Years in the making

From an apartment window at 26 stories we watch fog fill distant hills and traffic stir the streets of Surrey, a town just 20 minutes from Vancouver on the Skytrain. Loss of a slider from the Republic of Georgia's luge team creates mixed emotions as a city builds toward tonight's festivities and more than a thousand Christian volunteers gear up for ministry. NAMB missionary Derek Spain remains in Whistler with fellow Olympic chaplains, ministering amid aftershock of a fallen competitor.

Churches across Vancouver will host viewings of the opening ceremonies, providing venues and hospitality to a city whose population will swell by more than 300,000 over the next three weeks.

"This has been years in the making," says Alan Au, a coordinator for Southern Baptist work during the Vancouver Olympics. "We've had volunteers arriving for three days from all over."

Many volunteer groups led by NAMB missionaries and pastors have already jumped into their roles providing hospitality at Skytrain stations, labor support to More Than Gold offices and outreach efforts throughout the city.

"The Olympics have provided Vancouver with an opportunity it hasn't seen since the World Expo in 1986," says Au. "It provides for increased infrastructure, for more emphasis on caring for the underprivileged and homeless and for an amazing cooperation among churches of many different denominations. Because of this the churches in Vancouver will be able to work together for many years to come."