It was 9 o’clock on Saturday, 4 April. Slowly we gathered at Ballymena North Business and Recreational Centre – friends from the Ballymena area [Craigywarren, Cullybackey and Ballymena], from Bangor, Belfast, Antrim, Parkgate, Magherafelt, Claudy and Waterford, included in our numbers an Auxiliary Board member and a junior youth coordinator. A further breakdown of outreach attendees - seven youth, one junior youth and nine adults!
What was the mission and objective of these lovers of Bahá'u'lláh?
To fan out in the late morning and early afternoon – reach out to the residents in close proximity to that venue, for the past two years home of Ballymena’s children’s classes [now in their 4th year], and to invite their children to join these classes. In addition to invite their junior youth to join the launch of a junior youth empowerment programme at that same venue.
An intensive 30-minute prayer session opened the day, prayers for divine assistance as the prime requirement for further purification of our souls and for success in this action. Then last minute preparations for the outreach, which had been in the planning for some weeks by a core group of friends bolstered by the cluster agencies. We were paired in twos - mostly a male with a female, a youth with an adult. Each assigned specific streets on the map. The excitement was palpable! As rain drizzled intermittently on that scene, we set off armed with invitations for the taster sessions to be held later that afternoon and in the evening. Perhaps we were dimly aware that so many other friends were praying for the success of our efforts, and that there was a hot bowl of delicious soup, lovingly prepared by one of the friends, waiting our return to the Centre from 2 to 2.30 pm.
From 2.00 pm we returned in our pairs, with sore feet, but animatingly sharing with one another over lunch stories of the response there had been at the doors – generally so positive and so heartening! After lunch some returned to their respective streets to finish the outreach, while those who would be responsible for the taster sessions made their final preparations.
As 5 pm neared, our troops were reinforced by all the stalwart children who have made the classes such a success over these four years. Excitement and expectations heightened. “How many would respond to our invitation?” By the time the second taster session had been completed at 8 pm there were 12 to 15 new children to attend the two children’s classes and 2 junior youth signed up to join Sara, our Baha’i junior youth for the launch of the empowerment programme on 24 April! And the indications are that these numbers may well grow as these children and junior youth interest their friends. So heartening was the response of the parents of these young people who came along with them on the day – such promising questions and comments, some of which showed such a depth of understanding!
To gain experience in outreach projects contact, Area Teaching Committee secretary for: Northern Lights - Mr Mahan Hashemizadeh: Seven Valleys - Dr Edwina Agahi:
Study Circles: Lesley Taherzadeh O'Mara Junior Youth: Darragh Graham Children's Classes: Marion Khosravi
Study Circles: Michelle O'Mahony Barr Junior Youth: (Not yet appointed) Children's Classes: Elizabeth Palin
Study Circles: Kevin Proudman Junior Youth: (Not yet appointed) Children's Classes: Elizabeth Palin
Study Circles: James Holmlund Junior Youth: Nason Maani Children's Classes: Patricia Jamshidi
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