Pastor Wayne Surface
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Pastor Wayne Surface
Pastor Wayne Surface of Ohana Baptist Church (above, right) encourages his parishioners to help others, especially U.S. troops and their families. The 21-year-old church’s location near the airport on Puuloa Road and Nimitz Highway lends itself to serving military folks from Pearl Harbor Naval Base and Hickam Air Force Base.
In one special project, a soldier asked if there was any way that some soccer balls could be sent to Iraq so the soldiers could establish a relationship with the children by coordinating workshops and youth teams.
“When we do service projects, there is always a great response,” he says about the church’s congregation of 400 that worships each Sunday.
Surface’s daughter, Elizabeth, works for K-Mart, so he asked K-Mart Salt Lake manager Mike Lane for a discount on some soccer balls to send to Iraq. Surface says when Lane heard the purpose for the soccer balls, he donated about nine for the church to send.
“It’s our way of showing support for the troops,” says Lane (above left), a K-Mart manager for 17 years who moved to Hawaii 10 months ago. “We want to show our appreciation for the whole community.”
Surface says one of the church’s projects is to send weekly letters to the troops, as at least 20 church members are in the military.
“Every Wednesday night I give out the stamped envelopes, and it is always a success,” explains Surface. “Church members always take the envelopes and write the letters.”
Surface, who previously served as assistant pastor of Koolau Baptist Church and Academy from 1980 to 1985, says one of his biggest challenges is to make sure things sent are appropriate and helpful.
“Some troops are in the middle of nowhere, and some troops have more things than others,” notes Surface, a graduate of Pillsbury Baptist Bible College in Minnesota.
Another project is to send care packages, which include handmade items, to deployed troops during the holidays.
In addition, the church also supports missionaries in places such as Philippines and Italy, and offers a Chuukese 10:30 a.m. Sunday service geared toward the Micronesian community.
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