Unity Games held for the first time in Vancouver Island

Teams fielded by the local congregations of Victoria and Nanaimo competed in the first ever Iglesia Ni Cristo Unity Games held in the island, which lies southwest of mainland British Columbia.

Victoria, the Church’s first local congregation in Vancouver Island under the British Columbia Ecclesiastical District, was established 19 years ago. The Nanaimo Congregation was formed a decade later as a result of the brethren’s efforts in sharing their faith. Teams from the latter travelled about 140 kilometers to meet their counterparts at the Spectrum Community School gymnasium in Saanich, Victoria.

Three color-coded teams (green and white for those from Victoria and red for Nanaimo) competed in basketball and volleyball matches. There were two divisions, men and women, in the three categories each, namely, Buklod, KADIWA, and Binhi.

Before the games, the players conducted a parade of colors and took their oath of sportsmanship. Brother Jay Sicad, resident ministerial worker of both congregations, reiterated to the brethren the aims of the sporting event, which were to promote unity, sportsmanship, and love of brotherhood.

“This CFO activity helps the brethren to strengthen their camaraderie and the bond of brotherhood,” Brother Sicad said later in an interview. “The brethren were delighted and proud to be a part of this activity being the first in Vancouver Island.”

“One of the goals of this activity is for the brethren to relieve the stresses brought about by today’s worries,” Jess Salvani, Buklod president of Victoria Congregation, added. “We owe it to the Almighty Father for allowing this activity to happen, and to the Church Administration for approving our request.”

In basketball, the green-uniformed teams won the Buklod and Binhi categories (men and women) while the team in white bested the other teams in the KADIWA category. The white team also landed first place in volleyball (men and women). Medals were awarded to the winners. — With reports from INC News Section