Grace Church is at work in missions with several projects each year. All such work is rooted in scripture. For example, see Jesus' parable of the sheep and the goats in Matthew 25:31-46 or the admonition in James 2:14-26 regarding faith and deeds.

Please see our youth page for photos of the July, 2010 mission trip to Cincinnati, courtesy of John and Susan Bennett!

Below, we offer a sample of current efforts by our Missions Committee, and also several previous projects. See also our How You Can Help page for other opportunities, and our Children’s page for still more.

Oral Culture: Challenge and Opportunity in Cambodia

In a land where all the teachers were wiped out by the Khmer Rouge, who is left to teach? Cambodia is an oral culture; people learn and tell stories by heart every day. Cambodia’s culture is much like the culture of Jesus’ day, when the gospel spread like wildfire not because it was handed out in book form, but because it was told by heart.

The September, 2011 mission trip of GoTell.org to Cambodia -- supported in part by Grace Church, and undertaken by a group including Rev. Amelia Boomershine and Rev. Tom Boomershine, Ph.D. -- will equip Cambodian pastors and lay leaders by helping them learn the word of God in their hearts, so they can go and tell the good news (Matthew 28:10).

You may follow Amelia and Tom via blogs at http://cambodiastories.wordpress.com/ and http://gotellcambodia.wordpress.com/.

Upon their return, Rev. Amelia wrote,

Thanks to the financial support of Grace and other United Methodist churches, the West Ohio Annual Conference, and the General Board of Global Ministries, sufficient funds were raised to bring all one hundred fifty Cambodian pastors and their families to the first ever Methodist Church in Cambodia Pastor and Spouse Retreat. In mid-September, Tom and I traveled with a team of thirteen (including four children) to lead the educational program of the four-day event, “Biblical Storytelling in Mission and Ministry.” We also visited Phnom Penh and Siem Reap. We taught the story of Jesus Calming the Sea in an orphanage and told scripture in four local churches.

Team Member Marilyn Evans described our experience in this way on the team blog:

Throughout the mission we were known as the West Ohio team and we felt graceful pride as we represented West Ohio to Cambodia. We had been sent by the gospel and sent with the prayers of many. In 14 days we have logged 43 hours in the air plus 8 hours by bus to and from Sihanoukville (not counting the daily bus trips). We have seen and experienced more than we can process yet. But these are the things I am sure of: God’s love is beyond understanding, God moves us to reach out to our sisters and brothers, we have a gospel to tell, we are called to live out the gospel we know wherever we find ourselves, the life of discipleship is ever unfolding, prayer and prayers that engage our hands and feet make a difference.

Thank you, Grace Church, for helping to make a difference in the world.

Growing in Grace: an After-School Enrichment Program at Edison School

From February 24 through March 2, 2011, Grace sponsored our second after-school program at Edison PreK-8 School on Broadway, down the street from the church. Jared Roper, Shanel Finch, and Rev. Amelia Boomershine mentored a small group of second and third graders. Each time we did “Power Math” activities (mainly multiplication). We also watched the second half of “The Storykeepers” series, cooked, and did crafts.

Five Hundred Turkeys!

On December 19, 2010, Grace Church gave away five hundred turkeys and pies to families in our Dayton community. We worked with our partner agencies -- Edison Elementary School, Wesley Community Center, St. Paul United Methodist Church, and the Dayton Urban Ministry Center -- to identify families who received letters inviting them to come to Grace to receive a free turkey and pie. Families also received a most enthusiastic warm welcome as they entered Grace Church. While at Grace they enjoyed free hotdogs, popcorn, beverages, music, games for children, face painting and a visit from Santa Claus. The gift of turkeys and pies was made possible by a most generous friend of Grace Church. Over fifty volunteers, more than forty of them from Grace Church, made possible the fun and excitement of the day!

Dayton Daily News photographer Chris Stewart captured a photo gallery of this happy event.