Haroldo Nunes giving his presentation at the Orrville Y as a guest speaker of David Rittgers. On Tuesday April 18th, the Orrville Rotary Club met at the Orrville YMCA to gather and discuss the upcoming Pancake Day, and listen to our guest speaker Pastor Haroldo Nunes. Pastor Nunes is an ordained Mennonite Minister by the Ohio Conference. He graduated from a University in Brazil and from seminary classes at the Mennonite Education Agency. He came to Wayne County 17 years ago to work at Salem Mennonite Church in Wooster, Ohio and Open Arms Hispanic Ministries. There he has helped to transform the church into a multi-cultural community of faith where Anglos, Hispanics, and Afro-Americans worship the Lord together, loving and helping each other. Today, he is the full-time Executive Director and Pastor of Open Arms in which he welcomes the immigrant community and supports them with their material and spiritual needs.
Open Arms Hispanic Ministries does a number of things for the Orrville and surrounding immigrant communities by providing material needs like clothing, furniture, etc... to transportation, translation services, and helping people with their immigration needs. Their staff also make visits to hospitals, jails, and prisons and help to make connections between people and community resources and employers. The immigrant population in Wayne County has changed over the years; about 5 years ago, most were coming from Mexico, whereas now, the majority of immigrants have come from Guatemala and Venezuela. Many individuals that are immigrants struggle to become citizens, learn english, and find jobs to take care of their families and Open Arms Ministries finds ways to help with just that by partnering closely with the Mayor, the Chief of Police, and the school system.
The Open Arms Hispanic Ministries has ways for the community to support their mission. They can support financially by making an annual donation of $1,000 to become AMIGOS of Open Arms. They also ask for prayer for the staff, ministry, and the clients that they serve. Individuals also may consider participating in volunteer opportunities as they arise. Please visit their website at open-arms.us to learn more about what they do, and how to help!