2020 Immerse Graduation
Graduation from the waist up!
Yup, that’s how we did it this year. Over 300 people gathered through Zoom to celebrate with our Fellowship Pacific graduates.
The talk these days has been all about the disappointments we have endured as we have watched our celebrations shrink from “the sky or the budget is the limit” to “Fifty including the sound techie” being the legal limit.
I don’t mean to minimize the disappointment, as indeed meeting face-to-face, giving hugs and high-fives, and eating cake is by far the preferable option, but Zoom has offered us an opportunity to adapt and overcome and enjoy a celebration that only requires proper attire from the waist up.
There has to be some joy in that for at least a few of us!
Just think about it, you can even angle that camera to make sure you look younger and thinner…and as we all know, Covid has not aided us in the thinner part!
(Full disclosure: Ruth McGillivray and I were in our running shoes and suit jackets!)
Graduation did look different, but let me assure you, our outcome was the same. We have FIVE newly minted graduates who are already invested in meaningful ministry in local churches across BC.
Immerse is laser focused on developing leaders, ready for the challenges that must be engaged in the local church. Our graduates have already experienced what it looks like to confront obstacles and engage with a solution-oriented mind-set and to carry on when things look bleak. That is the value of “just in time learning” in the context of the local church.
They have embraced the values of collaboration and innovation as necessary for the work they are called to. They know that together we are called to propel our gospel mandate forward.
I am grateful for our Immerse partners at Northwest Seminary who championed the online graduation ceremony, bringing all the Immerse iterations together, where we focused on our shared vision and celebrated our graduates in an innovative and joyful way that brought glory to God.
The future is bright for the gospel in our region as we send these graduates out to lead churches where people will see and know the truth about Jesus.
– Krista Penner