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Maryellen Walters and Amber Ulery
Partnership focuses on ministry in the community.
By Andrew Fries and Carmen Magdaleno
During the 2012 London Olympics, six young people from the Western Territory took part in an international partnership with The Salvation Army and More Than Gold, which unites faith-based organizations and church denominations to express Christian purpose and example at major sporting events.
The team spent the bulk of its time at the Romford Corps, led by Majors David and Sarah Evans, and located just southeast of central London. It ministered to people in the community and people at the corps, including daily outreach at a local park and nightly sports clubs at the corps for kids. The team also promoted corps activities and programs door to door and in the town square, handed out over 1,000 water bottles, and ventured into downtown Romford at night with the Street Pastors, ministering to those at nightclubs and bars.
After countless painted faces and hundreds of balloon animals, Liz—the park outreach organizer—expressed extreme gratitude to the team for its willingness to love kids and the community at the park. “This experience helped me realize that this type of community outreach is possible and is an extremely effective tool in getting to know local families,” she said.
Team member Marianna Kleemaan agreed.
“I didn’t have to worry about doing a certain thing at a certain time, or about entertaining the kids, or about making sure the craft matched the story for the day; I followed the plans already set up by the Romford Corps, plans that are different than American ones,” Kleemaan said. “The way they minister to the children in their community is not through stories or memory verse games, but by showing God’s love through play and prayer. Now, these kids know that there are not only adults who love them, but God who loves them, too.”
The West was represented by: Andrew Fries, team leader (Gresham Corps, Cascade Division), Carmen Magdaleno (Modesto Citadel, Golden State Division), Amber Ulery (Kenai Corps, Alaska Division), Maryellen Walters (Kahului Corps, Hawaiian and Pacific Islands Division), Mathijs Arens (South San Francisco Corps, Golden State Division), and Marianna Kleemann (Whittier Corps, Southern California Division), who participated July 25-Aug. 3.
Read more about the team’s experience at sayconnect.com.
