Alex Rios stepped into the baptistry pool slowly and carefully — his smile never left his face. Cheers let out across the auditorium at First Baptist Church Hendersonville, Tennessee, as soon as some caught a glimpse of Rios, proudly wearing his “Unashamed” T-shirt.
“This is Alex. Alex is one of our Peer Place students. We are just so proud of him,” gushed Jerry Wooley, associate pastor. “Here’s his fan club sitting over here, a big crowd of our special needs group.” Rios responded to the crowd by pumping his fist.
Among those in the baptistry with Rios and Wooley were Misty Valencourt, Rios’ teacher with Peer Place, a weekday program for adults aged 22 and older with developmental and learning disabilities. Wooley explained that Rios is non-verbal and Valencourt would help interpret Rios’ profession of faith.
Decision time
A few weeks earlier, Rios decided he wanted to follow Jesus Christ after attending a Bible study.
“After he got home,” Wooley explained, “he started communicating with his mom some questions, and from there he started communicating with his teacher, and then they sat down with Bruce Raley (senior associate pastor) last week and talked about what does it mean for Jesus Christ to be our Lord and Savior.”
Because Rios is unable to speak, struggles to use his arms and has other mobility issues, he uses sign language and his phone to help communicate his thoughts. In his conversation with Raley, Rios shared his need for Christ and desire to be baptized.
Raley later told The Baptist Paper, “He couldn’t speak that, but without being coached, he signed Jesus is my Lord. I tell you, I sat there and cried all the way through the time that we visited together. Seeing the genuineness of his heart.
“He communicated very clearly, very well as I began to dig and ask him various questions,” Raley said. “[Alex] had a deep understanding of who Jesus is, what sin is — of salvation itself — and you know, visiting with him for probably 30–45 minutes, there was no doubt in my mind that he knew exactly what he had done. Alex is an extremely intelligent young man with a smile on his face all the time.”
And on April 19, in front of the congregation, Wooley asked Rios the big question: “Who is Jesus Christ to you?”
Using his left arm, Rios signed his profession of faith. Valencourt then confirmed he signed, “My Lord and Savior.”
The crowd roared. Wooley — with help from Chris Welch, director of preteen ministry — lowered and raised a smiling Rios in and out of the water. Those in the auditorium cheered and stood to their feet.
Peer Place impact
Rios has been a student at Peer Place for the past year and treasures the Bible the church gifted him after sharing his decision to follow Christ. He had not owned a Bible previously and brings it to class each week, Raley said.
“He’s following along with our daily Bible reading … and he is asking some deep questions,” Raley added. “He has this hunger now for God’s Word and a value for the Word of God, that … is affirmation of what God has done in Alex’s heart.”
In addition to Bible studies, singing and a variety of activities, the Peer Place ministry focuses on teaching life skills, everything from how to count money to doing laundry to ordering food online. Since it first began in 2021, the ministry has grown from about 20 students to more than 70.
“In Sumner County, when a student hits their 22nd birthday, they’re no longer able to continue in public schools,” Raley shared. “There’s really not much else for these students, and so subsequently they end up staying at home — oftentimes in front of a TV set. This was developed as not just a respite for parents … but as a life development education for the students.”
EDITOR’S NOTE — This story was written by Shawn Hendricks, director of content of The Baptist Paper.
