Brian Gearin did community development work in the Philippines for some years before coming to Boston and doing it here, even as he pastors First Baptist Church of Everett. Paul Bothwell in 1977 planted a neighborhood church in Roxbury and began to help lay the groundwork for the Dudley Street Neighborhood Initiative, which celebrated its 20th anniversary last fall. He has been an essential part of DSNI from its beginning to now. Brian serves with the Emmanuel Gospel Center and Paul with Mission to the Americas. Both of these men bring long, rich and successful pertinent ministries to the table on April 27. For Brian check out www.egc.org/ministries/economic_development/ For Paul www.dsni.org/ and other sites; Peter Medoff & Holly Sklar, Streets of Hope: The Fall and Rise of an Urban Neighborhood, South End Press, 1994.

Nearly all the church planters I talk with these days see community development as an essential part of the whole church planting enterprise, so the April 27 Gathering connects current interests and imperatives with time proven expertise and successful history. The Gathering is at the Emmanuel Gospel Center, 2 San Juan St., Boston. Those who want to extend the morning can go to lunch with the speakers; we go to a Brazilian restaurant around the corner that is conducive to ongoing conversation. If you would like directions to EGC, just e-mail me. RSVP is helpful but not required. Gatherings are free.