A historic event happened on April 11, 2024 at the Dosa Restaurant on Kingsway, Vancouver.
when the Seventh-day Adventist Church, the Vancouver Filipino in particular, has signed The Memorandum of Understanding between the church and Allan A. Ignacio, Philippine Consulate Officer, and Olive Macawili, OIC Assistant Labor Attache, MIGRANT WORKERS OFFICE, OWWA OVERSEAS WELFARE OFFICE. The Adventist Community Services (ACS), which is the humanitarian arm of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, will work hand in hand with OWWA-Vancouver to attend to the welfare and wellbeing of Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) by providing immediate and appropriate assistance to the OFWs and their families in the Lower Mainland area covered by the ACS.
OWWA-Vancouver will conduct a comprehensive orientation and training seminar in order to capacitate ACS-VanFil in the creation of network of services for OFWs which includes the identification, planning and conducting specific projects and programs, and the provision of information materials, among others. This partnership is not exclusive to ACS-VanFil. It is a dry run to further improve this new service system in BC. OWWA-Vancouver wished to invite every non-profit or religious organization in British Columbia who are able and who have a special burden to look after the welfare of OFWs to join this network hopefully sooner.
Present at the meeting to represent the Vancouver Filipino SDA Church, the Filipino Association of Advent Believers of British Columbia (FAABBC) and other church members to sign the MOU were the following: Joey De Leon, Head Elder of Vancouver Filipino Seventh-day Adventist Church, and FAABBC president; Ron Carcellar as main signatory being the Elder for Community Services; Ed Subade, Elder for Personal Ministries, Elder Joel Batulayan. Witnesses were Ben Berto, Head Elder for Abundant Life SDA Church; Angie Berto, FAABBC Public Relations Officer (P.R.O.); Junjun Pedreso, Personal Ministries leader; and Pastor Leomar Macaraig, Pastor of both Vancouver Filipino SDA Church and Abundant Life SDA Church.
For more information, please contact: Ron Carcellar: 778-858-7827.
Pastor Leomar Macaraig: 604-928-3579 Joel Batulayan: 778-322-9857.