Alaska's Nome Church was blessed during 2017 to have a volunteer construction crew from the Rivers Edge Church in McMinnville, Ore., come to install new windows and siding for the parsonage.
The crew was under the direction of Paul Knoblock and included his wife, Tami, plus Lloyd Smith, Carl Robert and Matt Weber. Within four days, the Nome project was completed.
Weber went on to the remote Gambell Church on St. Lawrence Island to work with the children there, then to nearby Savoonga Church where he rejoined the rest of the crew. The group repaired the wind damaged roof of the Savoonga parsonage and built a walkway between the parsonage and the church. They also replaced the old rusty oil line that was about to burst.
The Rivers Edge team volunteered their time and talents, traveling at their own expense, because of their great love for the people in the village of Savoonga. Their connection to Savoonga began when they visited in November 2016 (again at their own expense) and presented an eight-day evangelistic series. They were anxious to return and help their new friends.
What a wonderful gift they gave us. We deeply appreciate their work and thank the Alaska Conference for supplying the needed materials.
The Rivers Edge Church has made the Savoonga Church and village their mission field and are already looking forward to another big project. They envision the gospel being presented to the whole village via the medium of radio, similar to what was done in the villages of Gambell and Shungnak, and are raising money to make that happen. They also see the need of a restroom in the Savoonga church building and hope that others will help with the cost of materials for both projects. The radio ministry will require about $25,000; the estimate for the addition of a restroom is $10,000–15,000 with shipping.
Those interested in helping these projects can contact the Alaska Conference at 6100 O'Malley Road, Anchorage, AK 99507, noting the Savoonga Project on any donations.
