In the vast sea of vendors that populate the Marketplace & Bookstore at the Association of Partners in Christian Education 2024 Annual Event, there’s only one who literally makes a splash.
And that would be Gracie.
After a deadly shooting at Westside Middle School near Jonesboro, Arkansas, David Gill and others pined for a way to aid students in their emotional and spiritual recovery. He began delving into the idea of holding a healing camp at Ferncliff Camp and Conference Center, where he worked a few hours away.
For more than 52 years the Presbyterian Committee on the Self-Development of People (SDOP) has helped communities recover from the legacy of racism and structural inequality infecting every nation around the world. The focus on community comes into focus when our story is shared in Spanish, El Comité Presbiteriano del Autodesarrollo de los Pueblos.
To the people on the edge of exile, the prophet Isaiah makes a startling promise: You shall be the ones to repair your world. Of course, the energy of God will be a solid partner. Despite God-energized human efforts, sadly, conditions of exile still exist — joblessness, food scarcity, hopelessness and oppressive racial tension, to name a few.
