Page 6 THE VILLADOM TIMES II • September 28, 2011 Emmanuel Baptist Church of Ridgewood was awarded a 2011 Palmer Grant by the American Baptist Home Mission Society and the American Baptist Foundation to expand their ministry of teaching English as a Second Language. The church is one of 18 organizations out of over 200 applicants from all over the country and Puerto Rico to receive one of these grants to grow an existing ministry that met the award criteria of being involved in study, community, and action. The church has been teaching English as a Second Language classes for two years, and can now offer more frequent classes on three levels of ability and hire a facilitator for community outreach and program administration. The Palmer Grant bears the name of two lifelong Baptists: Virginia and Gordon Palmer Jr. Virginia was a 4-29-09 karen/janine speech pathologist and educator, who helped to develop EmmanuelHelp3x.75(4-29-09) the speech and hearing clinic at Temple University in Philadelphia. Gordon, an electrical engineer and a founder of 3 x .75 an electronics component company, was a son of Gordon Palmer Sr., an American Baptist pastor who later served as president of what is now known as Palmer Theological Seminary in Wynnewood, Pennsylvania. Information about the Palmer Grant may be found on the ABF website www.abcofgiving.com by contacting Grant Administrator Catherine Wohltmann at Catherine.Wohltmann@abc-usa. org. Presently, the church offers five different classes on Thursday evenings. For many of the students, Spanish is their first language, but there are other students from different countries and backgrounds. The classes are held at the church and are free of charge. Any student who wishes Emmanuel asks... Can receives Church You Help? Ridgewood grant to grow ministry teaching ESL to purchase a student’s book is able to do so. When students first arrive, they are tested to see which class is the best fit for their ability. Anyone interested in registering for class or getting more information about the program may call the church at (201) 444-7300, e-mail ebc1@verizon.net, or receive information en Español by calling Pastora Dorcas Diaz Shaner at (201) 913-3281. For a seventh summer in a row, teens and chaperones from Ridgewood’s Old Paramus Reformed Church attended a weeklong Group Work Camps mission to serve the needy. Pictured in York, PA are Kevin Clough and mom Lisa; Kelsey Arnesen; CJ, Levi and dad Chuck Jennings. They joined 95 others from Delaware, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania, volunteering over 2,200 hours. With ‘pantry’ donations from OPRC congregants, and monies raised from a Pancake Breakfast, OPRC youths purchased over 600 cans of food for a York food pantry, and then took on work tasks. OPRC is hard at work