, and October. Except for Regina and Winnipeg, the bookmobile normally visits those areas only during April and October. In addition to the regular bookmobile schedule, Ken also drives our delivery truck to drop off prepaid orders during the month of February.
Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
ABC Christian Store Report
IMPACT FROM OTHER BUSINESSES Up until a few years ago, the impact on the ABC from other businesses was not felt as keenly as it is in today’s market. We have always realized the success of an ABC is due, in large part, to sales of diverse products. Traditionally, that has been primarily vegetarian and/ or vegan foods. With the increased interest and availability of a large variety of vegetarian/vegan options in the grocery stores, it has become a real challenge to the ABC to remain competitive. Consequently, we have had to broaden our view to include a much wider diversity of products, like, for example, Maison Berger air freshening and purifying products. In recent months, we have included Indigenous artwork, which is doing well for us. When was the last time you thought of the ABC as a place to shop for kids’ bikes and scooters? Now you can!
19
Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
ABC Christian Store Report EQUIPMENT PURCHASES Since the last Town Hall meeting, we have had to purchase a new truck for the bookmobile. In October 2020, the need arose to replace the one we’ve had for nearly 20 years. The cost of doing that was in the neighborhood of $28,000.00. We are currently undergoing some repairs to the trailer portion of the bookmobile as well. IMMEDIATE GOALS Over the past year, we have purchased new software that has enabled us to build an e-commerce site for the ABC Christian Store. The initial cost for this is approximately $15,000.00. We have now gone live with nearly all our food products, some of our books and giftware, and are adding new products almost daily.
Submitted by Larry Wilton ABC Christian Store Manager
20
Please visit us at abcchristianstore.ca. We look forward to seeing you there! LONG-TERM GOALS While we continue to view our mission and purpose as one of the ministries of the church, it is with the realization that it needs to be a ministry that supports itself. It is therefore built on a business model and continually seeking new ways and products that can help us achieve our goals. FINANCIAL Despite the added challenges brought on by COVID, the ABC continues to hold its own during these very difficult and trying times. We thank you for your continuing support and are glad for the opportunity to serve.
Motto—Communicating for Change
TEAM Eric Ollila Director Nanette Quines Administrative Assistant Scott Nischuk IT Support Specialist Glen Holly Occupational Health & Safety/Education/IT
PURPOSE Communication/Media The multi-faceted role of the Communications
Department is to communicate with constituents on behalf of the Alberta Conference Administration, connect with communities throughout Alberta and the Northwest Territories about the Seventh-day Adventist Church and its ministries, either directly or indirectly through local church communication directors, and serve as a resource for pastors, principals, teachers, local church leaders, and conference office departmental directors and support staff.
Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
Communication/IT/Media Report
Information Technology (IT) The purpose of the Information Technology Department is to oversee, acquire, operate, and maintain computing and telecommunication facilities, equipment, services, and other IT solutions of the Alberta Conference.
COMMUNICATION ACTIVITY SINCE AUGUST 15, 2018 167
Weekly eNews (published issues) Alberta Adventist News (AAN) Magazine (published issues)
13
Canadian Adventist Messenger (published articles)
19
ALL SOCIAL CHANNELS (FB, TW, IG, LI, YT)
2018
2019
2020
2021 (Jan–Oct)
Fans/Followers
N/A
5,346
5,547
7,597
Published Posts
N/A
N/A
1,718
3,428
21
Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
22
Communication/IT/Media Report SOCIAL CHANNELS PERFORMANCE (FB, TW, IG, LI, YT)
2018
2019
2020
2021 (Jan–Oct)
Impressions
12,174
314,322
344,168
242,445
Engagements
383
14,930
16,471
11,263
Post Link Clicks
130
1,410
2,451
1,419
2018
2019
2020
2021 (Jan–Oct)
Facebook Fans (Total)
1,380
2,496
2,645
2,984
Main Page Fans
1,380
1,682
1,812
1,914
Youth Page Fans
N/A
814
833
1,070
FACEBOOK PERFORMANCE
2018
2019
2020
2021 (Jan–Oct)
Impressions
N/A
146,190
170,188
122,114
Engagements
N/A
11,529
11,396
6,041
Post-link Clicks
N/A
969
1,804
993
2018
2019
2020
2021 (Jan–Oct)
Twitter Followers
2,208
2,675
N/A
3,558
TWITTER PERFORMANCE
2018
2019
2020
2021 (Jan–Oct)
Impressions
12,174
128,303
128,677
89,980
Engagements
373
2,222
3,916
2,983
Post-link Clicks
130
441
643
281
2018
2019
2020
2021 (Jan–Oct)
Instagram Followers
N/A
~180
~200
246
INSTAGRAM PERFORMANCE
2018
2019
2020
2021 (Jan–Oct)
Impressions
N/A
39,829
45,180
27,122
Engagements
N/A
1,179
759
596
Post-link Clicks
N/A
39
18
36
2018
2019
2020
2021 (Jan–Oct)
LinkedIn Followers
N/A
N/A
32
134
LINKEDIN PERFORMANCE
2018
2019
2020
2021 (Jan–Oct)
Impressions
N/A
N/A
N/A
3229
Engagement
N/A
N/A
N/A
285
Post-link Clicks
N/A
N/A
N/A
145
YOUTBE
2018
2019
2020
2021 (Jan–Oct)
Video Views
N/A
N/A
15,930
31,560
Estimated Minutes Watched (days:hours:minutes)
N/A
N/A
103:06:29
285:12:05
ENEWS
2018
2019
2020
2021 (Jan–Oct)
eNews Subscribers
396
445
602
789
AAN MAGAZINE REACH (DIGITAL VERSION)
2018
2019
2020
2021 (Jan–Oct)
Reads
646
5,712
3,442
7,408
Impressions
5,467
23,130
13,447
26,688
Average Read Time (minutes:seconds)
0:04:42
0:03:39
0:02:52
0:03:15
Clicks
0
7
1
56
Desktop 42% Phone 58%
GOAL #1: Develop, establish, and
maintain a first-rate IT, communication, and media infrastructure, corresponding support systems, delivery, and communication channels.
Milestones reached: 1. Completed migration to Cloud for admin office—Microsoft Office 365, Azure, Azure AD, Azure VMs, DVDs. 2. Provided Microsoft Office 365 with Teams for every employee and offered Microsoft Office 365 with Teams and audio conferencing to every church officer and board member.
Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
Communication/IT/Media Report
Canada, USA, Mexico, Guatemala, Jamaica, Dominican Republic, Trinidad and Tobago, Brazil, Bolivia, Chile, Argentina, Ireland, United Kingdom, France, Spain, Italy, Germany, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Slovakia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Greece, Romania, Lebanon, United Arab Emirates, Ghana, Togo, Nigeria, Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda, Kenya, Angola, Tanzania, Mozambique, South Africa, Botswana, India, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, Philippines, Australia, Taiwan, South Korea
3. Delivered fully integrated Zoom/Office 365 option for churches that desire Zoom. 4. Upgraded network, wiring, and fiber internet for Alberta Conference admin office. 5. Digitization of Alberta Conference storage and archives. 6. Raised the minimum allowed quality standard and initiated a more robust systematic rotation of computer machines, warranty, and replacement protocols for Alberta Conference office and support staff and significantly reduced downtime due to troubleshooting and repair of office staff computers compared to previous years. 23
Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
Communication/IT/Media Report
Debbie Schwarz and Enock Oduro; Stories of Strength filming for Virtual Camp 2021.
PAA IT room — New build.
7. Completed the first-ever IT audit for Alberta Conference office.
helpdesk. Further work is underway to secure a 24/7/365 helpdesk support team for the conference and its 100 subsidiaries. We are also in the process of implementing a CRM with ticketing capabilities.
8. Completed Stage 1 of the first-ever IT audit for education in five of eleven Alberta Conference schools (College Heights Christian School, Parkview Adventist Academy, Coralwood Adventist Academy, Chinook Winds Adventist Academy, Mamawi Atosketan Native School). 9. Spearheaded and completed the first stage of CRM implementation and the new Shopify website for the ABC Christian Bookstore. 10. Ordered and reserved Starlink from SpaceX for Foothills Camp and Retreat Centre (scheduled delivery in 2022). Starlink provides high-speed, low-latency broadband internet across the globe via satellite. 11. Planned, developed, and implemented IT infrastructure for the new Parkview Adventist Academy building. 12. Initiated an exploratory and prelaunch phase of a conference-wide IT 24
GOAL #2: Training and equipping of employees and office staff Milestones reached: 1. We have held multiple Microsoft Office 365 and Teams training events facilitated and taught by Microsoft employees. We have had onsite and virtual training events for Microsoft Office 365, Teams, SharePoint, and Outlook. 2. Website training — Adventist Church Connect offers free training for all Adventist churches and schools. We have been encouraging church web admins to take advantage of the free training and coaching provided through Adventist Church Connect. Multiple churches have started, and the Micro Schools started down the path as well.
GOAL #3: Promote department, technology, publications, and media outlets (website, social media, eNews) Milestones reached: a. Continue to speak/promote publications and initiatives in churches. b. Ongoing weekly promotions of key conference media channels, including social media, eNews, AAN Magazine, websites, and SMS text service
c.
Continue to develop, encourage, and foster more extensive administrative, departmental, and organizational branding promotion.
d. Developed new Alberta Conference branding and branding guidelines that meet the global identity standards (albertaadventist.ca/branding)
Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
Communication/IT/Media Report
Submitted by Eric Ollila Director | Communications/Information Technology/Media
Did you know that the Alberta Conference offers free Microsoft Office 365 E1 licenses for all church officers? For more information email helpdesk@albertaadventist.ca Certain limits and exceptions apply. Microsoft E1 Licenses are web-based only Microsoft E3 and E5 licenses are available upon request. Charges will apply.
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Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
Education Report The Alberta Conference operates eleven schools within the province as part of a worldwide educational system. Our schools were privileged to educate:
̵
South Side Christian School
•
1,091 students in 2018-2019
̵
Sylvan Meadows Adventist School
•
1,060 students in 2019-2020
̵
Woodlands Adventist School
•
1,243 students in 2020-2021
̵
Peace Hills Adventist School
•
For the current school year, we have an enrollment of 1,316 students and are still growing!
•
That is an increase of 273 students over five years.
EDUCATION LEADERSHIP TEAM Mildred Weiss Data Coordinator/Education Support Glen Holly Health and Safety/Education Support/IT Tricia Gabrys Learning Coach Brent van Rensburg Associate Director Gail Wilton Education Director School Principals Steven Gabrys College Heights Christian School Rayette Hetland Coralwood Adventist Academy Bruce Fillier Chinook Winds Adventist Academy
26
Chris Dubyna District Principal for Micro Schools
Tami Braman Higher Ground Christian School Michael Willing Mamawi Atosketan Native School Holly Kay Parkview Adventist Academy David Elias Prairie Adventist Christian eSchool DISTRICT EXPANSION Parkview Adventist Academy has recently come under the jurisdiction of the Alberta Conference. This current school year began with a great deal of excitement for PAA with the occupancy of a brand new, beautifully designed school building that is located directly across the street from College Heights Christian School, in Lacombe. Already this year, they have begun a wonderful partnership between the two schools as they share facilities, teachers, and students. SPIRITUAL HIGHLIGHTS •
Our school division has been truly blessed with the baptisms of 156 students in the past five years.
•
Annual Principals Spiritual Retreat, in-person and virtual during COVID
•
SDACC Teachers Convention, with a spiritual emphasis
•
Student spiritual leadership opportunities
•
Week of Prayer
•
Encounter Bible Curriculum
•
Outdoor Education Programs
GRADUATION •
Over the past five years, our Alberta Conference schools have graduated 200 students from our five high schools (these numbers include PAA for the 2020-2021 school year).
•
During the same period, our schools have graduated 433 kindergarten students.
•
This current year, we have 66 grade-12 students and 87 kindergarten students enrolled in our programs.
Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
Education Town Hall Report
Submitted by Gail R. Wilton Education Director
+
Integrated Microsoft Office 365 and Zoom licenses are available for a special discount for all Alberta Conference Churches. Contact us today for more information and pricing: OFFICE 365 + ZOOM helpdesk@albertaadventist.ca
27
Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
Foothills Camp Report November 2021 Foothills Camp has been a very different place since the COVID-19 pandemic. Many of you are aware that Foothills Camp was shut down and most all camp staff were temporarily laid off at one point because of COVID-19. With that said, most staff are now back to work, and things are looking bright for the future. This is a short report to share with you some of the things that have been accomplished at Foothills Camp over the past few years. Foothills Camp is a very busy place and requires a dedicated staff to keep things running smoothly. Typically, Foothills Camp is booked approximately 40 weekends per year by church groups, Pathfinder groups, outdoor survival groups, retreat groups, minicamp meetings, boy scouts, and girl guides. Youth and family camp programs run steady from May until the end of August. These programs include outdoor school, Adventurer family camp, Camp Meeting, junior camp, teen camp, Sherwood Forest, and others. COMPLETED PROJECTS There is not enough room in this report to list everything that was completed at Foothills Camp over the past few years, so I’ve chosen to highlight some items that stand out:
28
•
New gates have been installed for security purposes at each camp entrance, as has new fencing along part of the front property.
•
Foothills Camp was approved by Alberta Transportation as well as Red Deer and Mountain View Counties to have four new highway signs installed that direct visitors to the camp.
•
Another new addition to the camp is a beautiful memorial garden that has been designed and built by Ted and Dorothy Proud.
•
A new road has been built to Sherwood Forest that steers vehicles away from the eroded riverbank.
•
Six furnaces have been replaced in the lodge with new, highly efficient units.
•
Trail maintenance and improvements are ongoing, and a couple new trails have been added.
•
Some major repair was completed for the road going to the Education Centre, and an area for parking was implemented. This should make any visit to the Education Centre a lot more accessible and cleaner.
•
Cracked plumbing was excavated under the RV washroom building and repaired.
•
A new access road has been built from the main driveway to the treed RV section.
•
The field east of the RV section was tilled and seeded last year, providing its first crop this fall.
•
All rooms in cabin block D have been repainted, and new led lights were installed.
•
Old fireplaces in the lodge dining room and lower meeting
room were replaced with new gas fireplace inserts.
completely renovated with new showers, sinks, and toilet stalls.
•
A new water treatment system was installed to help reduce rust buildup in the waterlines.
•
Five rooms on the lower east side of the lodge were renovated into four rooms, each with their own ensuites.
•
Outdoor equipment repairs: twenty BMX bikes have been repaired, as have nine canoes, in preparation for next summer camp.
•
A vaper barrier and insulation was installed in the crawl space of the white church to help protect it from moisture.
•
The camp nursing station has been renovated with new paint, LED lighting, and some newer equipment (oxygen machine and motorized hospital bed).
•
A new mobile rock wall was purchased for use at summer camps.
•
Two new hot water tanks were installed in the lodge.
•
New tables and chairs have been purchased and put into place at the lodge dining room.
•
New identification signs have been added to the front of the main buildings along the paved walk and on the cabin blocks.
•
All the building roofs at the camp have been redone.
•
The lower lodge meeting room has been renovated with LED lights and new fire protective drop ceiling tiles.
•
A sagging beam was replaced in the lodge entrance, and a new ceiling was installed.
•
The public washrooms in the lodge upstairs and downstairs have been
Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
Foothills Camp Report
PLANS & NEEDS Plans are in place to continue with more lodge room renovations, grounds improvements, RV washroom renovations, and new outhouses at Sherwood Forest. The lodge foundation still needs to be parged, which involves a new layer of cement over top of the existing bricks. The camp desperately needs a heated, covered storage building because there is no place to store equipment and supplies. My wish list for the camp this coming year is to have a few drinking fountains installed around the grounds at integral locations, a play structure installed in the RV section for kids to enjoy, and a skid steer to help with an increasing amount of grounds work as well as snow removal for sidewalks, roads, and parking areas.
Submitted by Troy McQueen Foothills Camp Director
29
Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
Compassion Ministries 2020 and 2021 Report 1. Assumed office of Volunteer Director in March 2020. 2. Compassion Ministries Executive Committee with ten members: Walt Kalkan, Staci Gunsam, Annie Holness, Joseph Gakwerere, Andrea Stewart, Pastor David Guzman, Pamela Cameron, and Pastor Daniel Saugh as ex-officio. 3. In 2020, undertook the mapping of our local churches with community services engagements in the conference. 4. In 2020, the Alberta Conference, through the Alberta Community Services (ACS) Small Projects Grant, supported seven projects implemented by seven local churches in the amount of $30,000. 5. Again, in 2020, North American Division Adventist Community Services (NAD ACS), through ADRA Canada, also supported four projects through the Fort McMurray, Lethbridge, and West Edmonton churches and the Red Deer Soup Kitchen with $35,250 in support of COVID-19 food relief.
Submitted by Enock Oduro Compassion Ministries Volunteer Coordinator
30
6. This year, the Alberta Conference, through ACS Small Projects Grants supported 18 projects through 16 local churches with $47,300, an increase of over 57% over the past year. 7.
In providing opportunities for continued learning, the Alberta Conference, in collaboration with ADRA Canada this year, provided training on disaster and emergency response and, just at the end of October, a webinar entitled “Transformational Leadership and Cultural Intelligence: Managing Unconscious Bias.”
8. More training will be facilitated in the coming year to provide support for the local churches’ Community Services Ministries.
Sharing the Christ – centred message of hope and wholeness
Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
Ministerial/Evangelism/ Church Planting Report Given the current situation, we are doing okay. However, when the pandemic started, many of our congregations struggled to adjust to the new normal, but now have adjusted well. Let me share some of the things we have done: We continue to meet with the pastors once every two months to give updates and hear their concerns via Microsoft Teams or Zoom. I continue to participate with the Calgary and Edmonton pastors at the monthly ministerial meetings. I am also in contact with the pastors by phone conversations to find out how they and their families are doing and give counsel regarding any concern. Recently, we had a scheduled meeting to encourage our pastoral team how to navigate ministry through these difficult times. To accomplish this, we had the North American Division president, ministerial secretary, and others from their team share virtually with our pastors. We also had family life, stress management, and sexual abuse seminars. We were unable to have our elders retreat during the pandemic but are putting a plan in place to make it virtual. Public evangelism has not been as active as before the pandemic, though some congregations were able to do some virtual meetings despite the restrictions for in-person gathering. Amidst all this, we were still able to have many baptisms and keep our membership in the positive.
32
Evangelism has and will remain on the front burner of the Alberta Conference to reach people with the message of hope and wholeness. For example, the Edmonton churches are in the process of starting their city-wide evangelistic series on October 29 with evangelist Bill Santos from Lessons for Living television broadcast. Calgary City Wide evangelism is also gaining momentum for 2023. Just recently, the Alberta Conference president and I met with Voice of Prophecy personnel and the Calgary pastors to train the membership and discuss a way forward. Despite all that is happening, there is a bright future for our conference. This weekend, there are workshops taking place in Edmonton with Bill Santos and Don Maclafferty and, in Calgary, a boot camp with the VOP team. •
In 2019, 307 members were added through baptism and profession of faith, which is a 2.5% increase
•
In 2020, there were 146 baptisms and profession of faith, which is a 1.2% increase
•
By the end of September 2021, there were 147 baptisms and profession of faith
•
In 2019–2021, there were 600 baptisms and professions of faith, an increase of roughly 5%
•
Membership, as of the end of September, is 12,271
•
Churches: 68; companies: 18; groups: 2, for a total of 88
•
We have made some minor district realignments in the Calgary area:
Pastors: 55 (ordained: 43; un-ordained: 12)
We continue to do ordination of pastors during Camp Meeting:
•
Samuel Cadiz will now pastor Calgary M.E.T.R.O. and Southview
Ordination 2021
•
Jinwook Lee Parkdale and Okotoks
•
Jonathan Deximo Calgary Fil-Can and Chestermere
•
Anthony Kern Airdire/Beiseker
• •
Samuel Cadiz Calgary M.E.T.R.O./Southview
•
Daniel Madden Red Willow Community Church
Pastoral staffing is an ongoing process that can be easy and also very difficult. At present, there is only one congregation without a pastor, and we continue to work with the church to find the right individual for the congregation.
David Benjamin Peace River/Fairview
I continue to be in touch with the pastoral team through phone contact, text messages, email, and Sabbath visits to churches.
We have recently added five pastors to our pastoral staff: •
Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
Ministerial/Evangelism/Church Planting Report
Jeremy Wellman Beauvallon/Vegreville
• Jose Saldana Edmonton Spanish Maranatha/Renacer • Marc Leslie Calgary Bridgeland/House of Hope •
Romando Carey College Heights/Chaplain PAA/CHCS
•
Julio Davila Calgary Mountain View/Northwinds
•
Jonathan Diximo Calgary Fil-Can/Chestermere
Pastors encounter real challenges in ministry and coping with what is happening (e.g., members or loved ones need hospital visits and counselling and are unable to do so because of restrictions; dealing with pro-vaccination/antivaccination situations and questions). Some pastors have even ventured on stress leave, while others have taken sabbatical to rest and refresh. I must thank the administrators for their understanding and support they give to the pastoral team, in that when pastors share their concerns, they are assured of a listening ear. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to share.
Submitted by George Ali Ministerial/Evangelism Director Church Planting Coordinator
33
Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
Planned Giving & Trust Services/ Philanthropy Report ACTIVITY SINCE OCTOBER 2016 Wills written through PGTS programs
227
Value of Gifts made through wills
$1.03 Million
Gifts of Shares
$260,543
Annuities Held
$445,000
Bridge Campaign
$5.027 Million
THE BRIDGE CAMPAIGN DONATION SOURCES $5,026,954* THE BRIDGE CAMPAIGN DONATION SOURCES $1,320,703 $5,026,954* First Nations
$1,320,703 First Nations
$2,254,401 $2,254,401 SDA Church Members (Non-First Nations)
$1,130,896 $1,130,896
SDA Church Members (Non-First Nations)
Non-SDA Foundations and Individuals Non-SDA Foundations and Individuals
$246,708 $246,708
$54,541 $54,541
SDA Organizations
SDA Bequests
SDA Organizations
HIGHLIGHTS •
•
34
Highest Rating by General Conference of PGTS Department (No deficiencies found in 2020 audit) Presenter at General Conference PGTS professional Conference (2021) and North American Division Ministries Conference (2019—Philanthropy panel)
SDA Bequests
*Total includes cash and pledges
•
*Total includes cash and pledges Published Maskwacis stories in Pacific Press books: Thank God the Sabbath is Coming! (2022) and Blessed are They (2019).
•
7th Anniversary of Messenger stories: Monthly MANS & Maskwacis submissions to the Messenger awarded Honorable Mention in international and interdenominational Best of the Church Press Awards (The Associated Church Press, Print Publications).
On-going 29% partnerships with Ptarmigan Foundation industry and new ($40,000) donors established for MANS during the Bridge Campaign are yielding 30% Where long-term sustainability: Needed ($41,547) The 2020 Annual Campaign yielded $40,000 for student tuition from one of these new donors. These new partners 0% Grade 3 Class also helped gain national and ($200) international press coverage.
PERSONAL IMPACT OF MINISTRY COVID-19 PGTS Response: The WILLS NOW initiative of no-cost Wills drafted by local lawyers saved 61 members an average of $500 each and brought greater peace of mind to families during the first wave of COVID.
26%
AB Conference Matching ($37,147)
7%
Elvin Saruk and Grace Fedak Matching ($10,000)
1%
Bussing ($1,800)
3%
4%
E. Schafer Scholarship ($4,709)
MANS Scholarship ($5,050)
7 Years/Ongoing Consistent Messenger Content, mans1.ca, and New Maskwacis page on Conference website Extends Understanding an go to Burm major “I want to ology y for a bi gree.” of Indigenous Universit medical de a ue rs so I can pu Community: Keeping members across Canada informed about MANS and Maskwacis is making a difference for 1) MANS students (see Jade Rabbit Messenger ad, right) and 2) church members by advancing understanding WHERE’S of the Maskwacis TSHOLO Indigenous community, helping all of us to play a role in the Healing of the Nations. One member advised that TSHOLO REPORT she saves each Messenger story (now 84 in total).
Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
•
2020 ANNUAL APPEAL $140,454
ent
Stud S Honour Jade, MAN Class of 2020
People who you believe in believe make you . in yourself
nts like Jade When stude er the Schaf read about rship the schola Family and tly established they recen to help at MANS an, attend Burm graduates As they planted. a seed is the by e plaqu read the , l staff room high schoo elves see thems they can and at in the story — life they and a Burman, le. ht possib never thoug
larships Too MANS Scho a Difference You can Make
contact scholarships, to MANS To donate ell Lynn McDow 4 x 233 (403) 342-504 rtaadventist.ca lmcdowell@albe nce 2G5 Alberta Confere e, AB T4L 2A, Lacomb 5816 Hwy
N ATOSKETA MAMAWI OL NATIVE SCHO
ols ntist.ca/scho albertaadve
Witnessing through Principled Choices & Stewardship: By maintaining contact with non-SDA donors through reporting, Bridge UPDATE, Annual Appeal and other activities, these donors are getting a long-term, positive impression of the Church and its work in Maskwacis. “Giving Smarter” Education Increased Capacity to Give: Through seminars and the “Means & Meaning” column in each Alberta Adventist News, members learned about tax strategies that subsidized their donations to (among other things) The Bridge Campaign, local church projects, and tithe.
?
nt From the mome is an adventure.
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s with kokum skin Arena zer at Ermine sidelines. Sometimes camp organi the is, he’s a soccer and making lunch on Whatever it Sometimes ids kids at MANS. their grandk elementary his name. cheering on e alongside how you say g the ukulel — even if that’s he’s learnin and flying “solo” tures of Tsholo this pastor isn’t catch the adven s videos from the unity, and comm -or-les ing with kids weekly minute Always engag n friends in Congregatio his Maskwacis Res next door.
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Wills that Change Lives: A member who discussed his wish to benefit evangelism did include the Alberta Conference in his will, resulting in a gift for evangelism that financed the October-November 2021 Evangelistic Series in Edmonton–a gift that will profoundly change lives here and for eternity.
Submitted by Lynn McDowell Planned Giving & Trust Services/Philanthropy Director
35
Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
Risk Management, Property Management, Transportation Safety and Compliance Report PURPOSE •
•
•
36
Risk Management. To support the Risk Management initiatives of the Alberta Conference to provide a safe and secure environment in which to deliver its services of sharing the gospel and demonstrating God’s love to those individuals (internal and external) that are within its sphere of contact. (The focus of Risk Management is on the well-being of individuals as well as the protection of assets.) Property Management. To support the Alberta Conference and its organizational units with securing, developing, and managing property and facilities. Transportation Safety and Compliance. To ensure the Alberta Conference operates its fleet of “regulated vehicles (buses, trucks, etc.)” in compliance with the National Safety Code (for transportation) and all provincial transportation safety and traffic laws and regulations.
NOTES AND KEY ACTIVITIES UNDERTAKEN •
Vulnerable Sector
̵
Worked with Youth Ministry and Human Resources to ensure adequate Vulnerable Sector policies and processes are in place, including preparations for the Osh Kosh Pathfinder trip.
•
Camp Meeting—Foothills Camp
̵
Emergency action plan development/ implementation in conjunction with Red Deer County
̵
Gate security fully implemented at Foothills Camp
̵
Integration of emergency response, gate security, and campus security—July 2019
•
Property Insurance and Valuation
̵
More than 70 sites, many with multiple buildings (Liability plus Building and Content Insurance)
̵
Thirty-four sites with rental agreements in place (Liability plus Content Insurance)
̵
Currently Insured Values in excess of $165,000,000
̵
Significant Insurance Claims
̵
Hail storm damage, Foothills Camp, cold weather damage, automobile losses, burglary and theft incidents
•
Property Acquisition and Construction
̵
Property reviews/due-diligence activities undertaken for potential property purchases—26
̵
Properties purchased—6 (Whitecourt, Sylvan Lake, Edmonton, Calgary, Peace River, Bonnyville)
̵
New Mamawi Atosketan Native School (MANS) high/middle school building and Industrial Education building completed—August 2017
̵
New Parkview Adventist Academy school building completed—August 2021
•
Transportation Safety and Compliance
̵
Role assigned in August 2017 to ensure the Alberta Conference was fulfilling its compliance responsibilities for its carrier fleet of regulated vehicles — busses, trucks (greater than a GVW of 4,500 kg), highway tractor, etc.
Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
Risk Management, Property Management, Transportation Safety and Compliance Report
UPCOMING INITIATIVES •
Continued review of Vulnerable Sector processes—frequency of obtaining Vulnerable Sector reports, process compliance audits, frequency, and updating policies and procedures
•
Establishing safety officers and safety processes
•
Ongoing expansion of facility safety and fire drills
•
Building visits—safety and building code/bylaw compliance
•
Implementation of electronic logging devices for driver logs, vehicle pre-trip inspections, and travel logs
Submitted by Llew Werner Risk Management/Project Development Director
37
Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
Youth Ministry Report Janeth Vasquez UM. Coordinator
Over the last two years, the world has changed. A global pandemic has disrupted and impacted the world like never before in history. Overnight, the world has changed. The constant uncertainty of day-to-day life has caused the youth department to shift from inperson meetings to innovating programming online.
Sophie Sabanda Exec. Pathfinders Samantha Tshuma Exec. MG
Although the virus has created a crisis over these last two years, we see this crisis as an opportunity to not adapt but innovate—not as an interruption but a disruption — not to settle but to become new virtual pioneers.
Marianne Hussell Exec. Adventurers DATE: NOVEMBER 2021
CHALLENGES
OPPORTUNITIES
The pandemic has caused severe social isolation with our youth; lack of in- per son meetings due to COVID; mental health has been on the rise; our youth have become "Zoomed" out and need more physical and social activity.
The pandemic has forced us to come up with new and creative ways to do youth ministry. Virtual programing has allowed us the convenience to gather online in the comfort of our own homes.
TRAINING SEMINARS • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
38
UNIFORM MINISTRY COORDINATORS
BACKGROUND: DISRUPTED BY THE PANDEMIC
Understanding Gen Z Millennials & Church Growing Younger Bubbles: Small Groups Urban Missional Small Groups Church 2.0 Metaverse and the Future Church Urban Ministry 101 Elevate X-Pop up Church Hustling on the Blockchain Race Relations 101 Cosmopolitan Theology What’s in Your Hand Spiritual Gifts Student of the Game: Investing
VIRTUAL PROGRAMS July 3, 2020 "Real Talk about Racism"— Dr. Kevin Burrell July 20, 2020 "Be Still"— Virtual Camp Meeting Oct 3, 2020 "Bubbles"— NADEI-Dr. Anthony Wagnor Smith Oct 10, 2020 "Unbreakable"— GC Youth Director-Pastor Pako Nov 28a, 2020 "Unshakable" — Pastor Mathew Feeley Dec 5, 2020 "Unshackled"— Pastor Ron Sydney Jan 30, 2021 "Vision Check 2021"— Pastor Jordane Smith Feb 6, 2021 "Disuption: Youth & Entrepreneurship"— Doug Monchrie Feb 27, 2021 "Youth and Mental Health"— Dr. Patrick Jacques Mar 20, 2021 "Global Youth Day ‘Reaching Out’"— Pastor Asia Lennon Mar 27, 2021 "#StopAsianHate"— Pastor In Pyo Hong Apr 24, 2021 "Advocacy, Activism & Allyship"— Dany Pen May 1, 2021 "Breaking the Silence of Abuse"— Elise Kruithof Jun 26, 2021 "First Nations: Standing in Solidarity"— Dieulita Datus Jul 3, 2021 "Standing with the Muslim Community"— Sadia Khan Jul 10, 2021 "This Is Us"— Virtual Camp Meeting Oct 3, 2021 "Making It Through the Pandemic"— Nwamiko Madden Oct 30, 2021 "Faith in a Digital World"— Pastor Lawel Natufe Nov 13, 2021 "Praying Through the Pandemic"— Pastor Sandra Wall Dec 4, 2021 "Social Connection: How to Stay social"— Pastor John Scott Dec 4, 2021 "Small Group Retreat" The Shift"— Dr. Lyle Notice
WHAT IS UNIFORMED MINISTRIES?
The Uniformed Ministries of the Alberta Conference Youth Department is made up of Adventurers (ages 4–9) and Pathfinders (ages of 10–15). The Master Guide is considered to be high-level leadership certification within the Youth Department. You must be at least 16 years of age to become an invested Master Guide.
ADVENTURERS
In 2020, we had 25 clubs, 515 members, and 62 staff. In 2021, we have 204 members and 67 staff.
PATHFINDERS
In 2021, we have a total of 25 clubs with over 250 Pathfinders within the Alberta Conference.
Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
Youth Ministry Report
MASTER GUIDES
We have over 50 Master Guide Leaders, 1 master guide club, and over 20 master guides in training.
THE FUTURE Since the start of the global pandemic in March 2020, the world has never been the same. Our world is different; we have been socialized into a whole new digital world. This disruption has caused a shift in our thinking when it comes to youth ministry. As it said, "Church is no longer a place, time, date, or a program." The methods on which we have relied in the past to impact our youth must look very different for this new generation. With the coming rise of the internet 3.0 and the Metaverse, the Youth Department will have to continually find new, creative, and innovative ways to reach the younger demographic of Alberta. However, by God's grace, we are well-poised to meet the challenges of this new digital frontier. Uniformed Ministries, under its strong leadership, has risen to meet the challenges. The Youth Department as a whole has found more efficient and effective ways in sharing inspiring messages of the gospel of Jesus Christ. As we approach this new post-pandemic world, we look forward to what the future holds because we know Who holds the future.
Submitted by Dr. Lyle Notice Youth Director
39
2 0 Department
Event Name - Theme
Date
Speaker
Adventurers
Family Camp GOD IS MY LIGHT
June 10–12, 2020
Neil Peralta
Family Fun Day
Canceled
Pathfinders
Master Guides
ADVENTURERS
Department
MASTER GUIDES
40
Winter Retreat BORN IDENTITY Camporee I AM Pathfinder Day FAITHFUL NAD - Playbook Leadership Convention
March 6–8, 2020
Pastor Rudy Alvir
May 16, 2020
Nwamiko Madden
September 19, 2020
Pastor Brian Walh
Attendance
400
September 3–5, 2020
2 0
PATHFINDERS
Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
Uniformed Ministries Report
Event Name - Theme
Date
Speaker
Attendance
World Adventurer Day I WILL GO
May 15, 2021
Ruth Riffin
200
Family Camp I WILL GO
June 11–12, 2021
Adventurers
250
Family Fun Day BIBLE TREASURE
October 2, 2021
Coordinators/Directors
125
Adventurers Basic Staff Training
October 22–23, 2021
Various
65
Winter Retreat CONQUERORS
March 5–6, 2021
Pastor Vandeon Griffin
PATHFINDER BIBLE EXPERIENCE Regional Level
February 28, 2021
N/A
100
PATHFINDER BIBLE EXPERIENCE Conference Level
March 14, 2021
N/A
70
PATHFINDER BIBLE EXPERIENCE Union Level (SDACC)
March 27, 2021
PATHFINDER BIBLE EXPERIENCE Division Level (NAD)
April 17, 2021
Week of Prayer
May 16–21, 2021
Pathfinders
Camporee FEARLESS, GOD IS IN CONTROL
May 16–22, 2021
Pathfinders
Revival Weekend HERE I AM. SEND ME.
November 19–21, 2021
Pastor Armando Miranda
Additional Comments First virtual event
We created programing for Friday night and Sabbath morning, afternoon, and evening. Children and families recorded their parts at home, and we put them together into 45-60-minute sessions, including virtual games and awards. Programs were stream on Facebook and Youtube. Audience reach of the videos ranged from 500 to 700 views on Facebook and 400–600 on the conference's Youtube channel.
Last in-person event (Foothills Camp)
2 1 Additional Comments For years, Adventurers and Adventurer leaders waited for a special worldwide event to celebrate what it means to be an Adventurer. The General Conference launched this event this year, and we joined the celebration. We created an activity booklet with a ten-day coundown that included activities that reinforce the Adventurer Law and its meaning. Those children who completed the book received a special edition of an I WILL GO pin. We also celebrated 30 years of Adventuring in the Alberta Conference. Clubs participated in their local churches' worship services, and we met on Zoom in the afetrnoon for the I WILL GO awards and games.
Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
2 0
Ruth Riffin, our guest speaker, implemented the Adventurer program for the first time in Alberta 30 years ago. Adventurer children were the speakers during this family camp. The event was originally planned as regional and in-person but had to be switched to online due to the goverment restrictions announced two weeks before the date. We had a wonderful time on Zoom playing games, singing, and learning. Staff form Alberta and other Conferences joined to get the Basic Staff Training Certification. During the Pathfinder Winter Retreat, Pathfinders participated in the Honors, Club, and Individual Content Creation Contest and engaged in conversations about how they would like to see the Pathfinder ministry moving forward despite the pandemic. We virtually hosted the 2021 Regional-level Pathfinder Bible Experience event. Eleven Pathfinder teams participated in the event: Orion 1 and Orion 2, Calgary Maranatha Spanish Church Ignite 1 and Ignite 2, Airdrie Church Alpha and Omega, Bridgeland Church, Calgary Team Good News (Asempa), Calgary Ghanaian Church The TFC Champ and The TFC Champ Junior, The Friendship Company Church, Lacombe Anidasoa Lanterns, Edmonton Ghanaian Church North Star, West End Church, Edmonton Seven Pathfinder teams advanced to the conference-level PBE Test: Omega, Ignite 2, Alpha, TFC Champ, TFC Champ Junior, Anidasoa Lanterns, North Star; two teams qualified for the union-level event: Omega, Ignite 2 The teams representing the Alberta Conference won first place and advanced to the division-level event. During the division-level event, the two teams achieved a first-place ranking as well. Pathfinders led each program of the week of prayer with a different theme and prayer focus each day, including Human Right Violations, Mental Stress, The Power of Prayer, Mental Well-being, Youth Holistic Wellness, COVID and Social Injustice, Spiritual Health and Growth, and Doubt: Public Enemy Number One. Current audience reach ranges from 250–700 views on Facebook. Virtual event included a games night.
Submitted by Janeth L. Vasquez Uniformed Ministries Coordinator
41
VOLUNTEER REPORTS
The AAPMO Ministry has maintained a presence, although extremely challenged due to the provincial, national, and global mandates regarding the COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting lockdown restrictions. Federal institutions, on a whole, have remained under lockdown status, except for Grierson Minimum Security Prison, located at Grierson Hill in Edmonton. I was able to facilitate personal visitations over several periods of relaxed lockdown requirements; there were two SDA inmates that I was able to visit and assist in their successful applications for conditional release back into society on Day Parole. As the conference coordinator, I have continued to speak and preach at various churches throughout the conference, locally in the Edmonton area as well as Onaway, Mirror, and Calgary regions, including the Chinook Winds Adventist Academy. I have also assisted several of our own church members who had been incarcerated, journeying alongside them as they have reintegrated back into society, including their families and the greater church family. Additionally, I have assisted GEMA in their current Prophecy Today series, presented by Pastor Bill Santos, by heading the security detail. One incident occurred last week, after the program had ended, when one of the members from Edmonton Central SDA Church (ECSDAC) decided to walk to the front to speak with Pastor Santos. The individual did make appropriate statements that were, in fact, true. Apparently, I understand that issues had arisen at ECSDAC with pastoral staff, and this individual was never properly taken care of, and it still remains a bone of contention.
As the individual got close to the front stage, he was surrounded by some pastors. This caused the individual to become agitated, and thus he raised his voice. In anticipation, two of the pastors called the police. By the time the police arrived, the young man had settled down and was conversing calmly with the speaker, another member, and myself. Nevertheless, the police officer asked him to accompany them outside to speak, and he did so willingly and without fuss.
Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
Alberta Adventist Prison Ministry Organization (AAPMO)
I did send an email to the members of GEMA and the conference: excerpt #176 from the Criminal Code of Canada, outlining the laws pertaining to both clergy and religious assemblies. This young man was courteous and quiet throughout the presentation. The night’s presentation had come to an end, and the audience was already leaving the auditorium/ sanctuary. No law had been broken! I verily believe there is a need to educate our pastors in handling perceived difficult persons or members who may exhibit mental health issues. Further, right now, the whole world is dealing with unprecedented dilemma with this pandemic that has affected all segments of society, and it’s going rise to greater agitation, fear, and even mental health manifestations for even our own church members. As under-shepherds of our Lord and Saviour, who bore all our sins and gave His life and blood for His church, we need to be more compassionate with better understanding as we deal with those persons in need of extra care within our vineyard of service. 43
Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
Alberta Adventist Prison Ministry Organization (AAPMO) I am prepared and willing to assist, counsel, and present for our colleagues as the Alberta Conference deems fitting. Last, due to the government’s ever- changing mandates and policies concerning the protection of the members of society during this pandemic, actual in-person AAPMO trainings have not taken
CRIMINAL CODE OF CANADA EXCERPT - #176 - FOR THE CLERGY Breach of trust by public officer 122 Every official who, in connection with the duties of his office, commits fraud or a breach of trust is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years, whether or not the fraud or breach of trust would be an offence if it were committed in relation to a private person Evidence of peace officer (2) In the absence of other evidence, or by way of corroboration of other evidence, a summary conviction court may infer from the evidence of a peace officer relating to the conduct of a person or persons, whether ascertained or not, that a disturbance described in paragraph (1)(a) or (d) or an obstruction described in paragraph (1)(c) was caused or occurred. Obstructing or violence to or arrest of officiating clergyman 176 (1) Every one who (a) by threats or force, unlawfully
place. I have, however, been working in preparing an online training, but the usual training takes just over three hours to complete, which would be problematic. In his Master’s service
obstructs or prevents or endeavours to obstruct or prevent a clergyman or minister from celebrating divine service or performing any other function in connection with his calling, or (b) knowing that a clergyman or minister is about to perform, is on his way to perform or is returning from the performance of any of the duties or functions mentioned in paragraph (a) (i) assaults or offers any violence to him, or (ii) arrests him on a civil process, or under the pretence of executing a civil process, is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years. (2) Every one who wilfully disturbs or interrupts an assemblage of persons met for religious worship or for a moral, social or benevolent purpose is guilty of an offence punishable on summary conviction. (3) Every one who, at or near a meeting referred to in subsection (2), wilfully does anything that disturbs the order or solemnity of the meeting is guilty of an offence punishable on summary conviction. R.S., c. C-34, s. 172.
Submitted by Pastor Oliver Johnson Alberta Conference Prison Ministry Coordinator
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Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
Alberta Adventis
The IT Support one-stop-shop for Alberta Conference The Alberta Conference is excited to announce its first Help Desk. IT experts provide help for fast solutions to support our members on an add-on to pre-existing IT action. Areas We Can Help
Whom Do We Help?
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Employees
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Churches (including volunteer church officers who use Office 365, Teams, and Zoom)
Software & Subscription Licensing – Microsoft 365, Microsoft Office 365, Microsoft Dynamics, Azure, Azure AD, Windows Virtual Desktop, Teams Voice, Zoom, Adobe, Google, SAGE and more.
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Troubleshooting – Microsoft, Google, Adobe, Zoom, SAGE, and more.
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New Users and New User Onboarding
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Schools
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Printing & Printing Troubleshoot
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ABC Bookstore
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Internet
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Camp
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Economies of Scale Purchasing – Hardware, Software
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Admin Office
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Training – Office 365, Teams and other
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Cybersecurity
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Special Projects
Inquire for additional areas we may be able to help you. Contact us at helpdesk@albertaadventist.ca 45
Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
Prayer Ministries Report The year 2020 saw a great resurgence in the urgency of prayer among the people. It is wonderful that people saw the need to seek the Lord in persistent prayer. It is sad that it took a pandemic to get us to the place where we sought the Lord so earnestly. He calls for people to “stand in the gap… on behalf of the land” (Ezekiel 22:30). Seeking the Lord in prayer is the most important thing we can do. Submission to Him is vital. Spending time in His presence opens space to hear the Holy Spirit and be guided in what He would have us do in this sin-sick world to bring spiritual and emotional healing to wounded hearts. “Shut down” laws, implemented because of the pandemic, motivated many to learn how to engage in online meetings. I think online meetings are a blessing, making the gospel accessible to many who otherwise would never have been open to participating in a religious meeting in person. A quick review of some of the invitations to prayer reminds us of the 100 Days of Prayer that began 27 March 2020. Many churches engaged in prayer times, some once a week, others every day, for 100 days. When the 100 Days of Prayer were completed, many churches embarked on other prayer times: 40 Days Praying for Families, 50 Days Praying against Criticism, etc. The Alberta Conference had a Day of Fasting and Prayer on 21 April 2020 from 6:00 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Two events happened simultaneously that day: 1.
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Every church in the conference was invited to participate in and assigned a one-hour timeslot for a local prayer time so we would have prayers covering Alberta throughout the day.
2. There was an online meeting open to the whole of the Alberta Conference, with different people leading out each hour, opening space for people to give praises to God and lift requests to Him. It was a time of encouragement and connection that was deep and meaningful. Other conference-wide prayer invitations included the Ministries Convention on 25–28 March 2021, which incorporated a prayer ministries stream; Prayer for evangelism, 16–17 June 2021, at 5 a.m., noon, and 6 p.m. each day; Half Night of Prayer, 16 October 2021, where prayer coordinators in local churches and some pastors led out in 30-minute segments, drawing our focus to God and standing in the gap for our land. The past two years saw our annual Camp Meeting online. You were invited to prayer as the first thing before the first Friday evening meeting, then every morning, Sabbath to Sabbath, from 8–9 a.m., as well as noon meetings Monday through Friday. These meetings were led by our Alberta pastors. Blessings be upon those who made time to seek the Lord and come away encouraged in Him. Each year, we began with 10 Days of Prayer, and this is coming up again on 5–15 January 2022. The theme is “The Three Angels Call to Prayer” (please visit tendaysofprayer.org).
I encourage all churches to participate
in seeking the Lord at the start of the year. We will have a Half Night of Prayer on 15 January, from 6–11 p.m., to close the 10 Days of Prayer. Pastor Ian Bramble, Northern Region prayer coordinator, will organize an online meeting open to all Alberta that will be a time of sharing “God sightings” from the 10 Days of Prayer and praying together. Besides the conference-wide prayer times, many local churches are active in opening space for people to seek the Lord. There have been prayer weekends, weeks of prayer, weekly
prayer meetings, and weekly and daily prayer times. Our major cities, Edmonton and Calgary, also have citywide prayer times monthly, specifically in preparation for city-wide evangelism. I want to say a huge thank you to the local prayer coordinators. Thank you for your willingness to serve the Lord in encouraging others to seek Him, lead out in meetings, and persistently seek the Lord in prayer. Thank you! I encourage every member of the Seventh-day Adventist church in Alberta to intentionally seek the Lord and stand in the gap for our land.
Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
Prayer Ministries Report
Submitted by Honey Todd Nurture Pastor College Heights SDA Church and Prayer Ministries Coordinator Alberta Conference
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Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
Central Alberta Church Planting The Seventh-day Adventist Church began as a church-planting movement. Back in 1901, Ellen White challenged our people, both pastors and laypeople, to be about the work of planting new churches. She wrote, “Upon all who believe, God has placed the burden of raising up churches” (Medical Ministry, p. 315, emphasis added). White also declared the following: Our ministers are not to spend their time laboring for those who have already accepted the truth. With Christ’s love burning in their hearts, they are to go forth to win sinners to the Saviour.… Place after place is to be visited; church after church is to be raised up. Those who take their stand for the truth are to be organized into churches, and then the minister is to pass on to other equally important fields. Just as soon as a church is organized, let the minister set the members at work. They will need to be taught how to labor successfully. Let the minister devote more of his time to educating than to preaching. Let him teach the people how to give to others the knowledge they have received. (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 7, pp. 19, 20, emphasis added) I’m thankful that there are Seventh-day Adventists in Alberta who are strongly committed to church planting. In Central Alberta, there are currently two church plants: The Friendship Company (TFC) was officially organized as a church company one year ago, on Sabbath, October 17, 2020, at 3:00 p.m. at the College Heights Church. The congregation meets for Sabbath School
and worship in the Burman University gym. Including children, there are over 50 people who attend. TFC celebrated their first baptism in the Burman Pool this past August. The company leader is Dr. Kevin Burrell. The Blackfalds Company is currently meeting via Zoom. The congregation has not met in person since March 2020, when churches were closed because of COVID-19. The Blackfalds Company hopes to resume meeting in person early in 2022. Prior to COVID-19, attendance was about 12–16 people. If you would like to help reach the community of Blackfalds, the leaders of this company would be delighted to hear from you. Let me know if you’d like contact info for Gerrit or Merle Steenbergen or Patricia Marshall. Sadly, our Oikos church plant has been derailed by COVID-19. The core group of about 12 individuals had been meeting on Friday evenings in Lacombe for over a year. Following the outbreak of COVID-19 in March 2020, the group met via Zoom for a short time. Sadly, the group is no longer meeting. Many of the members of our large churches are doing comparatively nothing. They might accomplish a good work if, instead of crowding together, they would scatter into places that have not yet been entered by the truth… Many of the members are dying spiritually for want of this very work. They are becoming sickly and inefficient. Transplanted, they would have room to grow strong and vigorous. (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 8, p. 244, emphasis added) Could God be calling you to help plant a new church?
Submitted by Jeff Potts Senior Pastor at College Heights and Blackfalds
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Since 2020, the Southern Region has witnessed one company become a fullfledged church and another fellowship group become a company. On November 28, 2020, the Okotoks Seventh-day Adventist Company was dedicated as a church. Then, on May 1, 2021, the Chestermere Fellowship Group was organized as the Chestermere Filipino-Canadian Company. In 2022, we are planning for the House of Hope Company to be organized as a church.
While the pandemic has made it difficult for some of our church plants to continue to meet, God has still been working. During the last two years, the Calgaryarea church plants have met twice online for church plant dialogues to pray for one another and plan strategically for the future. We pray our next meeting will be in person and that it will allow us to equip our church planting leaders to further God’s work in the region.
Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
Church Plant Coordinator Southern Region Report
Submitted by Anthony Kern Volunteer Church Plant Coordinator (Southern Region)
SAGE—Seniors in Action for God with Excellence Report Seniors in Action for God with Excellence (SAGE) has been active in the past two years. We have mostly completed the Outdoor Education Center at Foothills Camp. We have also helped the Whitecourt Church with the painting of its new facility. During the summer of 2021, we have had two RV outings and helped the College Heights Christian School and Mamawi Atosketan Native School prepare for their school year. We enjoyed the fellowship and service projects and respected the Alberta Health guidelines regarding the COVID-19 concerns.
Submitted by Don Corkum Volunteer Coordinator-SAGE
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Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021
Women's Ministry Retreat Coordinator Report Victory in Jesus! Wow! What a retreat! Pastor Massiel DavilaFerrer, your messages on “Women in Battle” were so pertinent and on point to what so many are going through today. You opened your heart to us, and we were moved. We related to you. Thank you for letting God use you to bless the women of Alberta. Let me share a testimony of a woman who attended in person: "It has been very hard for me these past few months because I am going through a divorce, and on top of this, I have recently lost my job after working there for three-and-a-half years" due to the pandemic. She continued with teary eyes and said, "It was as if Pastor Massiel was talking straight to me while holding my hand." Due to the pandemic protocols, the Women’s Retreat meeting at 3 p.m. had an in-person attendance of 85, with 57 for the 7 p.m. meeting. However, we had an overwhelming response to livestreaming, with over 1,000 viewing each meeting of the Alberta Conference Women’s Retreat on April 10, 2021. Amazing! Thank you everyone who played a role in making the Women’s Retreat a huge success. Thank you to my awesome team for the many hours: Belinda Bader, Brenda Hodgins, Nanette Quines, Vera Wiebe,
Pastor Massiel Davila- Ferrer delivering her powerful messages about women in the bible that we can relate today.
Judith Walters, Mina Desjardins, and Scott Nischuk. And a special thank you to the College Heights Church and their livestreaming team. Everyone had to be adaptable and flexible yet experienced the promise in Isaiah 43:19: “For I am about to do something new…” (NLT). God was in the planning from the start. We hope you will plan to attend our next retreat in person on April 9–11, 2022. More information will follow. Keep safe and stay close to God. See you next year!
Submitted by Nicole Paradis-Sydenham Women's Ministry Retreat Coordinator
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Alberta Adventist Conference - Town Hall Meeting Report 2021 This Town Hall Meeting Report is a publication of the Alberta Conference of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. Elected Officials President Gary Hodder Executive Secretary/VP for Administration Wayne Williams Treasurer/Chief Financial Officer Keith Richter Communication/IT/Media Director/Editor Eric Ollila Graphic Design Mishell Raedeke/omnidesign.ca Photo Attribution Alberta Adventist Communication or Licensed Adobe Stock, unless otherwise noted Address 5816 Highway 2A, Lacombe, AB T4L2G5 Contact Information Phone: (403) 342-5044 Fax: (403) 775-4482 Email: info@albertaadventist.ca Twitter: abadventist Facebook: abadventist Instagram: abadventist Website: albertaadventist.ca Printed in Canada, November 2021
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