Peter and Mary were accepted as members of AIM Canada in 1963 – the same year they graduated from Berean Bible College. Prior to leaving for Kenya they attended the Toronto Summer Institute of Linguistics.
In 1965, September they left for their first term in Kenya. Keen to work in the vernacular language, they were given several months to study the Kalenjin Language at Kapsabet, Kenya. Both were able to pass the advanced language level course in the Nandi dialect.
In April 1966 they began their ministry at Litein among the Kipsigis people. Kipsigis is a dialect of the Kalenjin language.
Their ministries among the Kalenjin people developed over the years as they became aware of specific needs in 3 areas:
- Stewardship of our lives and possessions
- Challenging the Kalenjin church to reach out in love with the gospel to their traditional enemies: the tribes that bordered them
- As they grew in their understanding of the Kalenjin culture they saw the need to focus on Christian Family Living: couple relationships and parenting.
Their family grew from one child, Sara, born before leaving for Kenya in 1963 and then Bonar born in Eldoret, Kenya in May, 1966. Their twins, Judy & Jonathan, were born in Dec. 1968 before returning to Canada for their first home assignment.
They worked 3 four year terms among the Kipsigis people and then a term and a half among the Tugen people – another dialect of the Kalenjin language.
In 1980 Peter was asked by the Bishop of Africa Inland Church (AIC), Kenya, to work in the AIC Headquarters in Nairobi for a year. After that year they were assigned to the new AIC Region in the Baringo (Tugen) area at the request of the then President of Kenya, Daniel arap Moi.
They worked in the Baringo area, once again challenging the Tugen AIC Church in the areas of stewardship, loving their traditional enemies, and focussing on Christian Family Living.
They returned to Canada for a four year home assignment to accommodate their children’s post Secondary School education and to work as the AIM Representatives for the provinces of Alberta and BC.
They returned to Kenya in 1991 to hold various positions in Nairobi with AIM International and also with AIC Kenya. Peter worked as the AIC Personnel Coordinator in the AIC Nairobi Headquarters. He also headed up AIM International’s Volunteer Program, travelling to all of the Sending and Receiving countries where AIM ministers. In August 1996 he began his four year term as the Kenya Branch Executive Officer. During the Nairobi years Mary worked with the AIC Kenya as a Natural Fertility Management practitioner.
In the year 2000 they left Kenya to serve as “Ministers at Large” in Canada, primarily in Alberta. In 2005 they officially retired. Although they are “retired”, by His grace, they have been able to continue to serve in ministry in local churches. They made several ministry trips out to Kenya to reconnect with, and to encourage both their national and missionary brothers and sisters. Their last visit to Kenya was in March 2017.
