Orangevale member Rob Purvis is an expert in welding. Collectively, with several other volunteer welding instructors, he teaches students this high-demand vocation. Not just the physical expertise of laying a bead of molten metal connecting two objects but the math, physics, and accuracy employers will demand.
Reignite Hope is a welding training school that Purvis was inspired to start in a pristine fifty-three foot semi-trailer temporarily parked in the Rancho Cordova church’s parking lot.
Its purpose is two-fold: To provide a vocation to those seeking to better their lives and to share Jesus’s love. Blake Jones, Orangevale pastor, exclaimed, “I love this ministry! It gives people a practical skill whereby they can make a living. And we also bring the gospel and our hope in Christ to them. We’re seeing God use this to touch hearts and lives.”
Students are a mix of individuals wanting to retrain from other careers, laborers, unhoused, or re-entering society from incarceration. Placement services, word of mouth, and even probation officers forward candidates to the program, and the training is free of charge to the student. After training and graduation, a newly certified welder can walk into a business and professionally weld.
This outreach takes a missional approach, and the participation of the Orangevale and Rancho Cordova churches is integral to the program. Besides providing a location to park the rig, they provide a meeting room, and church members help with meals, which the students greatly appreciate. They also give bible studies, write resumes, and other helpful services.
Debbie Purvis, Orangevale member and co-director, stated, “We currently have sixteen students in the program, and the Holy Spirit has been moving, convicting hearts, with several students deciding to follow Christ!”
Kietrich Germany, district pastor of Rancho Cordova and Stockton Mayfair churches, commented, “I am so overjoyed to have this outreach in our parking lot to serve our community in such a practical way. This type of help can be truly life-transforming. There is nothing quite like the self-dignity supplied by being gainfully employed. I truly believe this kind of ministry causes Jesus to smile.”
Featured in Northern Lights, November 30, 2023
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