MCC forges links to Spanish, French congregations

WINNIPEG, MAN.

Felipe Morales practically lived at his church last summer--and he couldn't have been happier. The Medicine Hat, Alta. man organized a two-week vacation Bible school, painted and cleaned in the church, helped put together a church directory and song book, and took a census of the local Hispanic community. "I like working in the church" says Morales, who came to Canada from Guatemala nine-and-a-half years ago.

Morales's three months of service at his church, a Hispanic Mennonite congregation, was made possible by Mennonite Central Committee Canada's Summerbridge program, designed for people of diverse ethnic and cultural backgrounds. Marsha Jones, who helped start the program for MCC Canada, says the Hispanic Mennonite churches in Alberta first approached MCC a few years ago, asking if there was a program in Canada similar to MCC US Community Ministries' Summer Service Program--which works with African-American, Hispanic, Asian and Native American Mennonite congregations. There wasn't, but it seemed like a good way for MCC Canada to link with these churches, so it began to organize its own program.

"The idea is to really solidify the relationship between MCC and the church and the church and the young people," Jones says, adding that it should also develop leadership skills in the young people.

MCC Canada, the participating provincial MCC and the sponsoring church split the costs. Participants get a voluntary service allowance, plus a small stipend, for a maximum of four months, and can apply for a bursary from MCC Canada at the end of the summer if they're going back to school.

Two years ago, three people signed up. Last year eight people joined Summerbridge--three from Hispanic Mennonite churches in Alberta, one from a Hmong Mennonite church in Toronto and four from French-speaking Mennonite churches in Quebec.

Eve Brosseau, who attends St-Eustache Mennonite Brethren Church near Montreal, says she was eager to sign up. "It seemed like fun, and I wanted to do service," says the 18-year-old. Her three months were a whirlwind of service activities--answering phones at a centre for low-income people, counselling at a Mennonite summer musical camp, working at a soup kitchen and more. A number of the projects were done together with the other Montreal participants, including a cultural exchange to Toronto, where they stayed with members of the El Salvador community and worked at a day care. As well, the group attended a four-day orientation/retreat in Manitoba in mid-summer to meet other participants and learn about MCC.

"It opened our minds," says Brosseau, who would like to serve with MCC again in the future.

Jones hopes to see 15 participants this summer. She says Summerbridge helps churches--which design the projects with the applicants--do things they otherwise wouldn't have the time or money to accomplish. "We don't give them a lot of guidelines," she explains. Further information is available from MCC offices or from the following toll-free number: 1-888-MCC-6337.

Carol Thiessen, MCC Canada

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