According to the Lakota legend, the Native American tribe treasured the southern Black Hills of South Dakota for its warm waters, which they believed held the power for healing. Now, members of the Hot Springs Seventh-day Adventist Church are working to rebuild that reputation of health in their community. On the second Monday of every month, members of the church’s Health Ministries Department gather with the community for the Plant-based Supper Club, which includes a meal featuring plant-based deliciousness, a cooking demonstration showing how to prepare these foods, a medical presentation (led by physicians) on the health benefits of plant-based eating and other lifestyle choices, and an interactive, motivational discussion to close the evening. Attendance has grown steadily with each session; the last one in January 2024 had over 35 people in attendance (with about 20 people from the community). The church may soon need to face the “problem” of having to find a larger space to hold the classes (certainly, not a bad problem to have)!
Having recently obtained board certification in Lifestyle Medicine to add to her 17-year experience as a board-certified pediatrician, Jaime Bohlman MD resurrected the Health Ministries Department at Hot Springs Adventist Church with the passionate goal of educating the community about the importance of LIFESTYLE to health. “I want everyone to realize that with lifestyle changes—such as diet, exercise, fresh air, sunlight, rest, and a healthy social-spiritual rooting—one surely CAN prevent, treat, AND reverse the chronic diseases that plague our nation today. I have seen many people reduce and even come off of chronic medications for high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease, inflammatory diseases, and cholesterol—just by changing their diet, getting healthy exercise, and managing stress! The best part? This is what we have known for over a century as our Adventist health message,” she says. “Currently, we are seeing trends moving back towards lifestyle as medicine. By capturing the interest of the community to health as it is relevant to their lives, we are given the unique opportunity to introduce the Gospel to someone who otherwise might be closed to our witness. In real-time, we are seeing the fulfillment of Ellen White’s prediction that the health message IS the ‘right hand of the gospel’ and that is so exciting!”
The Hot Springs Church members are a TEAM! Special recognition goes to Pastor Nathan and Charolet James, menu and demonstration leaders; the “unnamed” graphic designer and group discussion facilitator; Anne Darnall and Wanda Sitzman, kitchen and chef support; doctors Michael and Jaime Bohlman, physician presenters; and other Hot Springs Adventist Church members, whose roles included taste testers, greeters, and support staff, for their ongoing dedication to the health ministry of the Adventist Church in the Hot Springs, South Dakota, area.
~printed in The Dakota Dispatch online newsletter, 2/1/2024
