RPTS is a place where men and women are faithfully trained for gospel ministry and other kingdom service, but we’re more than just a school, we’re a community. We’re a group of people gathered together who don’t just learn together, but live life together. Bonds formed during this equipping time are very often friendships that last through a lifetime of serving Christ’s church together.
At the seminary, we enjoy not only working together, but “playing” together as well. While time spent inside the classroom is priceless, time spent enjoying one another outside of the classroom is always a delight. One such time occurs annually toward the close of each school year at our end-of-year picnic. On May 6th this spring, the RPTS community gathered at a local community park situated just north of the seminary. We enjoyed food, fellowship and fun. President Barry York opened our time together and Director of Admissions, Ed Blackwood, led us in a time of family worship.
The picnic is a pitch in and it’s fun to see the variety of food that represents the variety of people that make up our student body. We enjoyed games of tug-of-war and corn hole as well as activities the park amenities provided. It was a welcome break from the intensity of study leading up to final exam week. The Lord blessed us with beautiful spring weather with about eighty people in attendance, including faculty, staff and students along with their families. For some who would graduate just a couple of weeks later, this time was the beginning of saying good-bye to a community that had become like family over years of study.
One student says “One of my greatest memories of RPTS was when the seminary had its annual end-of-year picnic at a park in the area. It was a beautiful, warm, sunny day filled with good food, socializing, games, and a word of encouragement from Ed Blackwood addressed particularly toward the students who were about to graduate that year. Such a fun-filled day left me reminded of what a true blessing it is to be apart of a seminary that has a very real and deep sense of community to it!”
At RPTS, we look forward to many more happy memories like this one.
Thanks to June Whitla for putting together this article. June is Development Assistant at RPTS.
