On Friday evening, members of the Multi-Cultural Christian Fellowship (MCF) and their guests filled the Walsh Function Room for their end-of-the-year awards ceremony. After a year of 5 a.m. Friday prayer sessions, retreats, and a large-scale concert, among other things, MCF came together to celebrate their graduating seniors, their outgoing president, Kadeem Massiah, LSOE ’12, and Karl Bell, assistant director of the Student Programs Office for his contributions to their organization.
The night’s program began with a performance by Voices of Imani, followed by the presentation of gifts to the organization’s graduating seniors. After a blessing of the food, dinner was served for the guests.
Dinner was followed by Joana Maynard, assistant director of AHANA Student Programs, who spoke about the role God played in the lives of members of the MCF and Massiah, as well as the history of the MCF organization.
“You don’t need a title, you don’t need to be elected,” Maynard said. “[God’s] going to increase your territory either way.”
Maynard’s address was followed by the presentation of the faculty award for spiritual participation to Bell.
“God put it in our hearts to start an award for a faculty member who contributed greatly to the spiritual development of students on campus,” said Roberson Pierre, vice president of MCF.
An emotional Bell accepted the award from Pierre, and thanked MCF for all that they did on campus, congratulating them on the success of their large scale concert featuring Mali Music. “That concert was something Boston College has not seen in many, many years,” Bell said.
After the award was presented, Dan Bunch, director of the Learning to Learn program, addressed the guests, speaking about Massiah’s many accomplishments and his future in ministry. Massiah, who will graduate this May, celebrated his tenth 10th year in ministry this year. Born in Boston, he has traveled as far as Uganda. He has preached at numerous youth conferences and retreats, and pioneered the development of MCF into the organization it is today, culminating in the success of the Mali Music concert.
Pierre also addressed Massiah, thanking him for the role he played in the development of the lives of all the MCF members.
“We’ve had to come to terms that our gift was leaving-our older brother, our father was leaving,” Pierre said.
He spoke about Massiah’s powerful presence on campus, as well. “You are carrying a standard that is unprecedented on the Boston College campus,” Pierre said. “Tonight we thank you for your faithfulness and obedience to God.”
After Bunch and Pierre spoke about his accomplishments, Massiah addressed the audience.
First, he spoke about his early involvement in ministry and religion. “I never had the opportunity to wait for my daddy to come home,” Massiah said. “So every night, at 5 p.m., I would go to my room and spend three hours with my daddy. And he always came home.”
“My assignment on campus was to pour from the reservoir of love that my daddy gave me. I’m leaving BC, but I’m not mad, I’m not bitter, I’m not angry, all I can hear and sense is that I’m going to go back to that place where my daddy comes home everyday.”
