Abounding Service: Building Relationships, Teaching English, Empowering Refugees
A refugee can be described as someone “forced to leave his/her home due to some sort of danger or risk of persecution.”
Imagine living in a small village in Burma (Myanmar). The normal hum of activity is broken by a man hurrying into the village yelling, “The rebels have landed!” At these words, you instinctively grab your loved ones and run. You are counted as lucky if you and your family escape with your lives. If you find transport to a refugee camp, the fight for survival is not over. You must learn to endure in a different sort of way. Primitive living conditions and a stay that stretches into years begin to make you lose hope in the future. You want to go back home … but you can’t. You are a refugee.
This is the story of many refugees who make it to America. They are placed all over the country, including the Phoenix area. One of the biggest challenges these refugees face is learning English. Without the ability to speak and understand English, they cannot find jobs and take care of their families.
That’s where Abounding Service comes in. This organization provides a structured literacy curriculum using specialized software in combination with volunteer “encouragers.” Each student is paired with a volunteer who encourages and assists them throughout the program and along the way, friendships form. In addition to English classes, plans are under way to offer classes teaching basic living skills. Students receive their training for free but are asked to “give back” by helping others in the program once they become proficient. This simple idea sums up the vision of Abounding Service … Empowering the marginalized to serve others.
How It Began
Through a variety of experiences, Pastor Gary De Velder gained the knowledge and resources he needed to begin the Abounding Service just one year ago. The story starts long before that though. In the 1980′s, Pastor De Velder had an opportunity to visit the Ukraine just after perestroika began. There he witnessed firsthand a thriving program that would become the model for Abounding Service. That experience in combination with a book entitled, When Helping Hurts by Brian Fikkert & Steve Corbett, confirmed the idea that Pastor De Velder should start a program where a marginalized group of people would receive help and they, in turn, would ”give back” by serving others.
After many years of experience with “Joni and Friends”, an opportunity developed for Pastor De Velder to start Abounding Service. A friend he had met through the East Valley Community Ministries Consortium struck up a conversation with a refugee while riding on the train. This refugee talked about a need for English skills, especially among older adults. Within a week, Pastor De Velder, whose interest was in literacy and who was looking for a group to serve, sat in an apartment complex talking with Bhutanese leaders about starting English classes. These Bhutanese leaders, Hindus, expressed a great desire for these classes even with the knowledge that they would be faith-based with some Bible reading. Several owned Bibles themselves and wanted to learn how to read them! That was the beginning of Abounding Service.
Classes began with 10-15 students and now, one year later, nearly 60 students are learning English. The biggest constraint to the organization’s growth is volunteers. The organization is set up for individuals or groups, even churches (up to 80 people) to volunteer. Volunteers are asked to commit 2 hours per week for at least 6 weeks, the duration of one unit of study. Pastor De Velder emphasizes that Abounding Service is all about developing relationships and learning English is a by-product. The need is great. More refugees are arriving.
Please consider sharing this information with your church or organization, or volunteering your own time. Contact Pastor Gary De Velder at 480/229-8842 or gary.develder@aboundingservice.org .
GLOBAL HELPNET
MISSION
To provide aid and relief assistance in the areas of community development and education to those in need both nationally and internationally through collaboration with local communities to empower self-sustainability.
VISION
To make a difference in the lives of those in need by extending a helping hand to those who are reaching out for help.
INTERNATIONAL PROGRAMS
Indonesia
Overall program
* Indonesia – Educational Programs
* Continue to provide teacher-training courses for Indonesian teachers who teach English through the annual TESOL program.
* Develop an intensive TESOL or ESL certification program for Indonesian teachers.
* Scholarship assistance for students and/or teachers for undergraduate and graduate programs
Cinta Baca Library – Bogor (Education)
* Continue to assist in the development of children’s programs
* Continue training of staff to develop and implement children’s programs
* Provide volunteers for specialty programs such as English Day, Cinta Baca English Club, Summer Camp, etc.
* Assist in developing English Resource Center
* Provide books in English – non-fiction, fiction, ESL
* Assist with literacy and tutoring programs
* Provide funding for operational expenses and library books
* Provide scholarship assistance for poor students
Cinta Baca Library – National (Community Development)
* Provide teams of workers to help rebuild schoolrooms in disrepair
* Provide funds to establish Reading Post libraries in villages to develop a love of reading and to promote family reading programs
* Provide funding for books for the Cinta Baca Libraries around Indonesia, including Reading Post libraries
* Help the libraries provide scholarships for local teachers to attend the TESOL teacher-training workshops
* Explore the possibility of providing corporate sponsorship of individual libraries
South Africa
* Send books and supplies to Helping Hands in South Africa for impoverished schools.
* Explore other areas of assistance for Helping Hands (assist in school and/or library constructions, English teaching, teacher training, etc.)
Haiti
* Send French books to impoverished village through World Vision Haiti
* Explore other areas of assistance.