Orientation 2019 in Wheaton a Success

In June TeachBeyond held its new member Orientation week in Wheaton, Illinois. Attending were 60 candidates for full-time member status, 4 new associates, and current members and staff. The new associates and members will be serving in 27 different countries spread across Asia, Africa, North and South America, and Europe.

This year was especially noteworthy, according to Heather Brown, US Director of Mobilization who coordinated the week. She stated, "It was exciting to have all of our regional leaders involved in Orientation this year so that candidates could meet them in person, ask region-specific questions, and learn more about the unique aspects of their areas of service." We also had our first-ever Church Leaders Summit on the last day of Orientation. Brittany Mann, TeachBeyond Church Relations Liaison, welcomed a small group of church leaders to participate in a forum to strengthen relationships between their churches and TeachBeyond.  We look forward to hosting more of these summits in the future.

In addition, on Wednesday night of Orientation week, TeachBeyond hosted an evening of personal testimonies and worship as part of a fundraiser to benefit the recruitment and training of new TeachBeyond members. The evening featured Andrew Marcus, GMA Canada Covenant Award-winning singer/songwriter.

From feedback received from the participants, it appears Orientation week achieved its goals of making candidates feel welcomed and better prepared for service. Additional, smaller orientations are planned throughout the coming year as we welcome new members from various countries.