May 9, 2015, was a day of rejoicing at Gladstone Park Church because Drew Bassy, Tom Lee, Don Enslow and Ron Tise were baptized. Each man has his own story, but the date was chosen because exactly one year earlier Bassy had been found unresponsive in a parking lot, in his car.
How long he had been there no one knows, but the efforts of a paramedic, who was also there, and a quick call to 911 brought Bassy back to life. As Bassy puts it, “Exactly a year ago I died, but God gave me a second chance. This time I want to do it right and die in the watery grave of baptism.”
Ron Tise’s life changed six years ago when he had a stroke, followed by an encounter with dark, demonic forces intent on killing him. He surprised himself by calling to God for help. God answered that prayer, and Tise began his search to learn about the God he had never known.
In the last couple years, Tom Lee started his search for meaning in life and ended up reconnecting with an Adventist girl he had dated in his 20s. She advised him to go to a local Adventist church. Work brought him to Oregon, close to the Gladstone Park Church and closer to that Adventist girl, who is now his fiancée.
Don Enslow stopped going to church at age 12, when he decided to live with his dad after his parents’ divorce. Enslow reconnected with his mom when he came to Portland for medical treatment more than a year ago. He has been studying the Bible with his mom and stepdad for the past several months. As Enslow puts it, “I am at peace more than I have ever been.”
Laressa Farnsworth, Gladstone Park Church communication leader, and Bob Uhrig, Gladstone Park Church pastor
(From left, back row) Drew Bassy; Bob Uhrig, pastor; Tom Lee; Don Enslow; and Ron Tise (seated) made one Sabbath in May extra special for the Gladstone Park Church.
