Puentes Online October 06

by Dr. Albert Reyes, President

Crossing Over Together
Visionary Texans Are Joining the Campaign

What an exciting fall we are having. After a wonderful groundbreaking celebration in August we are ready for construction to begin by the end of October on the Piper Student Village and BUA's new 78-acre Baugh Family Campus. And all of these developments are coming none too soon.

We are completely out of space for student housing on our current campus and have seen our student enrollment grow to 235 this semester. New students will be coming in the spring as we move into the second half of our academic year and we are scrambling for residential space for these incoming students. We have run out of office space and have limited conference space for meetings. Our parking lots remain full most days with overflow parking ready for use. These are all good signs of growth and opportunity for expansion. With expanded housing capacity, who knows how fast we will be able to grow!

The timing is right for Crossing Over Together to our new campus. We expect that five residential units will be available for occupancy in the fall. We plan to convert some of our current residential space to classroom, office space, and conference rooms that are in high demand.

Mabee Foundation Grant Announced
I am pleased to announce that we just this month received a challenge grant of $450,000 from the Mabee Foundation to help us complete our Crossing Over Together campaign goal of $9 Million. Thanks to partners like the John Baugh Family and the Baugh Family Foundation, The Piper Family and the CIOS Foundation, the congregations of the Baptist General Convention of Texas, the Mabee Foundation, and many of our donors and friends for their willingness to help us bridge over to our future.

Now I am asking you to join those who have led the way for this effort to complete the Crossing Over Together Campaign. Will you join us in this kingdom building effort so you can share in our success? As of today, we have received 61% in pledges and gifts toward our $9 Million goal. We would love to finalize our campaign by the end of the year with 100% of our goal met in gifts and pledges. Would you help us complete our goal by making a pledge or gift by the end of the year? Every gift is significant and every gift counts!

Click here to learn more about how you can join the Crossing Over Together campaign and help BUA claim a new era of cross-cultural ministry.

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Bonilla Praises BUA Mission
Congressman follows up on recent appearance at BUA groundbreaking

"Thank you for allowing me to participate in the Baptist University of the Américas groundbreaking this past August. Your faculty and students were impressive and inspiring. Your enrollment is expanding and your influence spreading. I am most encouraged by the love and kindness that is pervasive throughout your campus. Psalm 105:1 (NIV) reads, "Give thanks to the Lord, call on his name; make known among the nations what he has done." It is evident that your university, with its international focus and mission, is heeding this call - this call for evangelism, for compassion, and for love.

Leadership is found in many persons. It is found in a mother teaching her son how to read, a professor instructing her students, a missionary planting a church, a pastor shepherding his flock, and in a Congressman representing his district. We are all called to lead, and we are all called to be good stewards of the gifts God has provided us with and the positions God has placed us in. It is evident that you all understand this call, and I commend all of the Baptist University of the Americas students and faculty for your leadership and good stewardship of God's provisions to you. May the Lord continue to bless you, your university and its many fruitful ministries.
--Congressman Henry Bonilla, 23rd District, United States Congress

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Wayland University Agreement Builds Yet Another Bridge to College for Cross-Cultural Students

SAN ANTONIO – With the recent signing of a new articulation agreement between Baptist University of the Américas (BUA) and Wayland Baptist University, students beginning at BUA will have yet another vital bridge into quality higher education in Texas.

The new agreement, signed during BUA’s 60^th Anniversary Founder’s Day chapel last week, will enable students to transfer coursework completed at Baptist University of the Américas and apply it toward degree programs at Wayland Baptist University. This new transferability opens up several important opportunities for students as their educational plans develop. . .

                                                                                                      READ MORE . . .

Texas-Mexico Pastoral Care Conference
Celebrates 10th Anniversary

(L-R) Paul Kraus and Nora Lozano (BUA); David Vasquez and Max Camacho
(Hospital Mexicano-Americano Guadalajara) celebrate the graduation of
pastoral care students this past July

Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico - Though Esther Garcia grew up in a pastor's home, she easily admits that she was once very intimidated by pastoral care crises. "I have always been involved in the work of the church," she said in a recent interview, "but there were many things I did not know how to handle—so I stayed away from it—such as suicide and domestic violence. As much as we wanted to work with these people in our community, it was difficult because we didn’t have the training or the materials to work with them or to help ourselves.”

"So when the opportunity came to us, our local ministers took advantage of the education that resulted from the Texas-Mexico Pastoral Care & Counseling Conferences. Not only did our ministry benefit tremendously, but we as ministers developed personally.” These remarks of gratitude came from Garcia as she graduated this July from the innovative three-year pastoral care training program that celebrated its tenth anniversary this summer.

READ MORE . . .

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Children Focus on BUA During VBS Missions
New VBS Missions Materials Developed Featuring Recent BUA Graduates

Children from First Baptist Church Lavernia deliver
"white out supplies" to
BUA's Agape House,
gathered during their
Arctic-themed VBS
missions emphasis.

Following the snow theme,
all of the donated supplies were white, except for one
red umbrella that a little girl
donated, "because it would help someone find you in a snowstorm!"

San Antonio-This summer, some Texas Baptist children met several interesting students from BUA as part of the missions emphasis of their annual Vacation Bible School. These student stories, such as "The Painter with a Problem," "Crossing Cultures to Build an Orphanage," and "Cowboy Preacher Stands Tall" were included in new materials developed to help familiarize children with the missions impact of BUA graduates.

Traditionally, a week-long Vacation Bible School has a missions focus session each day which helps children learn more about a variety of mission efforts around the world. Recognizing that churches are increasingly becoming more creative and diverse in their mission emphases, BUA piloted materials that included a daily story, photo, and prayer request that was supported by both a script and PowerPoint images.

Advancement Associate Jeff Johnson pitched the idea to several churches including First Baptist Church in Sanger, Southmont Baptist Church in Denton, and First Baptist Church of Warner, Oklahoma. These churches also dedicated their children's VBS offerings to BUA so they could really feel that they were making a difference in the lives of the students they learned about.
Children from FBC Sanger learn about BUA

Other churches, such as First Baptist Church Lavernia, simply gathered donated supplies for BUA's Agape House, which has long supported student families with donated clothing, child care, housekeeping and school supplies.
Along with their sponsor Carole Claus, twin students Kara and Sara Lindsey and their older sister Danielle made a special delivery of donated items to BUA on behalf of their friends in Lavernia.

Hermana Tina Voirin has organized and administered Agape House as a volunteer ministry for the last five years or so. This summer she was delighted at the donations saying, "This is going to be such a tremendous help to the students." She was particularly pleased when she saw donations of computer printer paper, a much needed commodity by today's students, but one which churches don't often think about, she said.