Alumnus of the Year: Sergio Cariello.

We told you about Sergio Cariello, Class of 1986, in our spring issue. Sergio journeyed from a comic book-loving childhood in Recife, Brazil, to the Bible Institute in New York, where God put a burden on his heart to use his unique art skills to reach people for Christ. This year, Sergio has seen his ministry-related work explode, with his latest creation, a fully illustrated graphic representation of the Bible called The Action Bible, winning several awards as it spreads around the globe.

Sergio was selected this spring from a group of alumni finalists to be the Bible Institute's Alumnus of the Year for 2012.

Sergio has been greatly used by the Lord to reach thousands of people through The Action Bible — and literally millions of people through a similar pamphlet that highlights the story of Jesus Christ. But he won’t take credit for the impact his work has made.

“I wasn’t intending anything big – I was just following God’s will,” he says.

Sergio points to his time at the Bible Institute as significant training for telling the story of the Bible in cartoon picture form. He is an enthusiastic communicator about the value of spending a year immersed in the study of God’s Word.

“It’s very humbling, because I don’t consider myself worthy of such a title,” Sergio says of his recognition as Alumnus of the Year. “I feel very honored.”

We thank Sergio for being a faithful servant of our Lord and for the encouragement through his identification with the Bible Institute.

See our original story on Sergio here.

The Action Bible reaches around the world:
*407,000 copies distributed in the United States
*24,525 New Testament copies distributed
*Translated into English, Portuguese, Ukrainian, Korean (still coming: Spanish)

The free "Story of Jesus" pamphlet:
*20 million copies
*Distributed in Cambodia, Belarus, Moldova, Russia, Ukraine, Brazil, the Dominican Republic, Pakistan, Singapore, Ecuador, Indonesia, North Korea, China, Venezuela, Guatemala, India, Chile, and Costa Rica

Past meets present: How you can help.

Take a minute and imagine yourself as a Bible Institute student again. You’re looking at your dirty shoes and thinking of the next time you’ll do laundry, which makes you think of where you’ll get laundry money, which makes you wonder if you’ll ever have money again, or if you’re set for a life of being destitute, a la Paul, Barnabas and all of those pious people you thought never had anything in common with you until you ended up at the Bible Institute and suddenly realized that an amazing God had a grip on your life.

This past fall, one alumnus was in town for the Class of 1986’s “25-year mega reunion.” He walked the path to Colombia, his old dorm, tracing his steps from decades ago to the bed that had been his.

In his old bed was a current student, fast asleep at 10 a.m. after a weekend of ministry — the classic Bible Institute pose since 1970.

The alumnus took $25 to commemorate the 25-year anniversary and slipped it under the student’s pillow, bookending his journey with a gift toward the future.

The amount, he said, “wasn’t a lot, but I figured the students’ need of money hadn’t changed in 25 years.”

Think about what you remember of your time at Schroon Lake. What made a difference for you? What would you not give up if you did it all over again?

Whether it be a gift or a word of encouragement, let us know how you are able to minister, and we will try to connect you with students who could use your prayer or help.

We also encourage you to take the invitation from Word of Life to “come on home.” Take time to revisit the place where you spent a year — or two — seeing God work in your life. And, if thinking about your days at the Bible Institute compels you to help the current student body, bring a small gift to share with whoever now sleeps in “your” bed.

“And His mercy is on them that fear Him from generation to generation. … That the generation to come might know them, even the children which should be born; who should arise and declare them to their children” (Luke 1:50; Psalm 78:6).

Contact alumni@wol.org or waynel@wol.org if you'd like to learn how you can help current Bible Institute students.

Drawing from the Truth: Alumnus of the Year Sergio Cariello.

In a world where most people portray Jesus as a kind, mellow guy Who spent most of His time wearing a long robe and telling stories to His friends, Sergio Cariello has a different idea. If you flip through the pages of The Action Bible, it’s clear that Sergio sees his Savior as the ultimate superhero.

Think of it as a Nazarene in action: an athletic man, performing miracles and saving the world.

The Action Bible portrays God as the original action hero. With sketches and ink, Sergio vividly depicts plagues, miracles, and creatures of all kinds. His illustrated approach to the Bible invigorates the ancient stories, engaging readers of all ages and languages in enduring tales of truth.

Sergio’s career in art began when he was a child in northeast Brazil. He doodled on napkins and church bulletins, and by age 5, he had decided to become a cartoonist. At 11 he landed his first gig drawing Frederico, the Detective, a weekly comic strip he invented for his local newspaper, Diario De Pernambuco.

Growing up, Sergio attended church every Sunday, but it wasn’t until he stepped into the electric world of Word of Life camp in Recife that his relationship with Christ really came alive.

"Every visit to Word of Life was a spiritual injection,” Sergio says. “An extreme boost to my spirit.”

Sergio responded to Christ’s call at camp when he was 15, but soon after, he started to struggle in his walk with God. He dealt with many of the challenges teenage Christians face, and he lost momentum.

Then, the following year, Sergio began to return to his faith. What made the difference this time was his pastors, Roberval Lyra and Sergio Lyra, who were both involved with Word of Life.

“They nurtured me back to church” when they asked him to draw charts for a church fundraising campaign, he says.

Sergio recommitted his life to Christ and soon enrolled in the Bible Institute in Recife in 1981, just after high school. There, he was surrounded every day with a full dose of Word of Life’s discipleship, ministry, and personal growth formula: Scripture memorization, Quiet Time, and ministry opportunities such as Open Air Evangelism, sharing the Gospel door-to-door, travels across Brazil with the Collegians, and children’s ministry at local churches.

Sergio stayed connected to local pastors, and eventually his story made it to George Theis, the founder of Word of Life Recife. Theis turned to the Word of Life scholarship program to see if there was a way Sergio could go to the New York campus for further Bible study under the Bible Institute and School of Youth Ministries program (now second year).

For Sergio, moving to the States and attending the Bible Institute as a more mature believer was a dream come true. He deems his experience at the Schroon Lake Bible Institute campus “phenomenal.”

“It was a new land with new dreams,” he says, “(The Bible Institute) in Recife was great, but New York was greater.”

Testimony Corner: Marisa Irizarry, Class of 1986

I made the decision to accept Christ at age 7 during a Vacation Bible School program at a friend’s church. The program definitely stuck with me: I currently help lead VBS with the youth ministry team at the same church where I was saved — Quinton Baptist Church in Quinton, New Jersey.

I’ve had a heart for ministry since that young age, and I’m still amazed by the opportunities God has given me over the years. Growing up, I found many ways to show Christ’s love through community service and share His Word through visitations as a teenager.

During my junior year of high school, my youth pastor took our group to Word of Life Snow Camp. I remember watching the counselors and thinking, “If the same God lives in them that lives in me, then why am I not as happy as they are? And if this is the place where they came to become that happy and joyful, I’m coming, too, because I want what they have!”

I enrolled in the Bible Institute right out of high school and moved to Schroon Lake with that renewed faith and inspiration that can only come from a fruitful mission trip. I had spent the summer sharing the Good News in England, and I felt God calling me to do missions overseas as an adult. The Bible Institute was the first step.

During my time at the Bible Institute, I grew so much spiritually. I didn’t have a breadth of the reality of Scripture in my life during my childhood nor in my teens, but through my courses I gained a deep biblical knowledge that continues to support my decision making as I minister to youth.

My Bible studies and Quiet Time with my Savior would influence my heart and inspire me to reach out with Jesus’ hand and affect the world. I joined the Open Air Evangelism ministry and remember Jack Wyrtzen talking to us about having a vision and then doing it: “Stop praying about it, and just go do it!” So, some of my friends and I started a campus outreach. We would go to different college campuses every Monday, hand out tracts, and talk to people.

After finishing Second Year at the Bible Institute, I went to Appalachian Bible College and earned my degree in Bible and youth ministry. I met my husband, Albert Irizarry, and we wed in 1992. Albert also attended the Bible Institute, Class of 1991, before returning to Appalachian Bible to finish his degree.

We have two children: Eric, 18, and Megan, 16. Eric got his acceptance letter from Word of Life in the mail three days ago! He says he knew he was going to the Bible Institute — it was written on his birth certificate. With two alumni as parents, I guess it’s hard not to end up at Schroon Lake! Megan also plans to attend when she graduates high school.

I’m thrilled my children will have the opportunity to experience the joy I found at the Bible Institute. I got a fresh dose of that joy when I attended the 1986 class reunion. What a spiritually uplifting, encouraging, and amazing time we had together!  Although we hadn’t seen one another in 25 years, it was like we never left each other. I enjoyed such sweet fellowship with the alumni, and I know I can always call on them for prayer support.

As I shared with my former classmates at the reunion, Albert and I have been leading on the youth ministry team at our home church. We love to watch the teens grow in Christ. Our youth group has attended the Island and goes to Snow Camp every year. (Our kids won first prize in the banner competition — that place is still 48 hours of sheer energy!) We’ve also planned activities, taught Sunday School, and hosted a teen prayer group at our home on Friday nights.

Besides ministering to the youth, I have been involved in a variety of ways at Quinton Baptist Church, including missions, serving as a deaconess and church secretary, attending and leading Bible studies, and singing with the worship team. I also held director of development and event coordinator positions with Bridgeton Christian School and worked in sales at a local Christian radio station. Right now, I am a stay-at-home mom.

As I list these things, I know that God sees them, but really I just want to be known as a woman who loved God and prayed — not this or that accomplishment or title. When people remember me, I just want them to say, “She loved to pray — to talk to Jesus.” That might sound simple, but I do love to pray, and that’s what I want my legacy to be.

Reunion Report: Class of 1986

Word of Life is always welcoming alumni to come on home for a class reunion, Bible Institute visit, or conference at the Word of Life Inn. While the main event for alumni to visit each year is the Memorial Day and Founder’s Conference weekend, alumni are also invited to plan other get-togethers throughout the year. Word of Life is also willing to help alumni plan local meetings across the U.S.

If you’re interested in planning an alumni reunion, contact Wayne Lewis at waynel@wol.org. To book a spot for the Memorial Day/Founder’s Conference weekend, which includes alumni reunions for the classes of 1973, 1983, 1993 and 2003 this spring, call Dawn Wayson at (518) 532-2290.

Here’s what happened when one member of the Class of 1986 got to work on planning a reunion for his class this past spring.

By Wesley A. Yerkes

About two years ago, I received a message on Facebook from some Bible Institute classmates who wanted to get together for a reunion that year or the next. I had been to Founder’s Conference, Homecoming, and Memorial Day events at different years, and the turnout for my class had always been small — 15 to 20 people at a time, and that was the largest of any class that came.

I thought about it and responded, “Let’s wait two years until our 25-year anniversary from graduation and have the biggest class reunion they have ever had.”

I wanted to make our class reunion different. Twenty-five years is a milestone — a quarter of a century! I thought, “Let’s make this huge!”

We started with almost a year of chatter and brainstorming on Facebook, throwing out all kinds of ideas of when, where, who, and how. Then we began narrowing our options and plans. Nobody said for me to kind of take the lead on this idea, but I had one broad goal in mind: to try to get as many of my classmates together as possible in one place, at one time, to glorify God with our testimonies and praise and to encourage one another in the faith while there is still a little time left in this life.

I designed a brochure, recruited a classmate to help me with some artwork, and bounced all of our ideas off the folks at Word of Life. Things really began coming together. I gave portions of the responsibilities of contacts and music preparation to those who were willing to help, and it really became a group effort.

Along the way, I was blessed to find so many of the exciting things my classmates have done since graduation. Many have thriving ministries. Some have become authors. Several are excellent pastors of local churches. Others have become school teachers, youth pastors, missionaries, Christian counselors, or are serving in many other positions of ministry that are touching lives around the world. This one class of Bible Institute students could literally be responsible or used by God to touch the lives of and bring thousands of people, maybe even a million souls, into the family of God in just 25 years.

“Our God is in control though pressures burden the soul. His sovereign plan is a sym-phony!” were some of the lyrics to a song we sang on the Daniel Tour, and these words still ring true in my heart today. Some of my classmates have gone through incredibly difficult experiences (divorce, cancer, loss of loved ones, loss of jobs, depression, huge financial struggles, and more), and it has been my privilege and joy to share their pain and their burdens in prayer to our Heavenly Father as well as to encourage them in the midst of their suffering.

There are times that I don’t understand what God is doing, but then years later when I look back and see the big picture, I see the “touch of the Master’s hand” in composing this wonderful symphony of life. If my classmates are encouraged and strengthened in their faith because of this class reunion, and if the work of Jesus Christ is magnified through it all, then all of the investment of time and energy will be worth it.

So, I would encourage other alumni to help us “awake the giant.” Get your classmates talking and plan regional alumni events with Bible Institute faculty and staff. Encourage one another in the faith. Pray for each other and share your burdens. Then pick a milestone year and plan a huge reunion in New York, Florida, or Owen Sound to come together and rehearse all the great things that God has done. Enjoy the Word of Life experience all over again as you praise God together!