2016 NORTH AMERICAN DIVISION
SABBATH SCHOOL MISSION INVESTMENT PROJECTS
ATLANTIC UNION CONFERENCE
CAMP VICTORY LAKE-NORTHEASTERN CONFERENCE
Camp Victory Lake is a 110-acre campsite owned and operated by the Northeastern Conference of Seventh-day Adventists. It serves as a spiritual retreat center and camp meeting locale for Conference constituents. Many of the buildings on the grounds are in dire need of remodeling and upgrades. Many of the facilities have fallen into disrepair over the years.
The objective is to upgrade the grounds and buildings to better serve our field, as well as to better serve hundreds of youth who come to the grounds for the annual Youth Camp during the summer months. Many of these campers are not Seventh-day Adventists, and some are sponsored by public officials from their summer program budgets for youth.
Every year campers who accept the Adventist message from their involvement with the Camp Ministries Department are baptized. In addition to this evangelistic endeavor, the camp is used throughout the year by Pathfinders and Master Guides for their camping requirements, honors, and other programs.
NEW YORK CONFERENCE
Albany, New York is ranking number one post-Christian city in America according to recent studies by the Barna Research Group. Thus, a more intentional approach in outreach is needed. Secularism is high and communities are disengaged from church. Four of our major cities in the New York Conference are ranking in the top 20 of the same research group.
The New York Conference is partnering with local churches in the Capital region to create Adventist awareness in the surrounding communities.
SOUTHWESTERN UNION
GALLUP SDA CHURCH-TEXICO CONFERENCE
The Native American population of the Navajo Tribe totals more than 300,000 members and is located in the Four Corners region of the United States. This population has long demonstrated a serious set of health and social challenges related to alcohol and drug use, diabetes and heart disease that are at four times the national average, and ongoing domestic abuse within the families. These physical and social challenges are exacerbated by the high rate of employment on the Reservation, which ranges from about 15 to 85 percent in various areas and 47 percent throughout the Reservation.
The Gallup, New Mexico, SDA Church continues to seek ways to alleviate these challenges by engaging all who are interested in regular and ongoing health screenings and education, as well as working with a counseling ministry. The need for health seminars, medical testing, counseling, and individual follow-up is very great. This ministry is committed to addressing these challenges to bring hope and healing to a very under-served population. The population of Gallup is comprised of 42 percent Navajos, with approximately 35,000 people traveling past the Gallup Church each week on trips into and from the Reservation.
The development of a ministry center is underway to host and support teams of professionals and volunteers in facilities at the Gallup Church as they minister to the many people seeking help. There are areas where mission teams and volunteers can sleep, eat, and shower. Plans call for continued development in these areas. Both a commercial kitchen and shower facilities are currently being completed to further provide for the support of those offering help.