When we first met at the AIM Canada office during Andrew’s orientation our similar heartbeat to disciple young men and women to study God’s Word, is what drew us together. At our wedding in 2017, we said, “may God use our love as a tool in His mighty hands, drawing many to Him.” Originally, we thought God would use us as church planters and disciple makers in a village context amongst the unreached. This led us to a fruitful season in Chad where we served amongst Muslim Background Believers. It was truly a joy to see how the Father is in pursuit of the lost & inviting us to join His Kingdom pursuit. However, in 2020 after a series of traumas and God ordained losses and gains the door closed to us returning to Chad.
After a lot of prayer, we joined the ministry at Rift Valley Academy (RVA) in Kenya as grade 11-12 girls’ dorm parents! The school is made up of 500 students from over 40 nationalities & their parents serve on every corner of the continent. As staff we pour daily into the lives of missionary’s kids (MKs) enabling them to get quality education and thus empowering their parents to continue to minister in very difficult contexts. As dorm parents, we stepped into the main support role creating a home for 15-18 dorm daughters from passport countries like Korea, Kenya, America, USA, England, Canada, & Paraguay. Our home was theirs and we daily strived to foster a place where each student felt loved, welcomed, safe, and pointed to Christ. This meant midnight conversations about heart topics and early morning wake up calls for long runs with 48 dorm daughters.
Over the four years dorm parenting at RVA, God ignited within us a passion for MKs and TCK (Third Culture Kid) ministry. We partnered often with the RVA counseling department and saw the great need for mental health professionals at the school. TCKs can be exposed to intense traumas due to the nature of their parent’s ministries and instability on the continent. Statistically this has led to greater percentages of mental health struggles like anxiety disorders, depression, and negative coping mechanisms such as self-harm.
In the dorm, as we shared our passion for mental health and personal stories of trauma many dorm daughters felt safe to share their own painful stories and questions. The head of counseling department saw our passion and asked if Andrew would consider studying his master’s to join their team. For a student body of nearly 500 there are currently only 2 counsellors, so the need is great! Through 2024-2025 God began speaking to us and opening the doors for Andrew to pursue his Master’s in Clinical Mental Counseling at Wheaton College in Illinois. We laid our needs before the LORD and He has miraculously provided the funds for flights to Chicago, subsidized furlough housing, and the Billy Graham Scholarship that covers 100% of tuition. God parted the waters and we are eager to step out in faith and see what He can do with this further education.
In August 2025 Andrew begins a 2-year Masters at Wheaton to be better equipped to serve MKs and their families at RVA. We are excited to stay with AIM throughout this Study Assignment and to return to our home in Kenya after graduation in 2027. We never expected to be moving to the USA for school, but God continues to write our story and direct us towards those who need to know His love. We are currently praying for a community that is passionate about the Gospel, missionaries’ kids, and mental health to join our support team in the months ahead.
Updated May 2025
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