Joe Westbury/Index
Thumbs up for missions
Canadian Brian Magnusson gives the thumbs up for missions while standing on a roof in downtown McDonough earlier this year. Magnusson, a member of Bow Valley Baptist Church in Cochran, Alberta, took vacation time to donate his labor to the project. “I’ve been blessed in my life and I want to be a blessing to others, “ he said.
One good turn deserves another. That could have been the unofficial mission statement of a partnership between Canada and Georgia earlier this year when a team of Canadians came to make repairs in McDonough.
McDONOUGH — Last year a construction team from Bethany Baptist Church in McDonough took a construction trip to Cambrian Heights Baptist Church in Calgary to help with local needs. This year Canadians from across the nation returned the favor and spent a week in the Henry County area helping restore substandard housing.
Darla Ponath, who oversees the ministry of the Canadian convention’s Baptist Builders and Disaster Relief, was one of those individuals Bethany pastor Al O’Quinn developed a relationship
February, Ponath said Canadians wanted to reciprocate with a mission trip of their own to Georgia.
During their week-long sojourn the volunteers completed nearly 20 projects ranging from roofing, installing drywall, restoring decks, painting, and making electrical repairs. Twenty-seven Canadians made the trip – some arrived by air, others drove 19 hours over the course of two days – to be the hands and feet of Christ.
Jason McGibbon, associate pastor of The Sanctuary at Milton, an Ontario suburb, said such trips “are a way to teach our folks that missions should be an intentional part of who we are. Our church is only five years old with 110 members and we have been on the receiving end of a lot of mission trips. We felt this would be a way to return the favor.”
O’Quinn agreed from a Georgia perspective.
“Whenever our members go off on a mission trip their eyes are opened and they see the Gospel in a totally different light. They are never the same in their spiritual walk.
“The enterprise that is closest to God’s heart is missions. I don’t want our people to forget that.”
Joe Westbury/Index
McDonough Mayor Billy Copeland visits a work site in February to express his appreciation for the work team. “This is a tremendous opportunity for our citizens to be enjoying the generosity of the Canadian Baptists. Caring for others is a measure of greatness, and each of these volunteers is an example of that statement,” he said. Copeland is a member of First Baptist of McDonough and a veteran of several mission trips.
Joe Westbury/Index
Darla Ponath, center, gives instructions to McDonough interns who are interested in learning the construction trade. Ponath said the work opportunity provided a Christian environment and witness that the youth would not otherwise receive. Ponath coordinates disaster relief ministry for Canadian Baptists.
Joe Westbury/Index
Several of the 27 volunteers, all members of Canadian Baptist Builders, wore shirts that explained their ministry objective. Volunteers completed more than 15 work projects around the city during their week in McDonough. Georgia Baptists have been in a ministry partnership with Canadian Baptists since it was approved in the 2006 annual meeting.
Joe Westbury/Index
Rocky Phibbs of Bow Valley Baptist Church in Cochran, Alberta, left, teaches Tyler Flemming of Bethany Baptist Church in McDonough how to install roofing shingles. Phibbs said he wanted to participate in the project “as a way of giving back for what we have received from Georgia Baptists.”
Joe Westbury/Index
First McDonough member Blake Turner coordinates work teams from a construction site. Turner, a local businessman with Turner Team Inc., also oversees Community Committed to Character – a nonprofit ministry that works through the mayor’s office to help struggling homeowners with repairs – and was the local primary contact for the Canadian volunteers.
Joe Westbury/Index
Bob Rankin, foreground, moves decking timber into place as Jarianne Jackson, background left, and Tong Kong Ng, background right, provide support. Rankin is a member of The Sanctuary at Milton; Jackson is a member of The Journey Church in Brampton, Ontario; and Ng is a member and emeritus pastor of Mississauga Chinese Southern Baptist Church.
Joe Westbury/Index
Jason McGibbon, above background, associate pastor of The Sanctuary at Milton, works with his father Gerry McGibbon, also a member of The Sanctuary at Milton and with his back to the camera, to secure a new deck to the exterior wall of a home.