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I was born 21 October 1966 in Lemoore, CA – the son of a Navy pilot and we moved to Irian Jaya, Indonesia when I was six. My parents were missionaries with Mission Aviation Fellowship and I was surrounded by quality Christian examples from that very early age. I accepted Christ as my Savior at age six and my personal relationship with Christ grew slowly over the years. My understanding also deepened and I realized the depth of His love for my family and me. My parents were very loving and full of a shared passion for the mission work in Irian Jaya. They modeled for me what parents working together can do to raise sons and serve the Lord in a very remote and difficult area. They had a unity of purpose to serve there that fulfilled them. I did experience some doubts about His plan for our family after my dad’s fatal accident in July of ’79; but my mom’s decision to stay on the field and serve was a powerful influence in my understanding of what it means to be called to serve as a missionary.

Growing up, I was a typical kid, loved to ride a motorcycle, play with my Indonesian friends, hike, and tinker in the hangar with tools and build stuff. In school I liked soccer and wrestling and a huge variety of extracurricular activities. I also traveled with several Christian bands in High School as a sound/light technician and enjoyed the outreach experience in small Philippine towns and barrios. I was very much focused on going to the US Naval Academy and becoming a Navy pilot some day and worked hard toward those goals academically.

I graduated from the Naval Academy with a BS in Political Science and the experience there was good for me spiritually as I was challenged frequently as a Christian and I developed a more balanced Christian worldview that I carried into my career as a Navy Search and Rescue Pilot. God has used a variety of churches and fellowships to teach me what it means to follow Him, and more importantly to lead me to the conviction that He was calling me to serve Him as a missionary. The Lord made a clear call on my heart, talents and future in 1994. The challenge was to give up my plans and control of my life to Him to use in whatever way, wherever and whenever as ministry. He assured me that He’d prepared me (as a Navy pilot) to serve as a missionary pilot – and has further guided me and provided the open doors to affirm that. Plus, He gave me a passion to serve and enable other’s ministries in a technical and logistical capacity. Though it wasn’t until August of ’99 that His perfect timing was revealed, as I was able to come off active duty with the Navy and attend LeTourneau University to earn my FAA Airframe and Powerplant Mechanic’s Rating and Bible training before applying to work with MAF. His provision was evident as school, housing, vehicle and tools were all paid for during my time at LeTourneau.

I am excited to be here following His perfect will for my life as a candidate for service with MAF. I believe as Christians were called to share His love and plan for His world with those who do not know it or don’t have opportunity to hear the Gospel or grow in it. I believe God has called me to serve cross-culturally to represent His love for the world. He has given and equipped me with a background having grown up as an MK and seeing cross-cultural missions in action. It is a natural next step in my growth as a Christian to desire to serve Him and to make a difference with my skills and energy for the Kingdom.