wfn.org | Mission worker learned in S A leadership

[Beth Hawn]

Microsoft Mail v3.0 (MAPI 1.0 Transport) IPM.Microsoft Mail.Note
To:  Worldwide Faith News
Date: 1998-06-11 14:00
Priority: 3
Message ID: E29CD9672801D211AAB0006008075ABF
Conversation ID: Mission worker learned in S A leadership

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June 10, 1998
Mennonite Board of Missions
Beth Hawn
219-294-7523
NEWS@MBM.org

ELKHART, Ind. (GCMC/MBM) - After 22 years as a long-term mission worker   
in
Brazil, Elaine Kauffman has added yet another exciting adventure to her
resum‚: leading a Service Adventure unit in Norristown, Pa.

Since last August, Kauffman has spent her life with a group of young   
adults
participating in Service Adventure, a joint program of the Commission on
Home Ministries of the General Conference Mennonite Church and Mennonite
Board of Missions of the Mennonite Church.  In Service Adventure, the   
young
adults have learned about new ways to serve God and their community - and   

discovered some things about themselves along the way.

"This has been a learning experience for me as well as for the young   
people in
the program," said Kauffman, a native of Kalispell, Mont. "Most of these   
kids
weren't even born when I went to Brazil. So my whole culture has been   
different
from theirs."

Kauffman has never seen her mission work as "radical" or spectacular.
Instead, she views service as a natural part of her existence.  Through   
her
experience in Brazil - and her current experience with the Service   
Adventure
program - Kauffman simply does the things that fit her gifts and   
abilities,
learning and growing from the culture in which she has been immersed,   
while
sharing the joy and love of Christ through her presence.

While in Brazil over the past two decades, Kauffman's experiences have
included teaching school, serving as an office assistant, working on a
bimonthly newspaper, and serving as accountant and treasurer of the
Evangelical Mennonite Association, the Brazilian branch of the Mennonite
Church.  She has done all this while acting as a teacher and lay leader   
for
various Brazilian Mennonite congregations. That experience has helped her   

relate to the young people in her Service Adventure unit.

"My experiences in Brazil, while not directly related to what I'm doing   
here,
have given me life examples to draw on in relating to the kids here," she   
said.
Leading the Service Adventure unit has been "very much like first-year
teaching" in that Kauffman has learned many things and discovered others   
she
would have done differently.

One of the things Kauffman suggests for future Service Adventure leaders   
in
Norristown and elsewhere is to take advantage of the local cultural
diversity. "I would like the unit to be required to attend a local   
Spanish
service, so they would get a feeling for what it's like to be thrust into   
a
culture where you understand almost nothing," she said.  Such an   
experience
would be an exercise in empathy, allowing Service Adventure participants   
to
see their world from another point of view.

Service Adventure brings together 18- to 20-year-olds in a group
environment where they can channel their energy into mission and service
while checking out their options for life.  For those who aren't   
convinced
that college or a job is the best route for them after they graduate from   
high
school, Service Adventure offers a way to make a difference as they learn   
more
about their own gifts, abilities and interests. Service Adventure workers   

can sometimes gain some experience in the area they're considering - for
example, social work - before making a long-term commitment.

After finishing her master's degree in divinity at Associated Mennonite
Biblical Seminary in Elkhart, Ind., Kauffman had the choice of pursuing
regular voluntary service or becoming a Service Adventure leader.  "I
decided to take this route because it would give me a little sense of   
what it
would be like to be a youth pastor - not that I feel called to that,   
exactly,"
she said. "I think it has been a formative time for all of us. ...   
Sometimes the
growth is more personal than career-oriented."

Kauffman said she has seen evidence of growing maturity and faith,   
sometimes
more visibly than others. For example, a recent act of aggression against   
the
unit house resulted in one member taking the initiative to try to "talk   
things
out" with the perpetrators. "I wasn't here at the time, but I was very
impressed with the way they handled the situation," she said. "Instead of   

locking themselves inside in fear or becoming confrontational, they tried   

to defuse the situation."

The Norristown Service Adventure unit brings members together on a   
routine
basis for Bible study and reflection on the Scriptural truths that they   
are
discovering in the world around them. "I think that in this position, you   
need
to have the ability to listen and to elicit reflection. I'm still trying   
to
develop the ability to help young people think, reflect and talk,"   
Kauffman
said.

With plans for a record 10 Service Adventure units in 1998-99, the need   
for
mature leaders to guide the units continues to remain strong.

As of June 8, recruitment staff based at MBM still were looking for   
leaders to
serve in several of the 10 Service Adventure units anticipated for next   
year.
As the unspoken heroes behind the growth of Service Adventure, unit   
leaders
guide, nurture and counsel the young adults, usually living with them in   
a
common household.  Leadership responsibilities take the equivalent of a
half-time job, which allows for part-time service or employment in the
community.  Service Adventure provides training before and during the
assignment.  A two-year commitment is preferred.  For information, call
Kent Dutchersmith at 219-294-7523 or e-mail ServiceAdventure@MBM.org

"For me, personally," Kauffman said, "I've enjoyed counseling young
people, especially those who are open to discussing ideas. That's the   
best
part. ... [It has been] exciting to see the maturity develop." And the   
hardest
part? "Staying up late and keeping up with the young people - this is
definitely a position that takes stamina!"

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Karen Gadson        PHOTO AVAILABLE