Summer Intern- Eun McFun!

Hi! My name is Eun Cho and I will be serving at Kingdom Causes Bellflower this summer as a volunteer intern. I am an (upcoming) fourth year at UCLA studying political science and sociology. An interest and passion I've developed over the past three years in college (as well as in my personal experiences) is in the underdeveloped topic of immigration- especially of undocumented workers. I believe that the treatment of many undocumented workers is not only an systemic issue of politics but an issue that deeply overlooks the ethical and moral components. I am currently striving to become a lawyer and perhaps even a law professor in the future.

In my free time, I am usually found tanning, hanging out at Huntington Beach, running/training, cycling down Coyote Creek, blogging, having quiet time with God, hiking, or just hanging out with friends. I've traveled and lived in many countries like South Korea, Mexico, Australia, and Canada. Throughout these experiences, I have come to really enjoy the diversity and uniqueness of each and every one of these cultures. What drives me in everything that I do is the love of Christ that has given me grace to know Him and have a relationship with Him. I hope that during the next few months at Kingdom Causes, God can continually guide me and use me according to His will and purpose. 

Summer Intern - Madison (:

Hello! My name is Madison Hur, and I am an intern for Kingdom Causes Bellflower this summer. I enjoy working with children and I babysit a lot. Hiking is one of my most favorite hobbies along with swimming and running. I have been attending Canaan Church in Bellflower since I was 7 years old. I currently live in Fullerton, CA and attend Cal State University of Long Beach. I am a Psychology major and am going on my fourth year following the summer. After graduating, I hope to go to grad school for a Masters in Social Work. I am also starting at CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) later in the summer as a mentor working with children who were placed in foster care. I have a deep passion for the healing process of at-risk youths and children and desire to work individually with them and also to work in any way as an advocate for them. I am so excited to be a part of the Kingdom Causes team this summer. Before discovering this internship at KCB, I had little to no knowledge about community development but already, God has opened my eyes to see the amazing work He is doing through this organization. I have been nothing but grateful to be a part in blessing the city and being blessed in return.

Summer Intern - Bianca!

Hi! My name is Bianca Portal, and I am the Bellflower Counts intern for Kingdom Causes this summer! Bellflower Counts is our name for the work that we will be doing with the 100,000 Homes Campaign, which is a national campaign to end homelessness. This project falls right in line with one of my biggest passions – social work. I just finished my third year of college at Azusa Pacific University as a social work major. After college, I hope to dedicate my life and career to fighting and preventing homelessness in communities.

Aside from social work, another huge passion of mine is traveling! I have been able to have some incredible experiences in other countries, including studying abroad in South Africa for 4 months and doing language school in Peru. I have a hunger to see the entirety of God’s world, and I don’t think it will be satisfied anytime soon! When not traveling or in school, I like spending time with my family, going to dodger games, drinking coffee, and dancing.

I can truly say that I feel like interning for Kingdom Causes is exactly where God wants me to be this summer, and I am so incredibly excited for it. The staff already seems amazing, and I am looking forward to getting plugged into different community projects, as well as working to make Bellflower Counts a success!

Hello!

Hi, my name is Natalie Tinnerman and I am one of the Summer interns at Kingdom Causes Bellflower. I am an only child and I have grown up in Downey, California. I currently attend Biola University in La Mirada, California where I am studying English and education. I plan to teach middle school locally or abroad after I graduate. A few of my interests are observing and creating art, sewing, reading, and tutoring. My favorite place to camp is Carpinteria, California (near the beach!). I also love to cook. I have attended church in Bellflower for 4 years, and I became involved with Kingdom Causes through my church. I believe that the work that Kingdom Causes does in the community is essential, but this type of work is often overlooked. Kingdom Causes fills in a gap where support is often missing in the community. I am honored that I am able to be on staff at Kingdom Causes this summer. I am excited to get to know the community of Bellflower better.

Cockroaches and Healing on the Sabbath

I came in the office this morning and was blessed to find out that Ethan and Adam and their girlfriends spent their Sabbath yesterday helping one of our low-income neighbors to clean out her trailer-home.  


The trailer had been cluttered with a years worth of "life" and the neighbor had been un-able to clean it herself for a variety of health reasons.  The small trailer had become a breeding ground for cockroaches and spiders but when these young folks heard about the need they cheerfully gave up their Sunday afternoon to get dirty living out their love for Jesus.

This selfless act of worship reminded me of the story in Luke 13 where Jesus heals a crippled woman on the sabbath. The religious leaders of his day were  incensed by the fact that Jesus would violate the Law that mandated a ceasing from labor on this day.  Despite the protest, Jesus "worked" on the Sabbath by healing the woman and demonstrating a different set of Kingdom rules, rules that emphasize mercy, grace and shalom.  


I am blessed to work with people like Adam and Ethan, who live out the Kingdom today as Jesus did 2,000 years ago.  God help me to live and love like this.

Start of Something New

Hi, my name is Edgar and I’ve lived in Bellflower for 19 years or so. I was born in Mexico and immigrated to the US at the age of two with my mom, dad, and brother. I have three sisters and two brothers, five in all. I am the eldest of them all and the first to graduate high school and attend college. I aspire to become a congressmen or a lawyer some day; anything to do with the constitution really. I’ve never blogged, so I'm unfamiliar with how blogging works. I have never been so ecstatic or miserable about anything in life to the point that I’m compelled to write about it for others to read.

I’m embarking on this journey with Kingdom Causes. Where it will take me or what it will do to mold me as a man is in Gods hands to be perfectly honest. All I know is that God has shaped me to serve, and Kingdom Causes specializes in that. I have my own thoughts as to why God has connected me with this non-profit organization, but I must always remember what God says in Isaiah 55:8, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways.” I know that if I completely trust God with this internship, no amount of money or riches can ever compare to what God has in store for me. I can write 100 pages trying to describe how excited I am about this opportunity I have been given, but I don’t think doing so can ever fully convey the feelings that are happening within my heart!

I’ll give this blogging thing a try…well It’s kind of part of my internship requirements, so I hope you guys enjoy reading about my journey for the next 10 weeks or so!

Thanks and peace,

Edgar

Summer Intern-Kara!

We are excited to have FOUR interns at KCB this summer! They'll each introduce themselves on this blog, starting with Kara. Feel free to contact our office if you're interested in helping with the projects that they are working on.

Hey Everyone! My name is Kara Zondervan. I just finished my third year at Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and I look forward to being a senior next year. Currently, I am in the Nursing program there and have loved being a part of it. This past year I had hands on training (clinicals) in Mental Health, Pediatrics, OB (Mother/Baby), and the Community. This summer I applied to be an intern at Kingdom Causes Bellflower and I am happy to be a part of their mission. My objective for this internship is to gain experience working in a non-profit, community development organization, and more specifically, to use health and medical related skills to benefit Kingdom Causes and the surrounding community. Some of my goals include discovering health needs of Bellflower residents, researching health clinics in the area to determine availability to residents in the area, seeing if Kingdom Causes can offer health care support (depending on the needs), and compiling a list of willing professional volunteers to provide services. As of right now, my hope is to get involved and talk to residents to figure out ways to accommodate their health needs. Some possibilities would be starting nutrition, exercise, or cooking classes, as well as setting up a consistent accessible health/screening program. I look forward to this challenging summer and know that through God and the support of those at Kingdom Causes and the Bellflower Community I can find a way to help.