Outreach Foundation
KENYA & EAST AFRICA
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For nearly 20 years we have partnered with Stu and Annie Ross of The Outreach Foundation in Kenya and East Africa to spread the Gospel by building churches, schools, and girls rescue centers (rescuing girls from the slavery of forced young marriage). In July of 2023 FPC was excited to again be able to return to Kenya post pandemic. While there, the team completed work on the PCEA Githimato Church and celebrated its dedication. TOF is adding classrooms, libraries, and new schools giving students the opportunity to be exposed to Christian values in predominantly Muslim areas while addressing the school shortages in Kenya. The FPC team was able to work on one such school, the 650 bed boys Booth High School, completing a science lab. The school opened in October 2023.
MEXICO
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We partner with Todd and Maria Luke of The Outreach Foundation in the southern portion of Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula, to provide a sustainable water source. More than just a water project in an area of subsistence farmers, Todd and Maria form respectful relationships with the poor to build family-owned cisterns to collect rainfall. To date through this work, 667 families own a cistern providing a reliable water source.
Todd and Maria dedicate 6 to 10 weeks each year to hosting mission teams from the USA. These groups work with Ch’ol Presbyterians building cisterns, leading Vacation Bible School, and participating in other shared ministries. After several years of sending FPC high school youth groups every other summer to work with Todd and Maria Luke, in February 2023 FPC sent its first men’s team. Working with their Ch’ol partners, they built seven cisterns, some of which were for second generation of cistern owners who had attended VBS with FPC volunteers as children.
CUBA
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Children’s Bible Ministry Reformed Presbyterian Church of Guanabacoa: FPC sent its first mission team to Cuba in 2004 forging a relationship with the Reformed Church of Guanabacoa. Our early years of relationship involved a successful partnership to support The Campaign for the Hope and Aids Outreach Program at the Guanabacoa Church, which became a model throughout Cuba. In 2017 a visiting FPC mission team asked Guanabacoa Church Pastor Yoeklis His dream for the church. He shared with the team that his dream would be to start a Christian preschool or daycare at their church as an alternative to government daycare. Secondarily he felt this would be an opportunity to introduce young families to the church. Since then, members of the 2017 mission team have worked to build a coalition of Presbyterian churches to make the preschool a reality. Construction of the preschool began in 2019, but was slowed with the pandemic and country wide school closures. In early 2022 the Cuban government allowed schools to reopen and the Children’s Bible Ministry (CBM), the sole preschool in Cuba teaching children about Jesus, opened its doors. In April of 2022 a small team from FPC armed with toys and supplies went to Cuba to participate in the dedication of the preschool. The CBM has been very successful, operating at full capacity with a waiting list and has become a project of The Outreach Foundation. With the success of the ministry, FPC is working with our partners to help the CBM add additional classrooms to accommodate the community demand.
IRAN
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Despite intense persecution, the Church in Iran is exploding with unprecedented growth and incredible hunger for the Gospel. At the forefront of the of this movement is Rev. Sasan Tavassoli, an Iranian missionary who personally experienced a radical encounter with Jesus Christ and courageously left the Muslim faith. He leads a critically important satellite and online ministry reaching Iranians with the Gospel, equipping and supporting house churches throughout Iran, and providing leadership training for Iranian pastoral and church leaders worldwide. As Iranian refuges have migrated to Europe, Rev. Tavassoli’s ministry has expanded to serve and teach those new refugees. In August 2023 FPC fielded a mission team to Nuremberg, Germany at Rev. Tavassoli’s invitation to help lead a conference for the Iranian church in Germany and to experience the Iranian church movement in person.
Marion Medical Mission
MALAWI, ZAMBIA, TANZANIA
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Since 1990 Marion Medical Mission, under the leadership of Tom and Joycelyn Logan have shared God’s love by providing a safe sustainable water source. To date, MMM has built over 50,000 shallow wells in Malawi, Zambia, and Tanzania providing a water source to an estimated 5 million people. MMM partners with the villagers who make the bricks, dig the wells, and provide the sand and stones. With the buy-in of each village and the simplicity of the well design, a sustainable water source has become a reality. FPC has been strongly committed to this project for more than 20 years funding field officers and coordinators, funding wells, and sending volunteers to serve. During the 2023 well season (Sept and Oct) volunteers returned to Africa after a three-year pandemic hiatus. FPC has three volunteers serving MMM this year in Africa. To learn more about MMM and how to become a volunteer please see mmmwater.org.
Frontier Fellowship
LIGHT OF HOPE MINISTRY (ETHIOPIA)
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We continue to partner with Frontier Fellowship’s Dr. Urgessa Biru and his wife Telile Fikru. Light of Hope Ministry Ethiopia, founded by Urgessa Biru, is reaching out to over 10 million Arsi Oromo people. The ministry approach is holistic, focusing on literacy, health, church planting, distribution of Bibles in the Oromo language, and evangelism among this predominately Muslim people group. Teams of teacher-evangelists are trained and sent to villages that want a school in their community. Despite the ongoing civil war, schools have remained open allowing teachers to continue to build peaceful relationships between Muslims and emerging followers of Jesus.
The Antioch Partners
THE ANTIOCH PARTNERS
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“Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” John 20:21 FPC has partnered with The Antioch Partners since its inception in 2007. TAP is a missionary sending agency which partners with local Presbyterian churches in the US in sending followers of Jesus to serve in long-term, cross-cultural ministry. TAP missionaries are engaged in many aspects of Kingdom work, including inviting people to follow Jesus, social justice, discipleship, supporting church-planting movements, capacity-building, leadership development, and business as mission. TAP now has missionaries serving in Africa, Asia, Latin America, Europe, and the US among not-yet-Christian immigrant communities.
BELLOC HAITI MISSIONS
BELLOC HAITI MISSIONS
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FPC has been in partnership with the Belloc community since a team visited in 2011. The Belloc community is largely a subsistence farming area struggling to meet their basic needs. Initially FPC concentrated on a summer VBS/feeding program and a quarterly food distribution to widows. As FPC has become more invested in the community we began to see the expansion of our purpose to include the transformation of the community spiritually and economically through Christian education, modernized traditional education opportunities, and focused vocational training while continuing to address the needs of the most vulnerable. Towards this goal summer English classes were added for children in 2019 and Mr. Cliford Senat, a former VBS student, became a certified English Language teacher via an FPC scholarship. In 2021, due to demand, adult English classes were added and now English classes are offered year-round. In January 2023 construction of the Advanced Education Center began with funds raised by FPC VBS 2021 and 2022 and World Mission Conferences. Phase 1, the roofing and securing of the 1300 square foot facility, was completed in April 2023. Phase 2 is currently underway to complete the inside and outside finish of the building. The final phase will be equipping the building with the furniture and educational resources to function as a school and vocational training center. Our hope is to begin offering the 2024 Summer English Program from the AEC. Haiti continues to be a volatile place and FPC has not been able to send volunteers in 2023 due to the political instability and gang violence. Fortunately, Mr. Samuel Durmond, a familiar face to FPC, continues to direct the project locally. We hope to return a team to Haiti as soon as it is deemed safe.
EPC World Outreach
ENGAGE 2025
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EPC World Outreach Engage 2025 is focused on engaging with unreached people groups in their own language and culture. FPC Thomasville supports Saul and Jesse Huber, EPC World Outreach Engage 2025 mobilizers, who actively coach young missionaries and work with young adults as they discern God’s call to global mission.
ITEN
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As a part of EPC World Outreach, International Theological Education Network (ITEN) provides theological training for pastors and leaders of new church plants among unreached people groups in South-Central Asia, North Vietnam, Eastern Europe, Siberia, Albania, Kazakhstan, Indonesia, Central and West Africa, Brazil, Spain, Argentina, and Southern India. Additionally, ITEN has been instrumental in coordinating relief efforts to Ukraine. Mike and Stephanie Kuhn, long time ITEN workers with vast Middle East experience, lead ITEN. Mike Kuhn will be the keynote speaker at World Mission Conference 2024.
Sacred Road Ministries
YAKAMA & WARM SPRINGS
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Sacred Road Ministries was established on the Yakama Indian Reservation in White Swan, Washington to serve the Lord by ministering to the Native American community. The Sacred Road team reaches out to the community through worship, children’s and youth ministry, after-school programs, and a variety of acts of service and mercy. Sacred Road’s impact in the Yakama community was noticed by the Confederated Tribes of Oregon and Sacred Road was invited to replicate their mission in Warm Springs, Oregon. FPC has a strong connection with Sacred Road having fielded summer interns and multiple mission teams. In June 2024 FPC is looking forward to sending its 6th mission team to serve with Sacred Road.
HAITI OUTREACH MINISTRIES
HAITI OUTREACH MINISTRIES
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Haiti Outreach Ministries (HOM) founded by Pastor Leon Dorleans provides comprehensive and sustainable ministry with a vision and passion for transforming Haiti through Christ. This past year has been especially difficult for HOM located in Port-au-Prince due to government insecurity and rampant gang activity. In spite of the lack of social structures they have continued to provide education and sports participation to 1,800 students at Barye Fe. Health and dental clinics were able to open and recorded 30,000 patient visits in the past year. More than 500 students are receiving vocational training. Clean Water via water treatment facilities at 4 HOM campuses remain operational, providing more than 500,000 gallons of free clean water. Sunday worship services continue for more than 3,500 people worshipping on 3 of HOM campuses.
CHURCH MULTIPLICATION MINISTRIES
CHURCH MULTIPLICATION MINISTRIES
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CMM provides rigorous training in gospel coaching, leader assessment and house church planting and development in a security sensitive Caribbean nation and serves fifteen plus denominations in the US and UK. A FPC mission team to Cuba was able to see the impact of this burgeoning house church movement and mercy ministries ministry first hand.