nyc_volunteers_60903

Posted: 6/06/03

Volunteers needed to build new housing for volunteers

NEW YORK (BP)–In the past, exorbitant hotel prices took a bite out of efforts to recruit Baptist volunteers for ministries in the Big Apple.

Soon, the problem of hotel rooms running $200 or a more a night and local churches far too small to serve as overnight hosts will be solved.

A corner building in the Park Slope neighborhood of Brooklyn that once housed a funeral home, dentist's office and a drugstore is being converted into living space for up to 50 volunteers at a time.

The move mirrors efforts in other major metropolitan areas to create buildings dedicated to housing mission volunteers.

One of the first such buildings was dedicated in the Boston area several years ago with assistance from longtime missions supporters Ira and Betty Kraft of South Carolina.

Now, in addition to the project in New York City, buildings to house mission volunteers are to open in Cochrane, Alberta, Canada, and San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Building the housing for volunteers, however, is dependent on volunteers, with aggressive efforts currently under way to enlist construction teams.

“These projects won't work without a commitment of volunteers,” said Jim Burton, director of volunteer mobilization for the Southern Baptist Convention's North American Mission Board. “We're hoping to have teams of 10 to 12 volunteers per week at each work site until they're done.”

The Brooklyn effort was made possible through Enduring Hope, a comprehensive plan of long- and short-term relief efforts funded by about $3.5 million contributed through Southern Baptist entities in the aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

Shane Critser, volunteer coordinator for New Hope New York, dumps debris from the renovation project. A Kentucky native, Critser was working with other volunteers on the first phase of a nine-month project to open a center for housing missions volunteers. (Jim Burton/BP Photo)

“New York Baptists believe relationships as much as anything will help them recover and heal from that experience, so they wanted a place to house volunteers,” Burton said. “With this building, we're talking about individuals being able to go and volunteer in New York and stay for $100 for a week, which is unheard of.”

The building was acquired at a below-market price, and volunteers working at the site are helping save about $200,000 in labor costs for renovations. When finished, the site will have sleeping accommodations for 25 men and 25 women.

In Canada, the Canadian Convention of Southern Baptists is building a two-story 50-by-110-foot addition to its offices that will house a total of 36 people in beds–50 if sleeping-bag space is included. Dining facilities will handle 80 people.

The Puerto Rico structure will house about 50 people in a 40-by-80-foot concrete block building on the campus of the Puerto Rico Baptist Theological Seminary. This project is made possible by a missions offering from World Changers, a NAMB-sponsored student mobilization ministry.

Construction volunteers interested in assisting with the projects may call (800) 462-8657.