In St. Maarten, Church Breaks Ground for a New Community Center

Wearing hard hats during the Jan. 13, 2019, groundbreaking ceremony for the new community center on St. Maarten, from LtoR: Pastor Vashni Cuvalay, coordinator of Adventist work on St. Maarten, Minister of Justice Dr Cornelius De Weever, President of Parliament Sarah Wescott Williams, IAD President Pastor Elie Henry, Desmond James, North Caribbean Conference president, Marcos Salas, Maranatha Adventist Church pastor  and local pastors Lester Jules and Pierre Rene Joseph. Photo courtesy of North Caribbean Conference

February 21, 2019 | St. Croix, US Virgin Islands | NCC Staff/IAD News Staff

Seventh-day Adventist leaders on St. Maarten were joined by government officials during a recent groundbreaking ceremony for the construction of a new community center to impact the growing Spanish community on the island.  The community center will serve as a worship place for the 30-member Spanish Adventist congregation as well as provide initiatives and activities to assist the community every week.

Inter-American Division President Elie Henry spoke to the community members and local church leaders on the importance of a new center that can bring hope in the community. “In addition to [being] a meeting place, the future Maranatha Adventist Church will serve the community, thus, better fulfilling the three strategic guidelines set by the Inter-American Division: to serve, disciple and evangelize,” said Pastor Henry. “The Adventist Church is setting up places for the character of God to be presented in a clear way to the sinner, through works of love and faith.”

Remarks from the President of Parliament of Sint Maarten, the Honorable Sarah Wescott Williams, highlighted the need for believers to celebrate a worship atmosphere that affords them the privilege to expand. She said, “For more than 27 years, I have had the opportunity to remind churches and communities of the freedom we enjoy to worship and share religion,” as she reminded church leaders and members to never take freedom of religion for granted. “Be grateful for where you are today. I encourage you to be as strong as when you started the dream for the church.”

IAD President Pastor Elie Henry addresses church leaders, members and government officials during the special ceremony to build a new community center in St. Maarten. Photo courtesy of North Caribbean Conference

Minister of Justice Dr. Cornelius De Weever shared congratulatory remarks and urged the believers not to lose their vision. “Today there are more churches but the delinquency continues. This church must not be a building for you,” said Justice De Weever. “Your objective must be to spread the Word. Don’t remain inside and talk about the outside. The community must benefit from your presence. Go out and reach the community and bring them in so we can pray and grow together.”

The Maranatha Adventist Spanish Group grew out of the New Bethany Adventist Church on St. Maarten, which was established in 2009. The group was established in 2016 and has blossomed into a congregation of more than 30 members. Both congregations serve the 7,000 Spanish-speaking residents of St. Maarten, church leaders said.

Pastor Marcos Salas, who leads the two congregations, is delighted that the Lord has brought the vision of the church to reality. He reports that the church received the permit to build and members began to raise funds for the center. “It’s a blessing to see the hand of God as we decided to move forward.  He opened new paths that we did not see, in a village where the circumstances were hard.”

Members recounted the long path to where they are now and their motivation to construct a center to meet the needs of the community.  Pastor Salas said the group moved three times while worshiping in rented quarters, were affected by Hurricanes Irma and Maria, yet members fought difficult challenges together.  “We were constantly on guard against the inclement weather, while we worshipped under a tent,” said Salas.

Crowd of church leaders and members during the groundbreaking ceremony for the new community center on St. Maarten.
Photo courtesy of North Caribbean Conference

With the support, guidance and funds from the North Caribbean Conference, the Seventh-day Adventist Foundation of St. Maarten, and with the help of members of the Adventist Churches, God has opened the way for them to build a community center to serve as a meeting place for the future church as well, local leaders said.

Pastor Desmond James, North Caribbean Conference president, who oversees the work of the church on St. Maarten, encouraged the members to be a lighthouse and to embrace every opportunity to serve God and grow.   “You are a close-knit group and we expect great things from you,” said James.

“Our Maranatha group as been a great blessing for the community with our Pathfinder club, where most of the children are from the community, as well as nutrition, cooking, health and exercise talks have been presented,” said Salas.

The new center is expected to seat 160 people with a multi-purpose court that will also function as a parking area.

To learn more about the project and its financial needs, visit northcaribbeanconference.org