Each year on the final Sabbath of Wisconsin Conference camp meeting hundreds of people gather to celebrate with individuals choosing to be baptized by immersion, in the waters of Sandow Lake at Camp Wakonda. This year sixteen people joined the Seventh-day Adventist Church by immersion and one by profession of faith. We praise the Lord for His gracious gift of salvation for every person.
Juanita Edge, Communication Director
Baptism with Pastor Carlos Ancheta. Nyiramahirwe Tumukunde. She was born and raised in a Congo refugee camp in Rwanda, and brought to the United States under the care of the Fox Valley SDA Church five years ago after the war. Nyiramahirwe says, “There are many reasons as to why I want to be baptized. One, I want to be reborn in the name of Jesus Christ, and second, I want to grow old in the love of Jesus, to reflect His kindness and experience His peace in my life.” Photo by Bessie Kmiecik. 
Baptism with Pastor Chun Chai. Brother Song Lee’ Testimony: I committed my life to our Lord Jesus Christ in February of 2018. What inspired me to becoming a believer in Christ is a vision (dream) I had. In my dream I was fishing by the shore of a lake with someone (maybe a friend) during the winter season. What surprised me about this lake was that it was crystal clear, and the water was not frozen even though it was the winter season. While fishing, each time I cast the fishing line into the lake it would hook to something or an object such as a rock or a log. This experience was frustrating. I finally caught something heavy which I thought was a big fish. However, as I start reeling in the catch, I notice that it was an old rugged colorful cross, the size of a human, and covered in sea weed. I had never seen anything like it and was afraid. I then asked my friend to help me move the sea weed away from the cross. When I woke up, I told my wife about the dream, and she encouraged me to attend a Sunday service at one of the local churches in Madison. I began attending services each week and came to enjoy singing the gospel and meeting with the people. Yet, I felt my soul was missing spiritual nourishment from the Bible. I reached out to Pastor Pajkaub from the Seventh-day Adventist for guidance. Pastor Pajkaub introduced me to Pastor Chanchai and praise God they invited me to church on Saturday. One of many things I noticed while attending the Seventh-day Adventist Church was the compassion the members show towards people. Pastor Chanchai is a kind and compassionate individual who works hard in serving GOD. The hard work of both two pastors inspired and motivated me to live life the right way and love others as stated in the Bible. Ultimately, what’s most important is the truth and I found in the Bible by attending meetings at the Seventh-day Adventist Church. My journey with Jesus has just begun and I hope to continue learning from the Bible and apply it to my everyday life. My family is happy and proud to be serving God and be a part of the Seventh-day Adventist Church family. Photo by Anthony Isensee 
Baptism with Pastor Titus Naftanaila. Photo by Bessie Kmiecik 
Baptism with Pastor Bill Ochs. Photo by Bessie Kmiecik 
Gathering to observe baptism by the lake. Photo by Juanita Edge 
Gathering to observe baptism by the lake. Photo by Juanita Edge 
Gathering to observe baptism by the lake. Photo by Juanita Edge 
Baptism with Pastor Chun Chai. Miss. Mercedie Yang. Photo by Anthony Isensee 
Group picture of Hmong gathered for baptism. Photo by Juanita Edge 
Baptism. Photo by Bessie Kmiecik 
Gathering to observe baptism by the lake. Photo by Juanita Edge 
Nraim Vang joins by profession of faith. I was born into a Christian family. However, my faith in God only started to become clear when I came to live with my older sister, and study in the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Milwaukee. My sister was the one who introduced my younger sister and I to pastor Ko Saelee and the Adventist Church. My faith in God started to grow when I finally moved to Milwaukee. The Adventist members there were super welcoming and treated my sister and I like their own family. I am just grateful that God opened my eyes to a lot of new things and sent me on a journey to meet wonderful new people and become closer to God. Below are some of my favorite Scriptures from the Bible that strengthens me and give me light. “The Lord is near to those who have a broken heart, And saves such as have a contrite spirit.” “The way of righteousness is life, And in its pathway there is no death.” Proverbs 12:28 “Come to me, all of you who are tired and have heavy loads. I will give you rest.” Matthew 11:28 Photo by Anthony Isensee 
Baptism musician. Photo by Anthony Isensee 
Baptism musician Photo by Anthony Isensee 
Baptism with Pastor Chun Chai. Mrs. Mai Lor Vang, Mr. Song Lee's wife. 
Baptism with Pastor Chun Chai. Baptismal Candidate: Tae Vang. Back when I lived with my parents we attended Sunday church for almost seven years. Then about five months ago my sister, Toua, and I decided to move to Milwaukee with our older sisters. Our sisters took us to the Seventh-day Adventist Church and began telling us about what they were learning. I've learned so much within these five months about God from my older sisters. Before I never thought about which day is God’s day or knew how to pray. Now I've learned about the Sabbath day God wants his people to rest on, and I also know how to pray because my older sisters taught me to. I used to think that God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit were three different people, but they are not. They are actually one person with three different roles. I am so thankful for moving to my sisters place, and learning about the Seventh-day Adventist Church. My favorite scripture from the Bible is from John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” Photo by Anthony Isensee 
Baptism by Pastor Carlos Ancheta. Grace Iribagiza says, "I have always wanted to get baptized, but this year the feeling got stronger and I knew I had to get baptized. God has done so much for me and my family. I want to accept God completely and grow in His love for me.” Photo by Anthony Isensee 
Baptism by Pastor Michael Ehm and Pastor Sheldon Bryan. Photo by Anthony Isensee 
Baptism musicion. Photo by Anthony Isensee 
Baptism with Pastor Chun Chai. Baptismal Candidate: Pang Nhia Yang Growing up my family never attended church. I went to church a couple times with my cousins as a child, but only knew about God in name. The hardest year of my life was my senior year of high school. I really thought that in order to have a purpose in life and to help my family, I had to be successful and become wealthy. I thought success and wealth was all I needed in life, but now that I knew God, my life is purposeful and whole even without those things. Through the encouragement of my friends and my Seventh-day Adventist Church family, I was able to truly find happiness and learned more about myself. Knowing of God's sacrifice, and that God is forgiving, accepting, and doesn't just pick those who are perfect to work for Him makes me want to fully accept Christ into my life as my Lord and Savior. Because he loves us so much and gives us a choice to accept Him as our Savior, I want to return God's love and for His sacrifice, I want to ask him into my life. I am grateful that through Christ I was able to attend the Adventist Hmong camp meeting in Thailand and to canvass. Both of these experiences have made me realize that with God, I can appreciate the things I already have and became more positive. I learned from the Thailand trip that people can be happy even if they don't have much in this world, as long as God is a part of their life. Although, I didn't canvass long, I want to be baptized to show my love for Jesus Christ, to prove my faith in the Lord, and to share His goodness to the world. Photo by Anthony Isensee 
Baptism by Pastor Tutus Naftanaila. Photo by Anthony Isensee 
A dry towel from a happy mom. Photo by Anthony Isensee 
Baptism by Pastor Tutus Naftanaila. Photo by Anthony Isensee 
Baptism with Pastor Chun Chai. Baptismal Candidate: Toua Vang. I also have a similar situation like my sister, Tae. Back when I was still living at my parents house, I had no interest in God, and I hated going to church. However, everything changed when my sister and I moved to Milwaukee to live with our older sisters. They explained the questions we had about God, and took us to the Seventh-day Adventist church every Saturday. I never know that Saturday, the seventh day, was the day that God blessed, I always thought that Sunday was the seventh day. Now I know. The things I've learned have changed my thinking and the way I view God and has grown my faith in God. I am thankful to my sisters who brought me to this church. My favorite scripture from the Bible is Philippians 4:13, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” Photo by Anthony Isensee 
Baptism by Pastor Tutus Naftanaila. Photo by Anthony Isensee 
Baptism by Pastor Zachary Payne. Kara Olson has been studying with Pastor Zack at the Raymond Church for several months. She made the decision to publicly take the plunge and declare that she wants to follow Jesus with her life. Photo by Anthony Isensee 
Prayer prior to baptism. Photo by Anthony Isensee 
Headed back to the evening meeting after the baptism. Photo by Juanita Edge 
Visit following the baptism. Photo by Juanita Edge