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OAKS, Inc. Joy Party at
Galilee UMC, Englewood, NJ
Korean and African American children shared potato chips, Christmas gifts, and hula hoops on December 16, 2000, at Galilee United Methodist Church in Englewood, NJ. The party was made possible through the efforts of the Organization for African American and Korean American Solidarity (OAKS, Inc.), founded by Sonia Jang, and Galilee's Community Developer, Archie Finn.
"Bridging the gap, hoping there would be an understanding; that's what OAKS is about," said Ruth Lawson, executive secretary for Community Ministries, General Board of Global Ministries (GBGM). OAKS, Inc. has received funding from United Methodist Voluntary Service (UMVS), a program of GBGM. UMVS supports community-based organizations that seek to provide justice, advocacy, and empowerment for groups of people in the community. Jang laughingly calls herself a "silly dreamer" for creating OAKS. But she also believes God led her to witness two significant events in the last 10 years, a racist attack in a Korean grocery store in Brooklyn and the uprising and riots in Los Angeles.
"I felt God waking me up! What OAKS tries to do is bring about an openness of communication and diffuse the tension between the African American and Korean communities so that we can work together on something positive," said Jang. To that end, OAKS provides scholarships, cultural exchanges, and opportunities for dialogue.
One annual event OAKS has sponsored over the last five years is a toy drive that has distributed over 7000 toys. But this year, Jang was unavailable to organize the toy drive and party. She was part of another cultural event–an African American Gospel choir from Riverside Church, New York City, that toured South Korea. Jang, reported that this 10-day tour proved an emotional and spiritual high for all who heard the choir sing and those, too, who performed. For example, in an auditorium full of 3500 people, the soloist ended one final performance with a spirit-filled "Halleluia, Halleluia!" "The audience erupted into screams of delight," said Ms. Jang.
Community Developer Archie Finn also heard screams of delight as the party he arranged at Galilee UMC got underway. Community Developers are mission personnel of the General Board of Global Ministries who extend the ministries of the church out into the community. Finn had organized after-school tutoring/resilience training, advocacy at town council meetings, hunger drives, and participation in World AIDS day, but a Christmas toy exchange and party was something new.
The toys were donated by Brown Lim, a Korean community member. The abundance of toys allowed Finn to split the gifts between the children who attended the party and Toys for Tots, a program for children who have an incarcerated parent. Children from the neighborhood, a Brownie troop, the Galilee after-school participants, and about 40 children from the Korean Community Church of the Leonia United Methodist Church in Leonia, NJ, attended the party. A highlight for the visitors was when the Galilee children sang: "Yes, Jesus Loves Me" in English, Spanish, and Korean. "When they sang in Korean, the Korean children were very impressed. They were surprised that this group of African American children had learned the Korean words," said Finn. On the third and fourth time through the verse, the Korean American children and their parents joined in.
Other cultural sharing at the party included performances by young musicians from Leonia UMC and Galilee's clown ministry. The 18 young clowns brought hula hoops. "Then it became even more exciting! All the kids were doing the hula hoops. Some could do it. Some could not. The kids enjoyed it very much. You could tell some of the kids didn't want to go home. They were having too much fun," laughed Mr. Finn.
Finn credits several people for making the event a success, including Sun Lae Kim, the education director at Leonia UMC. Mr. Finn and Ms. Kim hope to bring the children from these communities together again for other events.
With the support of the General Board of Global Ministries, the Community Developers Program and the UMVS program have effected change for more than 30 years. The Community Developers program at Galilee UMC is one of 30 projects in African American, Hispanic, Asian American, and Native American United Methodist churches, in both urban and rural neighborhoods. UMVS supports community organizations and the Community Developers Program supports United Methodist churches. Both programs emphasize justice, advocacy and empowerment. One program is church-based and the other is community-based. "Putting together a social commitment and a Christian commitment can create a powerful force," said Lawson.
The sole financial support for UMVS and the Community Developers Program comes through the gifts received on Human Relations Day, an offering that was taken on January 14 in many United Methodist churches. "The fact that a church observes Human Relations Day means it has an interest in community. It's about how the people in the community view the church; is the church there for them or for itself? Do we really love our community as Jesus inspires us to do?" asked Lawson.
The young people who attended the toy exchange party received more than refreshments, toys, and entertainment on that day in mid-December 2000. The children received love from United Methodist church communities; a Christian love that brings together and heals diverse communities.
To learn more about the Community Developers Program and the
UMVS, call 212-870-3821. Although Human Relations Day Offering was set for January 14 this
year, as with other Special Sunday offerings, churches may take the collection at any time during
the year. Call InfoServ at 1-800 251-8140 for more information on Special Sunday Offerings and
1-888-862-3242 to order Special Sunday resources.
URL: http://gbgm-umc.org/news/2001/jan/joymbcbm.stm