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Updated Spring 2006 Janine, Katelyn and John left Hong Kong in December 2005. They are no longer in Hong Kong and have left the service of International Ministries....read more Gravley Newsletter 2005 Janine and John have been in Hong Kong since 1997. Currently they are the only ABC missionaries serving in Hong Kong. There first four years were full of transition as they were in intensive language study and began to assume more and more duties as other missionaries left Hong Kong. Every day is a new day with new opportunities and challenges. This is their motto. Janine's business background is being put to work as the Mission Treasurer. In addition to this busy work, Janine's most significant work is the many different relationships she has developed in the community. Our daughter has assisted in this with her outgoing nature. Janine has also found many ways to share her interest in Clown Ministry. She has been able to train many different clowns and even helped a group form a Hong Kong Clown Ministry Group - JC Clowns. John also is part of the Clown Ministry developing skits for the various clowning opportunities. It is as Director of American Baptist Social Services that John has found a way to share his vision to bring different groups and people together in creative new ways. John also relates to the many different partners we have in Hong Kong. He also serves as Advisor Pastor to a couple of our partner Churches. Janine and John both continue to look for ways to link our partners here with American Baptists in the States. Currently we are working with a church in Hong Kong and a church in the States to develop some type of sister Church relationship. Hong Kong holds many opportunities. It is exciting to be part of God's ongoing work here!
Janine was raised in a small, rural farming community, Paullina, Iowa, where people took time to go to church to get together. Church was a place where she was always encouraged and felt welcome. Sunday school teachers made learning interesting and church an exciting place to be. As a result, Janine has always been active in her church. During high school she started to do clowning for theater class, and when her dad had a heart attack, she visited him as a clown. Also during that visit, she went to see other patients and began to realize that clowning was more than makeup. It was a ministry of communicating God's love in a very important way. Throughout her various places of employment, she has found ways to teach others about clown ministry. Although Janine has been successful in the business world, she feels something is lacking. She is excited about her call to follow God to Hong Kong and hopes to find many opportunities to share God's love in that context. Education: Business courses at Ottawa University, Kansas City, KS
John, too, found the church in his home, Greenville, South Carolina, to be a loving and caring place. He responded to that love and care by becoming active in the church as a teenager. While in college, John went on a mission trip with his former youth group and realized God was calling him into ministry. He was aware that of all the things he might be able to do, nothing was more important than letting people know that God loves them. College provided many opportunities for ministry. Following graduation he served as director of a recreation center at Hong Kong Baptist College for two years. He then returned to Hong Kong twice more on short-term appointments. God opened his heart to that fascinating, vibrant and non-stop place. Education: B.A. in religion from Furman University, Greenville, SC; M.Div. in missions from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Louisville, KY; DMin. Saint Paul School of Theology Work Experience: Recreation center director, Hong Kong Baptist College, Hong Kong; minister of youth, Anderson, SC; chaplain, Health Midwest, Kansas City, MO; associate minister, Kansas City, MO; campus minister, Ottawa University NEWSLETTERS JOURNAL ENTRIES | |||
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