22 April 2009

Women's Ministries conducts "Buk Save" program

Oreta, Solomon Islands
RECORD staff/Andrew Kingston/Janette Kingston

Eleven Moro women from Oreta on the Weather Coast of Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands read the story of Jesus' trial and crucifixion from their Pidgin Bibles for the first time, after four days of instruction in the pilot "Buk Save" Literacy Program. They were previously unable to read.

Another 30 read aloud from other books provided for them by the program, which commenced on April 5 and ran for five days. The "Buk Save" team was led by Janette Kingston, director of Women's Ministries for the Seventh-day Adventist Church in the Solomon Islands, and was welcomed to the village by its chief. Mrs Kingston was accompanied by Beverly Wale and Deslie Kingsley, two Women's Ministries leaders from Honiara. Mrs Kingston says, "I am hoping they will become an integral part of ‘Buk Save,' and wished them to be in on this project from the very start."

The program was conducted at a clinic built in Oreta as part of a "fly 'n' build" project at the end of 2008, which was led by retired pastor Ervin Ferris and has recently become more welcoming of Adventists.

Pastor Andrew Kingston, president of the Adventist Church in the Solomon Islands, says, "These women, part of the Moro people, live in a relatively inaccessible part of the island and have made the decision to return to traditional ways, including spirit worship and their dress-or lack thereof. But due to a program by our Health Ministries director Dr Silent Tovosia, where the skin disease Bakua was targeted, the area has opened up to the Adventist Church."

Dr Tovosia worked in the area for several months with the people suffering from Bakua and encouraged them to work to raise money to pay for the medicine required. The local people planted hundreds of banana palms for Kopiu Adventist High School to obtain the money.

Dr Tovosia requested the "Buk Save" program be conducted there and obtained a list of women who would benefit from the literacy training from a local educator who works with the "Buk Save" materials supplied by World Vision.

Participants were taught the Pidgin alphabet, were given spelling tests, and took part in various drills to develop an understanding of sounds and shapes of letters.

Mrs Kingston says, "Drill activities included flashcards, writing letters in the air, writing on a partner's back, making the letters with modelling clay, forming letters in big groups, running to the corner of the room where a given letter was displayed and so on."

On the final day of the program, the women were presented with Pidgin Bibles. This was followed by a concert in the evening, which featured the students singing the "Buk Save song," songs from local singing groups and a reading from each student.

Mrs Kingston was "ecstatic" the program worked and says, "It was so exciting to see ladies of all ages holding the Word of God in their hands and reading. I think the audience didn't believe these women couldn't read only four days before, because their reading was, in most cases, completely fluent with excellent meaning. When the story finished, there was loud applause. Finally, one of the students read a speech of appreciation that was a whole page long."

As well as the "Buk Save" program, the team also conducted health and spiritual emphasis outreach programs for local families, with more than 100 people attending over the two nights these were held.

Guadalcanal regional director Pastor Martin Losi is planning to place a pastor in the area as soon as possible, while the Adventist Church in the Solomon Islands will continue to target the area with health and other programs. He is confident that there could be a church of more than 200 members by the end of the year.

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