This is an article from the January-February 1989 issue: GCOWE 2000

Snowbirds Welcome! (and Other Volunteers, Too)

Snowbirds Welcome! (and Other Volunteers, Too)

Southern California is a nice place to be, especially in the wintertime. Just ask the retired couples who descend on our campus every year between October and April! Most are members of the Mobile Missionary Assistance Program (MMAP) and come with their R-Vs in groups of eight for three weeks at a time. A few come through contact with our Personnel Office and stay longer.

Just to let you know that such volunteers are welcome and needed, we’ve added more R-V parking spaces and converted part of our dorm into furnished efficiencies. Needed? You bet! How can snowbirds help at the Center? Here a few examples:

Roger and Grace Hamilton of Kansas work in the office of the International Community Development department at our William Carey International University (WCIU). Roger is a retired college professor and Grace a nurse. They expect to be here for several months. In January, they went to Mexico for two weeks with a joint class from BIOLA University and WCIU. They plan to take the Perspectives course on Tuesday evenings this spring.

Mendell and Sevilla Smith are back again this year from Colorado for a couple of months. A retired engineer, Mendell helps in Graphics. Sevilla, a part-time realtor, volunteers in the mailroom.

Joyce McKenzie, a homemaker from northern California, does research for two agencies on campus: Frontiers and the Institute of Global Urban Studies.

Rags and Ronni Ragland helped Wycliffe Bible Translators for ten years and now want to promote the Perspectives course back home in Washington state. They are volunteering here for a few months and taking the course themselves. A retired forester, Rags works in maintenance, while Ronni, an registered nurse, works in our mailroom.

Lloyd and Naomi Pfander came from central California to look us over for two months. They’ve now decided to stay on for a year or more. Lloyd taught 5th grade for many years and Naomi was a school administrator. Lloyd helps us here in the cafeteria and Naomi at Frontiers.

Carl and Jenny Batchelor served here many times in the past with MMAP. They live nearby and both work in the mailroom at different times each year.

Edwin and Clara Olsoe came for two months from Washington. He is a carpenter/cabinet maker, she a homemaker. Edwin’s skill is needed in maintenance and Clara is a blessing in our child-care center.

These volunteers enjoy their work and count it a privilege to gather with us each morning to share what God is doing within the Center community. Their mission vision grows further on Monday mornings and Thursday evenings as they hear more reports from throughout the campus and around the world. And the generational mix inspires all of us!

With 140 residential units and twelve main campus buildings, we have about two million dollars worth of deferred maintenance projects waiting for people like you or others you know. We can use painters, plumbers, electricians, tree trimmers, upholsterers, interior decorators, and seamstresses to repair or upgrade dorm rooms, classrooms, houses, offices, auditorium seat cushions, drapes, blinds, and much, much more.

Agencies and departments of the Center and university desperately need accountants, bookkeepers, receptionists, general office clerks, data entry clerks, researchers, programmers, etc. The list goes on and on.

Many vital ministries are crippled due to lack of staff. Young people must raise support to work here, a process which often takes several months and which can be more difficult because the work is not overseas.

Most positions on the campus can be filled by self-supported individuals who have good health, a desire to be productive, and an ability to come quickly. Whether you come for a month, six months, or two years, your services can make an eternal difference!

Get in on a blessing. Call Personnel at (818) 398-2330 to volunteer your services.

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