After a 30-hour trip, the familiar smell and taste of food at the hospital canteen in Nepal was very comforting and reassuring to Fylvia Fowler Kline’s family, who had just arrived as missionaries from the U.S. The cafeteria delivered a plate of pakoras, an Indian snack made of vegetable chickpea fritters similar to falafels.

Story by V. Michelle Bernard

Nellie Dakanay had been a Seventh-day Adventist before attending Allegheny East Conference’s Breath of Life church in Fort Washington, Md., but she was new to American life.

“I would not have known how to eat kale or collard greens, pastas or salads,” says Dakanay, if she hadn’t started attending Breath of Life. Originally from the Philippines, Dakanay and her family moved to the U.S. in the early 1980s. Prior to arriving to the U.S., they served as missionaries in Nigeria.

It was at the Breath of Life potlucks, in the predominantly African-American congregation, that the Dakanays learned how to cook American and vegetarian meals.

Story by Sylvia N. Urrutia

A group of young visitors were near Ohio Conference’s Cleveland First church one Sabbath and decided to visit. After the service, there was no potluck, so they left hungry, without making any real contacts.

After hearing about their experience, member Aracely Balleza determined to make sure that every visitor who walked through the church doors would have a lunch and a friend available for them after divine service. She has now led the ministry for the last seven years, ensuring there is a potluck every week and for every visitor.