Pacific Union Recorder

Early in 2009 Dennis Hill, a member of the Hollywood church and a working actor, noticed a number of talented young adult artists attending the church with one thing in common: they were all struggling to develop film careers. "I saw their need," said Hill, "and I wanted to share - and learn as well. I began pulling together a group willing to volunteer and get involved, and I discovered, it's fun!"

Hill's "fun" involves four days of preparation weekly for artists' workshops that he conducts. "Our goal is to spark interest for Adventist projects and show that we have the talent to handle everything behind and in front of the camera," Hill explained. "One reason for the artists' workshop is so we can work on films without Sabbath or other conflicts."

Another major facet of the church's ministry to the area's artistic community is development of a media ministry program coordinated by Julia Alty, a member and film industry professional. "The main way we will use the original media we produce will be for outreach," she said.

"We hope to reach out to other creative individuals, bringing them in to work on Christian productions with us. We will also document the church's community service work. Our media ministry will go hand in hand with the outreach plan for this coming year," Alty added, "helping to get the word out about events; supporting them in any way we can."

For a neighborhood walks outreach overseen by Nathan French, the congregation's "peace and justice coordinator," members and friends explore the neighborhood within a one-mile radius of the church.

"There didn't seem to be a sense of community in the neighborhood," French reflected. "I wondered if we would help eliminate isolation if we invited people to walk with us.

"I had an appointment with a neighborhood councilmember to ask for his verbal support of the walks," French added. "'Is this going to be to convert people?' he asked.

"I explained that our church's mission is to serve the city in tangible ways, to participate in healing in all ways. After that, he talked openly about the neighborhood. Prior to this, he had not really known much about our church."