Five pastors are slated to be ordained to gospel ministry on Saturday December 14, at the end of the annual year-end planning session of the North Caribbean Conference of Seventh-day Adventists in St. Croix. Administrators of the regional headquarters hold yearly meetings with all its forty pastors from sixteen islands from Monsterrrat to the Virgin Islands. These meetings set the initiatives, agenda and goals for 2003. The ordination services will take place at the Central Seventh-day Adventist Church at 17-A Plessen, St. Croix at the 11:00 a.m. Service. The five pastors being ordained are Mark Brathwaite, Wayne Knowles, Eldon Coates (Antigua), Virgil Sams (St. Kitts) and Trent Berg, (St. Thomas) Pastor John R. Josiah who serve as the President of the church in the Northern Caribbean area will lead out in the service. The community is invited to attend this very important religious service.

ADVENTURER SAVES CHILD FROM DROWNING

While a vacationing family was enjoying the beach in St. Croix seven-year old Sophia Johnson stumbled into a small child drowning without her parents noticing. She calmly got into the water and brought the child out to the shore. Fortunately, a medical doctor was nearby who immediately took the child from Sophia and performed CPR for nearly fifteen minutes before she was transported to the hospital. In two days the child was discharged and returned to the States. While the doctor was performing CPR, Sophia went away behind a car to pray that God would save the child.

On September 6^th her Elementary school and other Community leaders held a recognition program for her. During the program Sophia was acknowledged as a “brave,” “bold,” “assertive ” “hero” in an age when young people were doing all sorts of bad things. Lt. Governor Luz James, 2^nd of the Virgin islands and Senator Alicia Hansen, among many others, made short speeches and gave gifts to her for her bravery. Among her many gifts were two tickets to anywhere American Airlines flies and a four-year scholarship to the University of the Virgin Islands (when the time comes).

In the audience was Shirley Dunbar, grandmother of the little three-year old child, Alyssa Carasotti who was drowning. Sophia’s mother, Sandra Johnson expressed joy at her daughter’s action in helping someone from drowning and was herself complimented for the good daughter she was rearing. All the speakers encouraged Sophia to remain focused.  In her thank you remarks Sophia said “because Jesus loves me, I will always do my best.” Pastor Oriel Fleming retraced his knowledge of Sophia as a little girl who had given her life to Jesus and who had just recently been baptized.