The Atlanta Constitution from Atlanta, Georgia • 140

INTOWN EXTRA, JANUARY 3, 1991 Minister is fasting for financial deliverance 7 ji ''V -n I rii.il ft 'nm. i i if Henrietta SpearmanStaff Instructor Karima Al-Amin (second from left) Yasuhiro Ohashi, Hiroyuki Hashimoto and Nagaraj talks to students Kazuaki Fujita (left) and (from left) Chatakondi at the ELS Language Center. 1 By Actor Cordell Staff writer Denying that he is taking a tip "from tie guy in Tulsa," the Rev. Art Ballad of the downtown Baptist Tabernacle says he has been fasting since Dec. 1 and will continue until the financially beleaguered church receives $300,000 in donations.

His reference was to Oklahoma televangelist Oral Roberts, who in 1987 received $8 million in donations for medical scholarships after declaring that God would call him home if the money wasn't forthcoming. "I just believe it's what God would have me do, at a time when the church is getting beat to death from every angle," said the Rev. Ballad, 51, who weighed 205 pounds when he began subsisting on "water and every once in a while a little fruit juice." He has lost 25 pounds. The Tabernacle, dating back to 1911, has had visiting preachers ranging from Billy Sunday to Billy Graham. Its membership peaked in the 1950s at around 3,000, but has dwindled to around 500 because of members moving to the suburbs.

In addition to his fasting, the Rev. Ballard is launching a "Macedonia Missionary" pro- gram Sunday in which he said 35 churches have pledged to send delegations to special afternoon services. It's part of his "Tabernacle Turnaround" effort, which he hopes will boost the church by $1 million during 1991. His fasting so far has not curtailed his energy, and holiday feasting by others hasn't swayed him in the least, said the Rev. Ballad, who came to the Tabernacle last year from a church in Florida.

"The members are in shock about how serious he is about this," said Bill Coen, minister of music. "The money is there. It has to be," the Rev. Ballad said. "It doesn't make sense for us to own this downtown property worth from $5 million to $7 million and we can't get any money." The Tabernacle makes ends meet with proceeds from two nearby parking lots it owns, he said.

Steve Weisbrod Director of ELS Language Center says Atlanta "is becoming more tolerate, sensitive, appreciative" of other cultures. Solving mysteries oftheU.S. Students clued in to American ways By Valinda Johnson Staff writer Until a few months ago Hir-oyuM Hashimoto, Nagaraj Chatakondi, and Miriam Michelon were strangers living thousands of miles apart with diverse backgrounds and lifestyles. Today, Hiroyuki of Japan, Nagaraj of India and Miriam of Italy communicate easily as friends and students in Atlanta's ELS Language Center, which helps many international students and business people learn the English language and American culture. The Atlanta center, at 3355 Lenox Road, opened in 1974 with an enrollment of 60 students and 10 teachers.

Today, it has more than 20 instructors who teach an average of 400 students from Germany, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Japan, India, Brazil, Saudi Arabia, Israel, Colombia and Peru. It is among 16 ELS (English Language System) centers in the country that teach English as a second language. "We provide an intensive language program," said director Steve Weisbrod. "Ninety-five percent of our students are full time and attend class six hours a day, five days a week in speaking, writing, conversation, reading and media language lab." The school's courses range from beginners' to advanced levels. The tuition is $775 per course level.

Many of the college-bound foreign students attend ELS to acquire English proficiency to gain acceptance into an American college or university. International corporations send their employees to Atlanta not only to learn the language but to learn the culture. For example, Yasuhiro Ohashi, 30, designs personal computers for his Japanese employer, Toshiba. "Our products are for export," he said, "My company wants me to meet American people and learn American culture." 'So, instead of sending him to an English class in Japan, Toshiba sent him to ELS Atlanta. Atlanta, which has long hailed itself as an "international city," is becoming more proficient in catering to the international visitor, Mr.

Weisbrod said. "It is becoming more tolerate, sensitive, appreciative and is learning that the growth of a city comes from not only what we can do for ourselves locally, but what others can do for us." Many Atlanta families have had the opportunity to learn from these international students through the ELS "home-stay" program, which has matched more than 550 students with Atlanta families to give them the "real life" flavor of the American culture. Jim Emshoff, a Georgia State University psychology professor who has housed 10 ELS students over a three-year period, said the program gives him a chance to know other Henrietta SpearmarvStaff Kazuaki Fujtta (left) discusses a writing lesson with teacher Karima -Al-Amin at the ELS school. The school's courses range from beginners' to advanced levels. more involved with Atlantans is "Contact America." A recent "Contact America" experiment sent 10 students to Lenox Square, Kroger, and other areas during the Christmas holidays to ask Atlantans how they celebrated their holidays and how they felt about kissing in public.

"What I found so different here compared to India's culture is children kissing parents," said Nagaraj Chatakondi. "We may show affection by touching the feet of our parents, but we never kiss them." cultures. "We have learned different cultures, political insights, values, beliefs and customs." He said not knowing other people's cultures can lead to misunderstandings. Reflecting on a visit from a Saudi Arabian student, Mr. Emshoff said he made sure that he did not cross his legs.

He learned that Saudi Arabians are offended if they see the sole of one's shoes. For them, it is a sign of disrespect. Another ELS program that encourages students to become.