By Walt Wiltschek
Brethren Volunteer Service (BVS) Unit 334 held orientation Sept. 26‐Oct. 4 at Camp Koinonia in Cle Elum, Wash. The time included group building, sessions with a variety of guest leaders (most of whom joined the group virtually), preparing and eating meals together, a service project, a day trip into Seattle, and a time of consecration and sending.
Six of the nine volunteers came from EIRENE, a long‐time partner organization in Germany, and another came from Canada, while two were from Church of the Brethren congregations.
Volunteers, their congregations or hometowns, and placement sites for the coming year are:
Ken Chiu, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, to Asian Rural Institute, Tochigi-ken, Japan
Paul-Joa Durt, Lübeck, Germany, to Snowcap Food Pantry, Portland, Ore.
Anton Ellehnson, Offenburg, Germany, to SnowCap Food Pantry, Portland, Ore.
Lisa Lauterbach, Nuremberg, Germany, to WATER, Washington, D.C.
Jasper Neddermeyer, Herford, Germany, to La Puente Home, Alamosa, Colo.
Pauline Schick, Bad Oeynhausen, Germany, to Ferncliff Camp and Conference Center, Little Rock, Ark.
Anou Sethi, Leipzig, Germany, to Camp Stevens, Julian, Calif.

Please pray… For the volunteers in BVS Unit 334, that their term of service may be blessed and that they may bring blessings wherever they serve.
Seth Spire, Sangerville Church of the Brethren, Bridgewater, Va., to SnowCap Food Pantry in Portland, Ore.
Justice Westlake, Woodland Church of the Brethren, Astoria, Ill., project placement pending
BVS will next hold orientations in summer and fall 2024. To learn more go to www.brethrenvolunteerservice.org.
— Walt Wiltschek is part-time office coordinator for Brethren Volunteer Service. He also serves as district executive ministry for the Church of the Brethren’s Illinois and Wisconsin District and serves on the editorial team for the denomination’s Messenger magazine.
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Find more Church of the Brethren news:
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- Church of the Brethren general secretary signs letter from Christian leaders to President Biden
- ‘Prayer Vigil: Ceasefire Now!’ will pray for peace in Israel and Palestine
- Next online meeting of Standing with People of Color process is Nov. 18
- Standing Committee of Annual Conference to hold online meetings open to the public