[1]Baptist Resource Network helps raise funds for burned church
By Shannon Baker/Baptist Resource Network
PHILADELPHIA (BP) – Vietnamese Baptist Church, also known as New Life Baptist Church and Vietnamese International Baptist Church, recently set up an account through the Baptist Resource Network of Pennsylvania/South Jersey to raise funds to restore their church that was destroyed by fire on October 27 [2]. There are no fees associated with directly giving through the network.
[3]Fire started on the church’s roof and traveled downward, burning through the entire attic (where the children’s room was) to the rest of the back side of the building. To date, the fire marshal has not discovered what started the fire.
Pastor Philip Pham is thankful for the outpouring of support from other local churches and friends and now points to this funding effort as a way for those interested to help.
Immediately after the fire, youth set up a GoFundMe page seeking to raise $10,000 to pay for the restoration of the children’s worship area. Less than 24 hours later, donors gave over the requested amount.
The next stage, Pham shared, was to raise $30,000 for the damaged sanctuary, of which $24,000 has already been raised.
[4]“God is great,” Pham cheered. “He used everyone!”
The church also seeks to raise another $25,000 for the office and lobby, where community members come to receive social services, as well as to replace other items, such as hymn notes, Bibles, microphones, and modems, as shared on the GoFundMe page.
“We are continuing or pray and walk by faith, like we always have,” Pham said, sharing his long-time vision that his church would be a community center, meeting the needs of people near and far.
GuideStone to host post-election webcast
GuideStone Financial Resources’ David Spika, Chu Soh and Brandon Pizzurro will join Den Bishop, president of Holmes Murphy & Associates, to discuss the potential impacts of the election results on the financial and health care landscapes.
Key topics will include:
- Effects of economic policy on financial markets
- Navigating post-election market reality
- Possible trajectory of health care
- Insight on the pending Affordable Care Act (ACA) Supreme Court ruling
Register here [6].
SBC hotel company delivers apology, gift cards
Maritz Global Events, the provider of hotel services for the Southern Baptist Convention, experienced a technical issue Oct. 1, the opening day of housing registration for the 2021 SBC Annual Meeting in Nashville. The issue resulted in customers being unable to book a room for several hours.
“This technical error is solely our issue and should not be reflective of the Southern Baptist Convention,” a release from the company stated. “While this technical issue was quickly rectified (within two hours) and all attendee reservations were able to be made later that morning, we certainly regret our error that caused such unnecessary confusion for your group.”
In addition to the apology extended to registrants, the company also distributed $10 egift cards to Cracker Barrel Old Country Store to the email addresses of those who experienced the problem. The company’s statement, released Nov. 6, advised anyone who believes they should have received the gift card and did not to contact Maritz Global Events at 864-580-4468 or [email protected] [7].