Chicago Community Celebrates Blessed Couples, New Leaders
Photo courtesy of Chicago Family Church
Unificationists in Chicago have been celebrating new developments and milestones in their community. Leaders organized the “Lasting Love” Blessing Anniversary Celebration on Oct. 15 to honor the many couples who participated in the 1982 Marriage Blessing.
“We had 80 blessed family members join and celebrate their anniversary,” said Rev. Kazuo Takami, FFWPU USA Midwest director, in an Oct. 25 report to national leaders. “We enjoyed many beautiful testimonies from different couples and had a live music performance.”
The Chicago Family Church was decorated by local youth who volunteered to create a one-of-a-kind, intimate setting with elegant floral arrangements, balloons, dinner seating, and a display table of Blessing photos of the 1982 couples. The spouses enjoyed the warm and inviting atmosphere as their families celebrated the 40-year anniversary together with them.
“It was a beautiful, fun moment to see all of the couples’ photos,” said Rev. Takami. “Some people didn’t change much, but some people greatly changed.”
Photo courtesy of Chicago Family Church
Each couple was also given an engraved crystal award to commemorate their anniversary, but Rev. Takami said the most touching moment was still to come. “The highlight of the program was the couples standing together, facing each other, as they expressed their gratitude to their spouse,” he said. “That unexpectedly brought me to tears.”
The following day, on Oct. 16, a new Chicago Korean Ministry was launched during Sunday service. Local leaders aim to revive the Korean community and generate more active involvement, said Rev. Takami. The ministry will be led by former assistant pastor of Sun Moon University, Rev. Dong Hun Lee and his wife, Jung Im Oh.
“[Rev. Lee] has been in ministry for more than 10 years, so we are very grateful to have him,” said Rev. Takami, who mentioned that Chicago previously had a thriving Korean community in the 1980s and 90s.
Photo courtesy of Chicago Family Church
A new Midwest family ministry coordinator, Ivan Lozano, was also recently appointed to develop a young family ministry program. “We have no solid program [in our region] for young couples and their children,” said Rev. Takami, “so we want to build up this area of our ministry.”
Lozano, who felt inspired to be more involved and give back to his community after regularly participating in the Morning Devotion and Achieve programs, was seeking a meaningful way to contribute. “The BFM team approached him,” said Rev. Takami, “and he thought, ‘this is God’s voice.’”
The Chicago community has seen an uptick in member participation this year as the church building undergoes renovation to expand its classrooms, offices, and create a space for young mothers. The construction project, led by Rev. Takami, has had community members across generations come together to help. “The engagement has been really fantastic,” said local leader Rev. David Rendel back in September. “We have a goal of becoming a model church in America, and we’re moving forward very quickly with that.”
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