BY VICTOR S. PILE, JR., publications director of the National Association for the Prevention of Starvation, Oakwood College

en Oakwood College students who are members of the school's National Association for the Prevention of Starvation (NAPS), together with the group's president, Oakwood biology professor Anthony Paul, left in mid-January for a month-long tsunami relief mission trip to Sri Lanka. More than 800,000 people were displaced and 38,000 died when the massive tsunami hit the coast of the small, mostly Buddhist island country of Sri Lanka on December 26. NAPS's goal was to clear debris from one of the villages and build five houses for the residents.

After arriving in the village of Hikkaduwa, Paul and the students were taken to the local government office for processing, assessment, and assignment of duties. They were soon on their way to the mission site. As she viewed the miles of destruction while driving to the site, junior biology major Sonia Artist felt overwhelmed by what she saw. "When will it every end?" she asked.

"We worked from early in the morning until late at night," says Paul. "And NAPS had the only chainsaw in the region. People called us from one job to another to remove trees that were obstructing their travel or endangering their homes or other buildings."

The NAPS team also had an opportunity to coordinate and participate in a wedding. A local resident named Ragunga had been planning to get married, and then the tsunami struck. His house was destroyed, and Ragunga, a fisherman, lost his means of earning a living. NAPS was able to build him and his fiancé a new home, as well as finance their wedding. The national media, some government officials, and a high-ranking Buddhist priest were present for the ceremony. The wedding, as well as the work NAPS was doing, was reported in Sri Lanka's national newspapers and television.

VISIONS OF HOPE: Tsunami victims begin to smile again as their friends in blue NAPS shirts provide a helping hand.

When asked what his most memorial moment was during the mission trip, Paul said, "As the local people got to know us they began to reveal their deepest sorrows and fears. Especially troubling were the stories of the mothers who had to choose which child to save and which child they had to let go in the raging waters. 'I had to make a decision to let one go. I couldn't hold on to both. Now I cannot sleep or eat,' one woman told us. That was her greatest anguish."

Paul added, "Nothing could quench the grief of these parents. But being able to talk to us about these problems seemed to bring a bit of relief."

After working with the tsunami volunteers for several days, NAPS volunteer Taurus Montgomery, a junior theology major, said, "I have become numb and have no more tears left to cry."

"I remember thinking to myself," said Paul, "that if I could only make them smile, especially the children, I would feel that I had accomplished something."

Many island residents asked the team members questions about their faith, giving them an opportunity to witness. Several villagers requested Bible studies and attended the group's early morning worship services, which were held each day at 5:30 a.m. NAPS was also able to establish a volunteer youth program in Hikkaduwa, in which young adults received training in community service.

According to Paul, appreciation of the group's presence was shown by the villagers daily finding and preparing food for them. "We just had to say the word 'coconut,' and someone would literally climb up a tree and pick one for us," says Paul.

CONSOLING THE VICTIMS: NAPS volunteer David Franklin (left) consoles a man who lost his family and his home in the tsunami.

"I cannot understand why you left your school to come here to help us," one Sri Lankan woman told the volunteers, with tears in her eyes.

NAPS reached their goal of building five homes during their stay in Sri Lanka and were able to help hundreds of others on the island by removing debris. They plan to return with another team in December.

Oakwood College is a Seventh-day Adventist institution located on nearly 1,000 acres in Huntsville, Alabama. Its current student enrollment is about 1,650.

For more information, go to www.napsoc.org or www.oakwood.edu.

The three men, all Sudanese nationals, were held in the Darfur region along with the equipment and supplies they were taking to West Darfur to construct water wells to benefit 80,000 internally displaced people (IDPs) and host community members. Most of the project equipment has also been returned to ADRA’s office in Sudan.

“The lengthy detention of our skilled and committed workers has been a detriment to ADRA’s assistance programs in an area hard hit by civil unrest and is of concern to the wider international community,” says Byron Scheuneman, ADRA’s senior vice president and chief financial officer, who made a public appeal for the release of the workers. “We’re grateful they were returned unharmed, but this ordeal has certainly been arduous.”

ADRA is especially thankful for the assistance of the Italian special envoy, Barbara Contini, who spearheaded negotiations to secure the release of the three workers.

“We are very happy to be back with our families, and we just want to spend time with them for a while,” says Said Saad Mohmed, one of the abducted workers. Mohmed has worked with ADRA/Sudan for 16 years and is a valued member of the well-drilling crew.

Despite the challenges of operating in a high-risk environment, ADRA plans to continue its 25 years of humanitarian work in Sudan.

For more information about ADRA go to www.adra.org.          --ADRA/AR.

Klimkewicz, 24, was a combat engineer with the 2nd Combat Engineer Battalion, with headquarters at Camp Lejeune, and was convicted on a charge of refusing to obey an order from a commanding officer who asked that the Marine pick up a weapon. Klimkewicz, whose military performance and personal life underwent a drastic and positive change after a Christian conversion, joined the Adventist Church in October 2002, then reenlisted for another tour of duty. After that time, the then-lance corporal learned that noncombatancy is the church’s recommendation, and, upon personal reflection, came to the conclusion that he could not take up a weapon to kill another person. He then asked for assignments where he could serve without carrying a weapon, volunteering, for example, to work on clearing landmines in Iraq.

The Marine Corps refused his request, culminating in the court martial that reduced Klimkewicz’s rank and led to a bad conduct discharge and a felony conviction record following the jail sentence. Such actions are not common in the military.

Klimkewicz’s attorneys are continuing to seek to overturn the Marine Corps’ court-martial verdict, clearing his name and permanent record.

“We are delighted to have Joel out of the brig, and continue our efforts to get his unjust conviction overturned,” said Tyner.

“This situation needs to be closely examined so the Marine Corps doesn’t tarnish its reputation further,” said Richard O. Stenbakken, a retired U.S. Army chaplain and Adventist church pastor who, until recently, headed chaplaincy ministries for the world church.

Sahly has served as president and dean of Southeast Asia Union College, associate director for education in the Far Eastern Division (now Southern Asia-Pacific Division), and president of Southern Adventist University in Collegedale, Tennessee.

From 1997 through February 2002, Sahly worked at the General Conference as an associate director of education, an associate secretary of the world church, and a general field secretary.

As a global Adventist educational institution, the mission of HSI/GU is to provide guided independent study and distance education programs for preschool, elementary, secondary, and higher education. For more information about HSI/GU go to www.hsi.edu.

As the conference's keynote speaker, Gates shared his mission pilot experiences as he challenged those in attendance to risk everything for God. Experts in witnessing and missions, including School of Religion professors Steve Bauer and Jud Lake, presented workshops such as "Radical Christianity and Missions" and "Reaching Your Friends for Christ."

"The conference emphasized complete surrender of our lives and everything we have to God," says allied health major Natalie Issa.

Nursing major Linda Horner was impacted in a similar way: "I felt like God called me to a deeper experience with Him," she says, "and a deeper level of surrender."

According to SEYC president Michelle Doucoumes, Catch the Flame "is to be a starting point for those who attended to get involved in outreach and missions wherever they go."

Doucoumes and several other Southern students formed SEYC, an official Southern Adventist University student organization, after they attended the 2003 General Youth Conference in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

"We are confident that Elder Wright's leadership and wisdom will be assets as we move forward in extending the healing ministry of Christ," said Tom Werner, AHS president and CEO.

Wright replaces Gordon Retzer, president of the Southern Union, who served as chair from 2002 to 2005. Every three years a new chair is selected to lead the 63-member board of directors, composed of all Adventist union, conference, and college presidents within Adventist Health System's service area, as well as various church and business leaders.

Established in 1973 to operate Adventist health-care organizations in the southern and southwestern regions of the United States, AHS is the largest not-for-profit Protestant health-care system in the United States. It operates 38 hospitals, as well as other health-care facilities, in 13 states.

For more information go to www.adventisthealthsystem.org.

For more information go to www.adventisthealthcare.com.

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