Barbara and Dwight Bolick joined our church during the height of our River ministry work with the Casa Hogar de Piedras Negras across the river from Eagle Pass in 1995. They actually met on a River Ministry trip with University Baptist and wanted to continue this type of mission work.
Dwight was interested in economic development even back then and researched and started a large garden at the orphanage in the summer of 1996 in hopes that the children and caregivers would be able to provide themselves with their own fresh grown vegetables. We worked several months on this project, digging out the garden and providing all the tools and seeds.
It got off to a good start but then they had a water shortage during the summer and had to have water trucked in for them to use, they unfortunately did not have enough to keep the garden irrigated.
But it was this ministry that led Dwight and Barbara to respond to a call and pursue their dream of serving people in a ministry of economic and leadership development.
They moved to Philadelphia so he could get an MBA in economic development at Eastern University. Tony Campolo started that program and it trained a lot of people who work in Christian non-profits and mission organizations in economic development. Eastern Baptist Theological Seminary is part of Eastern University. Dwight already had been to seminary (Southern) years before, but did not go from there directly into ministry.
Barb worked for the American Baptist headquarters there in Valley Forge, as Director of Special Events for the Board of International Ministries (IM). They were appointed American Baptist missionaries in 1999. Their first son Jack was born in that year and son, Will in 2004.
They have been in Chile since 2000, working with the Convention of Baptist Churches-Chilean Mission doing economic and leadership. development with the Mapuche people.
The Bolicks are also helping the people of Chile deal with the after effects of the major earthquake and tsunami on Feb 27th, 2010.
The following links provide more information about their work and the earthquake assistance efforts.
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