Adventist Missionary Rescues Child Burn Victim — and More News Shorts
In this week’s Adventist news round-up, a missionary in Papua New Guinea rescues a child burn victim, a fashion designer shares her faith through her clothing brand, a Canadian Adventist runs for office with pro-life agenda, and Wintley Phipps appears on Oprah’s new show.
Adventist Missionary Rescues Child Burn Victim. Four years ago, Seventh-day Adventist missionary Cletus Dillman rescued a two-year-old girl who was abandoned by her mother and father after being badly burned in a freak accident. “You cannot ignore the pain, especially in a place like Papua. It’s very remote, no doctors,” Dillman said. Elvina Kolevi has had a remarkable transformation in the USA. Elvina was so badly scarred after the accident at her home in Papua New Guinea that she could not move her neck. She could not even eat solid food. However, after being spotted by Dillman in her home country, she was flown to the Texas Medical Center in Houston for treatment. Elvina underwent two surgeries that allowed her to move her neck and rebuilt her top lip. Now six, Elvina has returned to Papua New Guinea where she is going to school on a scholarship until she returns to America for more surgery. From Extra.ie, “Orphan who was abandoned by parents following freak accident gets second chance in Texas.”
SDA Fashion Designer Shares Her Faith through Clothing Brand. British fashion designer Laura Jeffers was brought up as a Seventh-day Adventist by her Caribbean parents. She studied fashion design at UCLan and, since 2016, has been designing and marketing hand-made, colorful clothing at affordable prices, using innovative fabrics under the brand name “Asikara.” Her kaleidoscopic bow ties and head wraps are now the signature items on her online shop. In creating beautiful pieces of clothing, Jeffers has always been inspired by her fervent Christian faith. The word “Asikara” is the fusion of two Zimbabwean words, “asika” meaning “created by God” and ‘“ankara,” which means “fabric.”
She explains, “My faith inspires my fashion…. At the core of what I do, there’s the belief that everyone is unique, and through my clothes, I want to help people to see the beauty God has given them. I want to design and make clothes that change the way we look and feel about ourselves.” In particular, Jeffers was inspired by Psalm 139:14 which says that people are all “fearfully and wonderfully made.” The fusion of two cultures, Afro-Caribbean and British, makes her brand different from everything else on the market. She says, “I think what makes this brand unique is the fusion of cultures and heritage I can bring to the table.”
In September 2019, together with her best friend Ricky, Jeffers launched her second brand, Stay Lit Apparel, which is completely different from Asikara and boldly reflects her Christian inspiration. Laura and Ricky designed Stay Lit Apparel to “empower a lukewarm generation into sparking conversations about Jesus.” It features printed t-shirts and hoodies with Bible-inspired quotes. Jeffers explains: “It was practically impossible to find Christian clothing here in the UK, and shipping from the U.S. is often more expensive than the item itself. So my best friend challenged me and said, ‘Why don’t we make our own Christian clothing brand’? I felt ready to speak out about my faith, and fashion is the only way I know.” Learn more about these brands and shop on www.asikarabylaurajane.co.uk and www.staylitapparel.co.uk. From Lancashire Post, “'I wanted people to see the beauty God has given them' — How a young fashion designer from Preston found her inspiration to launch two successful brands.”
Canadian Adventist Man Runs for Office with Pro-life Agenda. Derek Sloan, a rookie MP from Eastern Ontario and a Seventh-day Adventist, has been approved by the Conservative Party in Ottowa, Canada, to run for office, meaning he can participate in official debates and his name will be on the final ballot on June 27. Sloan has run a hardline ideological campaign, constantly slamming abortion services, conversion therapy bans, and medically-assisted death. He is endorsed by the Campaign Life Coalition, Right Now, and other pro-life groups that are effective in organizing membership and fundraising drives. He joins candidates Leslyn Lewis, Peter MacKay, and Erin O’Toole. From National Post, “Conservative Party disqualifies Jim Karahalios from leadership race after complaints over his behaviour.”
Wintley Phipps Featured on Oprah’s New Apple TV+ Show. Pastor Wintley Phipps, singer and Seventh-day Adventist minister from Washington, D.C., will be on "Oprah Talks COVID-19," a new Apple TV+ show that is free for all to watch. Her second episode features an interview with her longtime friend Wintley Phipps. Winfrey will conduct remote interviews with experts and other people affected by COVID-19 "to provide insight, meaning, and tangible advice for the human spirit," she said. Episodes will be released weekly on the Apple TV+ app. Viewers without a subscription to the streaming service will still be able to watch the show. It can also be accessed at apple.co/-oprahtalks. From Philly Voice, “Oprah Winfrey talks COVID-19 on new Apple TV+ show.”
Please note: Spectrum news round-ups are an aggregation of regional, national, and international publications around the world that have reported on stories about Adventists. As such, the accuracy of the information is the responsibility of the original publishers, which are noted and hyperlinked at the end of each excerpt.
Pam Dietrich taught English at Loma Linda Academy for 26 years and served there eight more years as the 7-12 librarian. She lives in Yucaipa, California.
Image Credit: SpectrumMagazine.org
We invite you to join our community through conversation by commenting below. We ask that you engage in courteous and respectful discourse. You can view our full commenting policy by clicking here.
