TYLER, Texas — Hispanic Heritage Month is underway and Sunday also marked one year since the start of Green Acres Baptist Church's Spanish ministry services.
Green Acres en Español is crossing unchartered territory in East Texas integrating to include an entire Spanish ministry and leading the way to reach more Spanish speakers in the Rose City.
“This has been something that people have been begging for,” Pastor Michael Gossett said.
Gossett said they recognized a need for the community to have services that reflect the community they live in, ultimately leading the church to start Green Acres en Español.
“With the high percentage of our Hispanic population in Tyler and East Texas, a lot of folks still want to speak in their language of preference, and we wanted to give them that option,” Gossett said.
For members like Jorge Enriquez, “having a church that is Spanish speaking helps me communicate better, I’m more free to talk and have friends,” he said through an interpreter.
Enriquez has lived in Tyler for nearly 25 years and said it’s been difficult to find a church like Green Acres.
“It's not easy to find a church that integrates and brings the community together and grows that fast,” Enriquez said.
That's something that Fernando Mangieri, lead pastor for Green Acres en Español, said was always part of the vision.
“From the beginning we wanted to be a church for the city and have since been very well received,” Mangieri said through a translator.
The Spanish ministry started with less than 20 members and has since served over 200 members, becoming a diverse campus with over 18 nations represented weekly.
This year, the anniversary coincidently landed on the first day of Hispanic Heritage Month Green Acres en Español celebrated with a bigger, better service than last year and a luncheon.
“You can see and feel the energy and can immediately feel the warmth and love of the room as soon as you come in,” Gossett said.
The church only continues to grow day-by-day. As for future expectations., the sky's the limit.
“We're looking at making a generational impact, something that goes beyond this generation,” Gossett said. “We want to plant a tree today so that the next generation will enjoy the shade, and that's the way we view things here in our church.”
For those interested in getting involved with Green Acres en Espanol or know someone who can benefit from their services, they meet every Sunday at 11 a.m. in the Crosswalk Conference Center at Green Acres, located at 1607 Troup Highway in Tyler.
And for people who don't know Spanish, they have a special earpiece you can wear with live English translation.