Summer Send Off for World Missions & World Renew Volunteers

Each summer World Renew and World Missions holds a training to prepare those who are heading off to volunteer with field staff around the world. This summer the orientation took place from May 28-30 at the Grand Rapids office. Volunteers, interns, and staff traveled from a variety of locations from Georgia to Ontario, Canada, in order to come together and be sent out. Many of the attendees were young people and their assignments ranged from 4 weeks to 2 years in countries from Mexico to Kyrgyzstan.

I had the privilege of joining in on the training this summer and was truly blessed to spend three days learning with and from people whose hearts were open to volunteer around the world. We ate, prayed, worshipped, and listened together in preparation for our summers with World Missions and World Renew. We learned from a variety of speakers about topics like asset-based community development, cultural intelligence, spiritual warfare, and international safety & health. We had the opportunity to pray for one another, and for some, share anxieties about what was to come. We ended with a commissioning service, and the first volunteer left as soon as the next morning.

Please join us in prayer for the volunteers departing over the summer!

World Renew Volunteers:

• Zachary LaVizzo – Uganda
• Danielle Winkler – Uganda
• HaEun Nam – Nicaragua
• Grace Jung – Kenya
• Gary Verburg – Honduras
• Kim Kieftenburg – Bangladesh
• Lianna Tanis – Uganda

World Missions Volunteers:

• Hannah Smele – The Middle East
• Esther Weima – Nicaragua
• Buddy Walker – Mexico
• Nathan Groenewold – Honduras
• Paul Theule – Asia
• Eric Hoskins – Kyrgyzstan
• Ahmyere Hollingsworth – Kyrgyzstan
• Heidi Guthmiller – Mexico
• Grant Hofman – Sierra Leone
• Erin VanderStoep – Haiti
• Kelli Sexton – The Middle East

Many of these volunteers are still raising money. Please prayerfully consider supporting the work of World Renew and World Missions through these volunteers. You can make an online donation for World Renew online here or for World Missions online here.

Visit the World Missions and World Renew websites to learn more about the work of these volunteers.