Baptist Briefs_71204

Posted: 7/09/04

Baptist Briefs

Anti-hunger group honors Texan. Bread for the World, a national Christian anti-hunger organization, honored Pat Ayres of Austin for her advocacy on behalf of poor people. Ayres–a former moderator of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship and deacon at First Baptist Church of Austin–was one of 30 "hunger heroes" honored at a banquet in Washington, D.C., celebrating Bread for the World's 30th anniversary. Ayres has been involved in the anti-hunger group from its beginning, serving six terms–more than any other person–on Bread for the World's board. She also has served four times as the board's chairperson. Her family's foundation also has repeatedly underwritten Bread for the World projects, including the organization's Hunger Report newsletter. Shawnda Eibl, a Bread for the World spokesperson, said Ayres' "activism on behalf of hungry people has galvanized the involvement of many others in Bread for the World's local group in the San Antonio-Austin area." Eibl also said Ayres and her husband, Bob, "have provided wise counsel about the endowments" of the organization and its educational arm, and they "have also hosted a number of luncheons and dinners to introduce prominent business and civic leaders to Bread for the World."

National Hispanic Baptists honor Texans. Moises Rodriguez, pastor of Primera Iglesia Bautista in Fort Worth, was elected first vice president of the National Fellowship of Hispanic Southern Baptist Churches during the group's annual meeting in Indianapolis. At a Hispanic church-planting celebration and leadership convocation, also in Indianapolis, Daniel Sanchez of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and Eliseo Aldape, former Sunday school consultant with the Baptist General Convention of Texas, were honored.

WMU launches collegiate website. National Woman's Missionary Union is launching a new website specifically for collegiate-aged young women Aug. 1. The new site, www.missionsinterchange.com, will feature articles on current missions topics, missionary profiles, Bible studies, ministry project ideas and mission trip opportunities specifically for collegiate women, as well as topics such as dating, roommates and careers.

Director of WMU product development center named. Andrea Mullins has been named director of the national Woman's Missionary Union product development center, effective July 12. Mullins was approved unanimously during a business session of the WMU executive board meeting in Indianapolis. Her responsibilities will include providing leadership to New Hope Publishers, WMU organizational products and WorldCrafts, a WMU ministry that imports handcrafts from different countries. Mullins served three years as WMU director with the Wyoming Southern Baptist Convention. She joined national WMU in 1987 and has served as the women's consultant, adult consultant and director of the consulting services department. Since 2001, she has served as a leader of the WMU leadership development team.