Lucas Richard Update

On September 14th, Creekside was made aware of a situation involving one of the missionaries we support, Lucas Richard, in Liberia. The information we received from his wife, who was serving with him in Liberia, was that Lucas was attacked and robbed, so we posted an urgent prayer request for our congregation. News later broke that Lucas had been incarcerated and accused of the attempted murder and aggravated assault of a Liberian girl, Jessica Lloyd. He maintains his innocence.

Lucas is not a member of Creekside, but of an unaffiliated church in Liberia which has its own leadership board.

Our social media post calling for prayer made it seem to the Liberian community that we are insensitive to the victim and appearing to defend the accused, and by extension dismiss his charges. This was not the case. Prayer is our first priority when confronted with a situation such as this. The church is sensitive to Jessica, who also accuses Lucas Richard of perpetrating the act. For her sake and in light of our relationship with the Richards, it is always our obligation to seek the truth, a task made more difficult considering that the eyewitness accounts are radically different. We trust the legal system in Liberia to find the truth and render justice regarding the allegations.

Sadly, we have confirmed today through an eyewitness from Liberia that Lucas had in fact entered into a 2nd marriage with Jessica, which neither we nor his wife had any prior knowledge of. While there are many points of allegations we cannot confirm, since the extramarital relationship has been verified, this alone makes Lucas ineligible to represent our church or receive our support.

We are continuing to work with the State Department, contacts in Liberia, and others to seek both truth and justice. Please continue to join us in prayer for all involved.

9/23 Haiti Pulled Pork Fundraiser

You’re invited to Creekside’s 2023 Haiti Missions Team Pulled Pork Dinner Fundraiser on Saturday, September 23rd, 5-7pm! For a donation, you’ll get a fabulous smoked pulled pork sandwich, baked beans, chips, homemade potato salad, dessert, water or soda, which you can enjoy at Creekside or carry out with you. Any leftovers will be available Sunday after church to eat in or take out. Please come and support your Haiti Missions Team! Our prayers are that the funds raised will be used to bring hope, encouragement, and impact lives as we share the good news of Jesus through various ministries in Pignon, Haiti. You can easily donate to our team online, choosing ‘Haiti Missions Trip’ from the To: drop down menu. You can also write a check made out to Creekside Church and include “Haiti Missions Team” in the memo. Thank you for your prayers and support!