When Alan Hood begins a Word Alive photography assignment, he naturally keeps his eyes alert for good photo opportunities. This explains why he returns with hundreds upon hundreds of images!
However, as Alan shot photos for this issue at the Canada Institute of Linguistics (CanIL)—Wycliffe Canada’s training partner—he was curiously watching for something else that his camera couldn’t necessarily capture.
You see, Alan’s links to CanIL go back a few decades. Before joining Wycliffe Canada’s communications staff, he used his construction experience to help CanIL in the pre-planning of its much-needed new headquarters at Trinity Western University in Langley, B.C.
“During my time there from 1998 to 2000, there was such a positive attitude of encouragement and friendship between staff and students under the direction of Mike Walrod [past president of CanIL],” Alan recalls.
“There was a desire for students’ success, and staff sought to promote the highest quality of linguistic work. There was a strong desire to see people go and use their linguistic skills for the sake of Bibleless peoples.”
As Alan spent a few days at CanIL this past autumn with writer Nathan Frank, he was excited to see this passion is still strong and vibrant among teachers and students. CanIL’s current president, Danny Foster, was a student at CanIL when Alan served there nearly 20 years ago. Alan later photographed Danny and his wife Ranette in Tanzania for Word Alive, when Danny was involved in a Bible translation project involving a cluster of related languages (see Spring 2009 issue).
Like other staff at CanIL, Danny can offer future Bible translation and language workers a wealth of linguistic and practical experience in human relationships from a crosscultural environment. “He is passionate about seeing others have the same kind of impact on people’s lives,” says Alan.
CanIL staff continue to be spiritually in step with their students, united in Christ both in the classroom, and as they pray and fellowship together.
“They know that something bigger and greater than themselves is going on,” says Alan. “They have tasted it, know that it is good, and want others to be part of it.”
We trust that the following stories will encourage you to support the “home-front” work done by both CanIL and Wycliffe Canada. Whether it’s training Christians— or recruiting them in the first place—this pre-field effort is vital for Bible translation to advance around the world.
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