FIRM continued to play its important role as teacher of cross-cultural missions and strategies earlier this month as it hosted two dozen students in the “Cross Cultural Encounters” class from Fresno Pacific Biblical Seminary. FIRM has hosted the class for nearly the last fifteen years.
Throughout the morning, students from around the U.S. and international sites experienced Fresno’s Slavic, Southeast Asian, and African refugee cultures through interactive cultural games, activities, foods, and entertainment. Students learned of the variety of FIRM’s ministries from FIRM staff members. Slavic Family Support staff Yevgeniy Runkevich shared his experiences as a refugee, and spoke of his current ministry with his own Slavic community through FIRM. He also told of how he first became acquainted with FIRM through his own visit here when he was a Fresno Pacific University student in the Cross Cultural Encounters class.
Students capped off their visit by participating in a traditional Lao circle dance around FIRM’s Community Room led by FIRM staffer Tout Tou Bounthapanya. FIRM will also host doctoral students from Bakke Graduate University for instruction and a luncheon next month. Please contact FIRM’s Executive Director Sharon Stanley at if you wish to bring a group of your own for a mission education visit!