For the past several years Baptist Bible College has combined their annual Alumni Days with hosting a regional fellowship meeting branded under the name MAMAC (Mid-America Ministry and Alumni Conference). This year’s event took place November 5-8 with a focus on church planting. Pastors and alumni came from Florida and California and at least seven other states in between. Each speaker has experience either as a church planter or as a pastor sending out church planters. The college canceled normally scheduled classes on Tuesday and Wednesday and replaced them with breakout sessions taught by the guest speakers. Main session speakers included: Keith Harrington and Scott Harrop (Rock Harbor Church, Boise, ID), Mike Brinson (Lifepointe Baptist Church, Centerton, AR), and Bobby Sharp (CrossPointe Baptist Church, McFarland, CA). Breakout speakers included: Brandt and Staci Leach (Life Church, Orlando, FL), Chris Highfill (Grace River Church, St. Louis, MO), Joey Candillo (Grace Church, Independence, MO) and Phil Housley (Park Crest Baptist Church, Springfield, MO).
There were several other events in addition to the preaching and breakout sessions. Monday evening was the annual Alumni Homecoming Banquet with Ray Adams speaking. Lunch each day included round table discussions with guests continuing to invest in each other and students. Tuesday night was the first ever Patriot Cook-Off where students and alumni prepared special dishes including a secret ingredient for dinner. Following dinner, the Alumni Association paid for all the students to enjoy a night at a local bowling alley.
BBC president, Mark Milioni, shared, “It is always great to have our alumni and regional pastors on campus. We do our best to teach practical ministry in the classroom, but nothing beats having these guests on campus to pour into the students.” Next year’s event is tentatively scheduled for November 4-7 and will focus on the topic Church Revitalization.
