District Nazarene Compassionate Ministries (NCM) Coordinators from across the Caribbean Field participated in a two-day workshop, May 20-21, held at the St. James Church of the Nazarene in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago. The event focused on the key elements of Nazarene Compassionate Ministries and particularly Disaster Preparedness and Response, which is of significant concern in the Caribbean area.
The main objectives of the training were to deepen the understanding of NCM in the Caribbean Field and to develop the capacity of all coordinators to lead their teams effectively, particularly in the area of Disaster Preparedness and Response.
Caribbean Field Strategy Coordinator Rev. Dr. Alphonso Porter officially opened the workshop. Regional NCM Coordinator Dhariana Balbuena led the sessions on the first day teaching the basics of NCM. NCM Global Program Coordinator for Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Response, Brandon Sipes, facilitated the training on the second day on that critical subject matter. Coordinators for the Caribbean Field Rev. Kelron and Dr. Ro-Anne Harry also were a part of the event.
This training was noteworthy in that it marks the first time that all the District NCM Coordinators and the District Superintendents on the Caribbean Field participated together in a forum for the advancement of NCM.
One of the themes emphasized in the workshop was that the Caribbean Field is faced with many challenges to implement and coordinate the programs. As a multi-island field spanning almost 3000 km in distance and comprising some fourteen districts across 20 countries, programmatic coordination is no easy feat. The Caribbean Field will have to employ innovative ways of staying connected including video-conferencing and other forms technology in order to raise the profile of NCM and achieve its goals.
Source: Dr. Ro-Anne Harry, Caribbean Field NCM Coordinator
