MIDDLETON, Mass. (BP) — It has become an annual event for Celebration Church, but represents a nationwide connection in supporting local schools and communities.

Joe Souza has led Celebration since it began 19 years ago in Charlestown, the oldest neighborhood in Boston. Since then, the Brazilian congregation has established campuses in Middleton, north of the city, and southward in Stoughton alongside three more in Rio de Janeiro.

Their annual back-to-school drive has built goodwill as well as gathered support from local mayors. It’s far from a one-off, too. Encouragement dinners take place throughout the school year for teachers and students. Clothing, shoes, food and toiletries are given away as needed.

“The school invites us to hold those events at their place,” said Souza, who has two daughters teaching in Chelsea Public Schools (CPS). Celebration Church has invested in CPS specifically over the last three years.

“It’s in an area with a lot of refugees, and so many of these students are underprivileged,” he said. “We do the school drive, but also a lot of other stuff to connect us to them. We’re a Brazilian-based church, so we like to cook and eat and socialize.

“Anytime that they need help, we’re there.”

Souza also serves as the associate executive director for the Baptist Churches of New England (BCNE). A big part of that role is encouraging churches to find how they can minister in their communities. Celebration Church works to lead by example.

When the church was located in Charlestown, the local school system invited them to help with outreach, Souza said. That led to the formation of a soccer league and strategy called Kid’s Games that was very similar to Vacation Bible School.

“We hosted around 425 kids in the community center in Charlestown,” said Souza. “Since our inception as a church, we have actively participated in school activities. And the schools invite us to do so, which can be a very curious thing in Boston.”

Sebastian Cuervo was one of those young people. Today he plays guitar in the church’s band.

“Participating in Kid’s Games as a child brought much-needed joy and a sense of community I did not know I was missing,” he said. “As I progressed into a volunteer role, I reflected on my time at Kid’s Games with the same affection. Any leadership role Kid’s Games granted me only helped shape my perspective on the world and my place in it.”

Finances, of course, remain an ever-present discussion among school leaders and supporters.

Covid brought additional funding for schools, which led to additional staff as many systems embraced remote learning. Many of those staff members remained when students returned. The Covid-era funding ran out last year, though. Lower enrollment has also meant less funding.

At the beginning of this month, the Trump administration withheld approximately $5 billion for K-12 funding before the passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. Those funds were only recently released.

Before restoring the funds, $108 million was being held back from the U.S. Department of Education for Massachusetts schools that would impact teacher training initiatives, education for migrant students, and classroom materials, among other areas. Even now, it will take time for the funding to reach those areas.

This calls for churches to stand in the gap.

Partners help in the effort, including Send Relief and the state convention.

“This isn’t just something by Celebration Church,” said Souza, who added that a growing involvement from other immigrant churches. “It’s for the kingdom, and gets churches involved in the mission field in a tangible way.”

“Since its inception, Celebration Church has made an intentional effort to impact families in the community by partnering with local schools, the local boys and girls clubs, and local youth sports leagues,” said Terry Dorsett, BCNE executive director. “They have provided school supplies, gift cards, tutoring, back-to-school parties and so much more. They are famous for their community Brazilian BBQs.”

New England is the only region in the country where Southern Baptist churches grew from 2018-2023. Dorsett gives a tremendous amount of credit to BCNE ethnic pastors.

“The majority of churches in the BCNE worship in a language other than English,” he said. “Realizing this trend was likely to continue to grow, we challenged our non-Anglo pastors to step up and become leaders. It has been exciting to see how they have risen to the challenge, especially our Brazilian and Korean leaders.

“Joe is leading the charge to help ethnic churches make a significant impact in communities across Boston. As Anglo churches have shrunk in size or chosen to retreat from the public square, increasingly our ethnic churches, especially our Brazilian churches, are filling the leadership gap once held by Anglo churches. Brazilian churches, and their Korean partners, are now the front-line gospel warriors in Boston.” 

(EDITOR’S NOTE — Scott Barkley is chief national correspondent for Baptist Press.)