News
Providing Encouragement and Assessment
NAD Administrators Affirm Work and Assess Needs During Visit to the Guam-Micronesia Mission
Beginning January 4, 2024, a North American Division administrative team visited several islands within the Guam-Micronesia Mission for two weeks. “We wanted to provide encouragement and do an assessment of needs and see how we could better support the work there,” said NAD president G. Alexander Bryant.
Unearthing History: The Dino Dig Experience at Southwestern Adventist University
For many, the pull of uncovering ancient relics and the mysteries of the past is an irresistible draw. Southwestern Adventist University (SWAU) offers a unique opportunity to step back in time with its Dino Dig Experience, a dinosaur excavation research project in the Lance Formation of eastern Wyoming, United States. This program, held annually in June, brings together students, families, and international participants to uncover and study dinosaur fossil remains.
Gillette Residents to Be Welcomed to “Night at the Camporee”
In just five weeks, the International Pathfinder Camporee will have moved west to Gillette, Wyoming. From August 5-11, 2024, roughly 60,000 young people from 100 countries will transform the Gillette Cam-Plex Facilities into a tent and RV city. Over numerous site visits since 2020, camporee officials have found significant interest among community members in attending the nighttime mainstage events. However, because minors attend the camporee, background checks would be necessary for these additional guests. Thus, camporee leaders decided to host a “night at the camporee” on August 4, which will offer community members a 90-minute sneak peek of the "Believe the Promise" evening program.
It is Written Wins 14 Telly Awards
It Is Written is pleased to announce that it has won 14 Telly Awards this year. The awards received highlight It is Written’s versatility and excellence in media production, with several programs earning multiple honors.
Common Ground
On Wednesday, May 15, 2024, North American Division leaders met with student leaders from universities across the division. The goal was to determine what young people are concerned with and discuss what they might want church leadership to know. “We really want to know what you have to say,” stated Tracy Wood, director for youth and young adult ministries at the NAD, at the start of the online meeting. “The voices of students from your campuses can and do have a significant impact across North America.” In addition to five church leaders from both union and division levels, eight students were also present, representing Adventist and non-Adventist campuses across the country.
Adventist Community Services Supply Spiritual and Emotional Support After El Paso, Texas, Mass Shooting
Shortly after a gunman fired on crowds in a Walmart and its parking lot in El Paso, Texas, on Aug. 3, local Adventist Community Service Disaster Response (ACS DR) leader Marshall Gonzales reached out to W. Derrick Lea, North American Division (NAD) ACS DR director, to ascertain how ACS could be of help. After requests from the American Red Cross, a team of ACS bilingual, credentialed emotional and spiritual care providers were approved and vetted to assist and support the individuals and families experiencing trauma.
$55,000 in scholarships moves La Sierra University STEM students toward careers
On May 23, the La Sierra University Office of Advancement held its annual scholarships awards ceremony during which a total of $565,473 was formally presented to 258 students. These funds included a total $15,000 from Edison International for seven Edison STEM scholars and $40,000 in science scholarship awards from Victor and Alina Tolan awarded to 20 students in STEM majors.
Adventist World Church Leaders Experience Mission and Diversity During Division Tour
Seventh-day Adventist Church leaders from around the world witnessed mission in the North American Division (NAD) context when they visited several locations in the division during the 2019 NAD Experience held June 26 to July 7. General Conference executive secretaries and spouses joined the executive secretaries and spouses from the church’s 12 other division offices as NAD leaders shared a glimpse of the territory’s mission activity and ethnic diversity through touring four of nine union conferences.
A Camporee Experience
What if I told you that spending a full five or six days in an open field, surrounded by 50,000 people or more, walking five to 10 miles per day, having to go to porta potties and bathe in shower houses, and sleeping in a tent and trying to keep up with a group of teens and preteens would be the best experience that you could ever have this summer? This is what happens every five years at the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) airfields in OshKosh, Wisconsin.