Honestly, there’s not a whole lot for us to say, in the way of introductions. For the most part, we’re just your average, everyday family. We like to read together, camp together, cook together (“togetherness” is kind of a big deal for us). We like super-hero movies, Calvin and Hobbes, and pirate paraphernalia. We have three awesome little boys, who love to wrestle, play in the dirt, and read their books. (Not that any of them can actually read yet, but they LOVE to sit and flip through the pages!)
We met at New Tribes Bible Institute in Jackson, Michigan in 2007 and got married in August 2009. We’ve each completed four years of training with NTM, which included in-depth Bible study, as well as cross-cultural ministry preparation. We moved to Papua New Guinea in August of 2014 to take part in bringing the Gospel to a people group that had yet to have the message of salvation taught in their language.
In February 2015, after spending 8 months learning the trade language, we joined the newly opened NTM work among the Iski people. The Iski live in the lowlands (swamps) of the Madang Province and number between 10,000 – 15,000. We are currently engaged in learning the Iski culture and language, while our two partner families move forward with teaching, discipling, and translating the Scriptures for the young Iski church!
It is our goal to see the Iski people equipped with most of the New Testament in their mother-tongue, and see a mature church established among them, with indigenous elders who are able to competently shepherd their people.
Seth’s Story: I grew up in a small town in the Adirondack Foothills of New York. Having understood and believed the Gospel at a young age, my life’s plans had always contained an element of service to God, but had never reached too far beyond the place where I’d been raised. After graduating High School, I took a year away from academia and put some serious time into studying God’s Word and into prayer, seeking a meaningful direction for my life. My conclusion after that time was two-fold: I seriously wanted to pursue full-time ministry, and I was genuinely lacking in my understanding of the Bible. So, on the recommendation of a friend, and after checking out the school for myself, I applied to New Tribes Bible Institute in Jackson, Michigan. At the end of my two years there I was completely sold out on the idea of taking an active part in getting the Gospel to those who had yet to hear!
Rochelle’s Story:I was raised in Guinea, West Africa, where my parents served as missionaries with NTM. Living among people with no access to God’s word, the very real needs of an unreached world impacted me from a young age. I remember sitting in a pew as a 7 year old and raising my hand in answer to a pastor asking if anyone was willing to go into full-time missions work. That desire to be a part of what God was doing in the world eventually grew to become my life goal. After I graduated from high school, I set out on the first step by heading to Bible School, where I met Seth.
