By Rick Sample, CBF field personnel
CBF West gathered in October in the San Francisco Bay Area for their annual meeting, with participants coming from churches across the 13-state region of the Fellowship. Activities included a business session with presentations by representatives from CBF Global and a cross-cultural missions tour to a Thai Buddhist temple, a Sikh gurdwara and an Afghan mosque at which the group from CBF held a Q&A session with the imam. The day concluded with a walking tour of Fremont’s “Little Kabul” neighborhood and a sumptuous Afghan dinner at a local restaurant. Every other year, CBF West uses its annual meeting as a missions immersion experience.
The highlight of this year’s gathering was a ministry event coordinated by CBF field personnel, Lita and Rick Sample, who have served as CBF missionaries among internationals in the San Francisco Bay Area for over 22 years. The event was a Harvest Festival for the Afghan refugee community held in central Fremont on the Saturday before Halloween which was hugely successful. CBF worked in partnership with Fremont’s Afghan Christian Church which co-sponsored the event with CBF West.
Afghan children and parents alike were delighted with all the games, crafts and activities which were led by enthusiastic volunteers. Nine vehicles lined the church’s sidewalk for an elaborated “Trunk or Treat.” There were balloon animals and a whole lot of candy! Most of the children came in costumes, including numerous teenagers. For some Afghan children, this was their first autumn in America and the first time for them to have such a fun experience. For many families it was the first time for them to step foot on a church campus. By the time each child had completed all the stations, their candy bags were overflowing. Some of the dads were seen helping the kids out by eating some of their candy!
First Baptist Church of Tahoe City, Cali., just recently voted to affiliate with CBF as a Cooperative Baptist Fellowship partnering congregation. The church brought a team of six led by their pastor, Scott Capshaw, and with them brought many games and activities including the bounce house they use for their church’s own children’s ministries in their town on the coast of Lake Tahoe.
Church @ Cactus, a CBF partnering congregation in Peoria, Arizona, in suburban Phoenix, brought a team of nine under the leadership of Joyce Reed, CBF West’s current moderator. The C@C team took charge of the crafts. Joyce and her husband, Geoff, had a fantastic display in their van at the Trunk or Treat sidewalk. Members of the CBF West Coordinating Council and other individuals from throughout the region brought the CBF presence at this ministry event to a total of 23 participants.
We had 180 Afghan children plus 140 Afghan teens and adults participate in our Harvest Festival, conducted by 54 volunteers including the 23 from CBF West. CBF field personnel Lita and Rick Sample use events such as this year’s Afghan Harvest Festival to be a launching pad for cultivating beloved community as they follow up with the new refugee families met for the first time on that sunny autumn afternoon.
This ministry event makes it possible for the Afghan church to bear witness to Jesus Christ as the only Afghan Christian presence in the San Francisco Bay Area. Thank you to CBF West for making it all possible!