At SeLD, Young and Seasoned Leaders Get Clearer Perspective on Their Mission

August 2, 2023 | Miami, Florida, United States | Libna Stevens, Inter-American Division News

It was the seventh time she made it to Inter-American Division’s Segment Leadership Development (SeLD) Annual Conference. “Every time I come for SeLD, it gets better and better,” said Xenia Gamboa, principal of the Adventist Educational Center, a bilingual K-12 school in Hatillo, San Jose, Costa Rica.  Gamboa is also the education director of the South Central American Union which oversees primary, secondary and university level schools across Costa Rica and Nicaragua.

Gamboa got to rub shoulders with administrators, pastors, educators, department directors, and elders during the conference, which featured dozens of experts and keynote speakers in Miami, Florida, United States, July 24-26, 2023.  The SeLD annual conference seeks to empower individuals with the knowledge, skills, and inspiration to make a positive difference in leadership throughout the church’s organizations in the IAD.

One of the seminars that saw her taking the most notes was one held by Ismael Castillo, president of Montemorelos University, in Mexico.

“Why do educational institutions survive?” asked Castillo. “Because the golden circle of permanence.” That permanence includes keeping the church’s main Adventist identity clear of its publishing work, heritage or history, its health message, and education as grounding pillars, explained Castillo.

Institutions must be clear on keeping Christ at the center, in its prophetic vision, its mission of sharing the gospel, following God and not the patterns of the world, said Castillo. That mission is what stirred Gamboa.

“The challenge was clear to me that each activity, each practice at our institutions must have the seal of making Jesus known,” said Gamboa. It’s about integration of faith in every class and every activity led by a committed staff, she added. This resonated with her, not as a new mandate, but a reminder to have an ongoing focus on the main mission and purpose of Adventist education, she said.

Gamboa, who has served in education for over 32 years and serves as principal of the largest and only bilingual primary and secondary school in Costa Rica, wants to ensure that every Seventh-day Adventist school-age student gets the opportunity to study in the school. That means seeing more than the 35 percent of Adventist students who are currently enrolled in the Adventist Educational Center she heads. She has been engaging her 73 teachers and staff in a campaign to recruit and offer special affordable schooling pulling from government funds, church sponsorship, and extra sponsorship from church families willing to sponsor a student. “We are entrusted to prepare students and their families to love Jesus and impact this world in a positive way,” said Gamboa.

The SeLD Conference has reminded Gamboa of the commitment every leader must have in continuing to move forward in the “I Will Go” mission initiative. “We cannot stop for a moment, we must continue to fulfill the mission in every capacity in our responsibilities,” Gamboa said.

Preparing the youth for leadership

For Ramon Cedillo, 30, a pastor and youth ministries director at the Northeast Mexican Conference in Monterrey, Mexico, coming to SeLD for the first time has broadened his view as a leader. “I can definitely see the wider panorama of what the church at the Division level is about and how important it is to appreciate different thoughts and cultures.” It’s important to have cultural intelligence and  to have a better, more inclusive perspective, he added.

One particular seminar beneficial to him was one led by Melchor Ferreyra, personal ministries director of the IAD, which emphasized the importance of productivity as an important ingredient in leadership.

“Productivity has to do with your personal performance; however, it aims to make the team that is around you more productive,” said Ferreyra. “Each person who integrates into your team must be aware of your vision, mission, strategies, and objectives to achieve, turning your ministry and your team to maximum productivity.”

One of the great challenges to keep initiatives and activities productive with young people is keeping them involved and engaged in a world that pulls them to what the city offers, he said.  Cedillo has over 400 active young people in his conference. The city has ongoing spectacular events and productions, he added. “We don’t really coin our youth activities as ‘events’. Instead, we call them ‘experiences.” It’s about engaging them with spiritual experiences, with good content, creative productions, and dynamic workshops, said Cedillo.

As he gets back into the leadership role back home, he vows to take his leadership to the next level, the youth to the next level, and Pathfinders and Adventurers to the next level as they build a relationship with Jesus and get more involved in serving the community. “As leaders we need to open up more opportunities for young people to lead, trusting them and providing mentorship so they can become strong leaders in an ever-changing world,” Cedillo said.

Funding the church effectively

With just four months on the job, 29-year-old George Ramos found himself at his first SeLD. After eight years serving as an accountant at the Comayaguela Conference in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, Ramos was elected as the treasurer of the Atlantic Honduras Conference in La Ceiba.  He listened attentively to every presentation and was reminded to seek God in prayer every day. “We are not born with all the training, but we can use the tools that God gives us, rely on Him and do our best for the church,” he said.

In the short time that he has been serving as conference treasurer, he has had to manage the finances of 185 churches, three primary and secondary schools, and the radio station.

In one of several seminars for treasurers during SeLD, Ramos learned that it will not be possible to do everything that the president proposes. “I have to be in a position to always be looking for a solution, not just come out and say ‘no’ every time,” he said. It’s about looking for ways of not spending unnecessarily, keeping in mind the best interest of the church organization, said Ramos.

Funds are not in abundance, he said. “Our church organization has a purpose of preaching the gospel,” said Ramos. “Yes, we need money but it’s just a means to reach others with the gospel.”

Ramos heads back to his home country with greater intent to connect more with treasurers at local churches, calling one each day to pray for them and their families, and get to know the challenges they face, as well as train them to better complete their financial tasks with the financial system of the church.  The plan is to eventually set up a visitation program at each local church and school for an effective financial system at his conference.

Attending SeLD has reminded Ramos how much he appreciates serving the Lord and the church. “It’s not easy but I pray God can use me to make the right decisions to advance the work. I feel so honored to serve my church.”

Serving with compassion

Wendy Edwards from Barbados was appointed as Human Resources director in January. She has been coming to SeLD conferences for seven years now and has thoroughly enjoyed the informative and engaging presentations. This year’s SeLd reminded her that the work she does is not just about representing herself personally but “whatever we do must be reflective of God in our life,” said Edwards.

Compassion has been another main focus of the annual conference, she said. “This is my first time building the human resources department from the ground up and it’s been challenging. But I understand that compassion must be a key part in leadership as an employer,” said Edwards. “It is with compassion that you get to understand where they [the employees] are at, what their needs are.”

Edwards oversees the department at the East Caribbean Conference in Barbados, with a staff of 38, including the staff on the island of Dominica, and being at SeLD has helped her see the changing dynamics that an organization faces and how important it is to foster a safe and compassionate culture at work. She returns with a plan to spend time going over the organization’s working policy and on conflict of interest and employee handbook contracts, a subject that was thoroughly discussed at SeLD this year.

“I want to continue to grow spiritually and be compassionate in assisting employees to grow and serve in the mission of the church,” Edwards said.