All Nations Child and Youth Ministry

CLASSIS TORONTO

All Nations Christian Fellowship supports a Child and Youth Ministry in the Atkinson Coop (used to be called Alexandra Park). This ministry consists of several different activities:

(1) KIDS Church

KIDS Church meets every Saturday morning. It targets children between Senior Kindergarten and Grade Five. At this time they have between 40 and 50 children registered and usually 25-30 children attend each week. The leaders meet at 9:45 am for prayer. At 10:30 they leave to walk around the neighbourhood picking up children on the way and bringing them to the church. They usually begin Church around 11:00 am and bring the children home around 12:30 pm. The children are very enthusiastic and eager to learn about God.

(2) Youth Group Reunions

Several times a year they have a get-together for the youth who have been a part of the programs in the past and are now in their late teens.

(3) KIDS Church Choir

The KIDS Church Choir continues to sing in churches from time to time (they are not sure what to call them now since they are not actually in KIDS Church any more since they are too old). They really enjoy the singing and are available to come to your church.

(4) Visitation

The staff also try to go door to door almost every week to visit the families of the children who attend, although during the winter months this visitation sometimes happens via the phone instead of personal visits.

top

Staff:

Pauline Ho: Is back on a part time basis from a maternity leave.

Volunteers:

Volunteers are an essential part of the ministry at All Nations. At this time they have about 9 volunteers, half of them are aged 13-15 but their oldest volunteer will be 80 this year! The ministry is always in need of volunteers of any and every age - no one is too old or too young! We appreciate the encouragement and involvement of numerous volunteers from The Toronto Alliance Church, a church in the vicinity of Alexandra Park.

top

CEFOntario-a partner in ministry

We are happy to work closely with Child Evangelism Fellowship in the Alexandra Park Ministry. When the children graduate from KIDS Church, they are able to go straight into CEFs junior high ministry. This ministry consists of a biweekly program called Junior Youth Challenge for all the junior high kids, and Boys and Girls Clubs, where the children meet in smaller groups.

In the summer of 2002 CEFOntario had their first Camp Good News with about 30 children in attendance. Because the children are unable to afford the cost of the camp, CEF looks for individuals or churches who will sponsor a child to cover the outstanding cost. Last year we were able to sponsor 10 children to go to camp. Plans are under way for camp again this year, and CEFOntario is once again looking for sponsors. For more information on CEF, or if you would like to participate in Camp Good News by sponsoring a child to go to camp, please visit www.cefontario.org

top

ALL NATIONS CHRISTIAN FELLOWSHIP – Child & Youth Ministry (Alexandra Park)
Report to Diaconate – January 2006

We are thankful to God for His faithfulness over the past year. A few months ago we were concerned about not having enough workers, as Pauline Ho was going on maternity leave, Bonnie Clark was leaving for teacher’s college, and another volunteer was leaving for university. However, God has provided enough volunteers to keep KIDS Church going smoothly. Several of these volunteers are young teenagers who were children at KIDS Church not long ago. We are thrilled to see them mature in their faith and grow in the qualities of serving and leadership.

We have also hired another worker – we are very happy that Laura Berends has started working with us as of this month. Laura just finished teacher’s college at Calvin, and feels called to reach out to children and youth in downtown Toronto. She will be leading the Sunday School and Youth Group at All Nations as well as helping to lead the Alexandra Park ministry. Laura is truly an answer to prayer, as we were looking for someone like her for these important roles. We pray that God will bless her in this ministry.

KIDS Church is going well. The workers report that there have been quite a few new children lately. Last Saturday there were about 25 kids in attendance. We have also lost some children, as several have moved away, and some have been taken into foster care – including “Janine”, whom I mentioned in my last letter as having become a Christian during at summer camp. Our team was very upset when Janine and her brother were taken by Children’s Aid (although we knew it was not an ideal home situation), because they could no longer attend KIDS Church. However, we were very happy and relieved to find out that the children are in a good Christian foster home, and are doing quite well, although they say they miss KIDS Church. Their social worker believes that all the church activities they are involved in have really been good for them, and is thinking of making their attendance at KIDS Church on Saturday AND church on Sunday - with their mother! - a condition of their returning home. We praise God for what he is doing and pray that he will continue to work in the lives of Janine and her family.

Our team continues to go door to door each week to visit each child’s home, and we also take groups of children on outings whenever possible. Building good relationships with the children and their families is foundational to our ministry. All the violence we’ve had in Toronto recently reinforces for us the importance of reaching out to young children – before it’s too late.

We are thankful for the support of CRC community. We had another great Christmas party last month and were able to give each child a gift -- thanks to a wonderful group of people from Rehoboth Fellowship who give us toys each year. The kids also had a fun outing to Maranatha in Woodbridge for a special Christmas event, which they enjoyed very much.

We are so grateful for all your support. We ask that you continue to support this ministry with your offerings and by distributing our prayer letters to your congregations. We also invite you to visit or volunteer at KIDS Church some Saturday. It’s an experience you will never forget! Also, please remember us in your prayers, as this is a very challenging ministry, and pray especially for the children we reach out to, that they may know God’s love and live for Him. Thank you!

Yours in Christ,

Pauline Ho and KIDS Church team

ALL NATIONS CHRISTIAN FELLOWSHIP - CHILD AND YOUTH MINISTRY
Report to Diaconal Meeting - January 2005 - Pauline Ho - (905)565-9989

First of all I want to thank all of you so much for your support for this ministry. We very much appreciate your prayers and encouragement as well as your financial help which makes this work possible. Many children are hearing the gospel and being blessed through you.

We are thankful that God continues to bless this ministry in so many ways. We have a small but committed group of volunteers, and kids who are eager to come to KIDS church each week. This was clear last Saturday when both kids and volunteers braved the snowstorm and temperatures in the minus twenties to come to KIDS Church!

We are thankful for Christians and Christian groups working together. We are blessed by Bonnie Clark, who works with us through Child Evangelism Fellowship; Urban Promise, which reaches out to many of the same children through after-school programs; and Toronto Alliance church, where most of our volunteers attend, and where many of the children go on Sunday (brought by the Urban Promise workers). We are also thankful for Treasure House, the ministry to street people which allows us to use their building. Pray that we will continue to find favour with them, as we have accidentally caused damage to their space a couple times recently (oops!).

We have also built up good relationships with many of the parents, as we pick up the children and bring them home from KIDS Church, and as Bonnie and I visit or call most of the families each week. One woman told us last week that she just found out she has cancer. She was very upset and concerned about the little granddaughter who lives with her, but she was glad to be able to talk about it. She didn't have anyone else to talk to, but she said, "you are like family to me."

One of our big challenges is that many of the children have such a great need for the love and attention that they don't always receive at home. For example, quite a few of the children participated in a Christmas play that Toronto Alliance put on. It was an elaborate production, in a real theatre in the neighbourhood. The children were dressed up, excited, and had practiced long and hard - and almost none of their parents came to watch. One mother had promised to attend but backed out at the last minute, although Bonnie called her and tried to persuade her to change her mind. Her young daughter was backstage, chewing her nails and muttering to herself, "I hope my mom's out there, I hope my mom's out there..." Our hearts break for these children at times, but we know that with us they do feel loved, and they are learning that their Heavenly Father loves them and is always with them.

You can help us by:

• Ensuring that your congregations receive our prayer letters. This is very important as we need their prayers and their awareness of our ministry. Some people may be interested in volunteering or helping us in some way, but they need to receive the information! (Please let me know if I don't have the correct address for your church -1 have a sheet you can check).
• Visiting our ministry with a group from your church. This also helps raise awareness of our work, and perhaps someone will be interested in volunteering more often.
• Invite us to visit your church and share about our ministry - our choir is available to sing!
• Let us know if you know of anyone who might be interested in working with us.
• Support us with your offerings.
• Pray for us - for the children, the workers, and for more volunteers.

Thank you! Feel free to contact me at the number above. May God bless you and your congregation!

ALL NATIONS CHRISTIAN FELLOWSHIP

Child and Youth ministry

Pauline Ho, 7190 Para Place, Mississauga, ON L5W 1L5 (905) 565-9989 khanhpauline@hotmail.com

December, 2003

Greetings dear friends and supporters:

Thank-you for your continued prayers and support over the past months. Sorry I have not been keeping in touch too well. I was on (semi) maternity leave for about 10 months, and in addition to having three small children to take care of, we also moved recently! Please note our new address and phone number.

In spite of what is going on in my life, work with children in downtown Toronto does continue, thanks to Bonnie, who is still working with us through her job at CEF (Child Evangelism Fellowship), and our dedicated team of volunteers. They have been doing a great job. As of September I have been working again on a part time basis, and it is great to be back in Alexandra Park (now known as the Atkinson Coop).

When we re-started KIDS Church in September after our summer break, we also celebrated its tenth anniversary! It's hard to believe it's been that long since we started. To make our anniversary special, we actually had our first "Second generation" KIDS Church child attending. This five-year-old girl is the daughter of a young woman who was one of the very first KIDS at Church kids! KIDS Church continues to go well, with 40 or 50 children attending regularly. I also still see many of the "graduates" of our programs, and it is encouraging to see that they are also doing very well.

Brianna's Testimony

Hi, my name is Brianna. I became a Christian when I was ten years old and I was doing really bad in school. I needed a lot of help. I did not know why I was acting that way. This is how it happened: I met this woman named Pauline. She brought me to Kids Church. Then I started learning about Jesus and what sin was and I finally realized that all the things that I had been doing were bad. Then a couple of weeks later I met Bonnie then we got really close. She helped me to know God and what He did for me. Sometimes when I am at church I feel like crying because of what He did for us. Then when I was ten I asked Jesus to take away my sins because God used Bonnie to bring me closer to God. I want to get baptized because Jesus did it and I want to follow God.

God is continuing to do great things at All Nations also. We have seen Him answer prayer in miraculous ways, healing those with cancer, and giving children to the childless! Our pastor Tim Berends and his family are now on a mission in Kazakhstan for a year or two and though we miss them, we praise God for the work He is doing through them. We are also blessed by having quite a few newcomers from China coming to our church. One family just had their second child, a baby boy, and they are so thankful. However the father was just laid off - please pray for them. Although a number of these families have moved out of Toronto again, we are encouraged that they are going with a newfound faith in Christ.

David's Testimony:

"I became a Christian (not baptized) when I was in grade 4. I've followed God in prayer and in spirit. This is the first time I worshipped Him in a church." (Age 11).

David and his sister along with several of their friends have been attending All Nations from the neighbourhood. They first connected with us through the week-long kids program ANCF does in a nearby park every summer. These children are so enthusiastic and excited about coming to church. Although church is brand new to them, they sing and participate as though they've been going to church for years. Another little girl, three years old, just joined my Sunday School class. She was brought by her older sister, who ahs been coming down the street to ANCF for ten years now - since SHE was three years old! These kids are such an encouragement to us all! Pray that they will be blessed through our church.

Work in the inner-city is both rewarding and challenging. There are very real dangers, including gangs and flying bullets. Yet the joy of seeing children coming to follow Jesus, and watching them praise God together, is beyond description. Thank-you for making this work possible through your prayers, encouragement and donations. We would appreciate your continued support. Volunteers are also very much needed!

A personal prayer request: The company my husband works for has just gone bankrupt, and Khanah will be out of work as of December 31st. Please pray that God will provide for our family and that Khanah will find a new job soon. (He is a certified tool and die maker, if anyone has any connections).

Thank you so much for your support.

May God bless you richly in this Christmas season, as well as in the new year.

Love in Christ,

Pauline Ho

* If you would like to support this work, cheques can be made out to All Nations Christian Fellowship (please indicate that it is for the CHILD & YOUTH MINISTRY), and mailed to me at the address above or to the church mailing address: 300 Coxwell Ave., P.O. Box 22585, Toronto, ON M4L 2A0.

top

Youth | Links | Classis In The News

To contact us:
Phone: 416-528-2461
Email: webmaster@classistoronto.org