Missions | Memorial Park Church

Missions

Our Mission Partners

We support 16 Regional Partnerships, 8 Partnerships in the Americas, 4 Partnerships in Africa, and 11 Partnerships in Europe and Asia. With each of our mission partners, we strive to provide spiritual, financial, and physical support through prayer groups, fundraising, and mission trips. Memorial Park's Missions key objectives are to help our congregation act as missionaries in every day like while also helping other missionaries on a local, regional, and global basis.

Throughout the year, we strive to connect our congregation and missionaries in several ways:
  • Informing our MPC members and friends about our mission partners through videos, updates, luncheons, and more.
  • Connecting our congregation with other missionaries through coordinating missionary visits and mission trips.
  • Praying for our mission partners as part of the Missions Prayer Team.
  • Equipping our missionaries by managing the mission budget. See our 2020-2021 budget here.
  • Coordinating local, regional, or global mission activities. 

Mexico

Pastor Arturo and Elizabeth Velasco, Alianza Christiana y Misionera A.R., Mexico
Pastor Arturo Velasco is the pastor of the Lion of Judah Church in Atizapan, Mexico, as well as the Coordinator of the Central Region Missions for the Mexican Christian and Missionary Alliance.

The Lion of Judah is a missional church and a sending church. The church members are very active and visible in the Atizapan community. Pastor Arturo and Elizabeth have also been instrumental in planting several churches int he mountainous regions outside of Mexico City. One missionary sent out by the Lion of Judah is Dr. Luis Hurtado, who is also a mission partner with Memorial Park.

Please pray for Lion of Judah, that the church will continue to grow in numbers and influence in the community so that Jesus will be glorified near and far. Contact Pastor Arturo and Elizabeth Velasco.

Dr. Luis and Karla Hurtado, Alianza Christiana y Misionera A.R., Mexico
Luis and Karla work with the Pame people, an indigenous group that lives in the Eastern Sierra Madre in Mexico. The Pame have their own language, culture, and mindset. They live in remote villages in the mountain range, where they lack many services like a water system, telephones, roads, and medical aid. Their limited understanding of the Spanish language and their high rate of illiteracy make it difficult for them to develop and even understand the Bible and Christian doctrine.

Luis gives medical aid to the Pame in El Huizachal, and in nearby villages. He and Karla also seek to develop a healthy Pame Church through teaching, discipleship, and preaching. Pray that the Pame people would feel the love of Christ through the Hurtado family. Contact Dr. Luis and Karla Hurtado.

Diana Garrett, Mexico
Diana Garrett (Field Missionary) lives in Tuxpan, Veracruz on the Mexican Gulf Coast. She and Mirna Sotomayor are developing Camp Kikomar, which is a beautiful beachfront property on the Gulf of Mexico. They work with construction, team building, hosting groups, and establishing relationships with local churches and the indigenous people. Contact Diana Garrett.
 
Paco Pena, PROSIGUE, Mexico
PROSIGUE, formerly Children in Crisis has completed 28 years of service to the most vulnerable children in Mexico City, Mexico. PROSIGUE ministry:
  • rescues boys, girls, and adolescents living on the streets and seeks to prevent those at risk from doing so;
  • improves living conditions and promotes their integral development at the individual, family, social, and spiritual level within a framework of respect to their rights;
  • provides support to encourage a better quality of life for children working ont he streets so that they may develop their holistic potential within their community and as human beings. Contact PROSIGUE.
Mirna Sotomayor, United World Mission, Mexico
Mirna Sotomayor (Field Missionary) lives in Tuxpan, Veracruz on the Mexican Gulf Coast. She and Diana Garrett are developing Camp Kikomar, which is a beautiful beachfront property on the Gulf of Mexico. They work with construction, team building, hosting groups, and establishing relationships with local churches and the indigenous people. Contact Mirna Sotomayor.
 

Costa Rica

Susan Grosser, Christ for the City International, Costa Rica
Susan leads a team of women who work int he town of Carpio, Costa Rica. She is fully funded without support from Memorial Park, and funds from Memorial Park are used to support the efforts of three wonderful women missionaries:
 
  • Dr. Edle Frugone is the medical director of the Carpio Christian Clinic. She started the clinic 20 years ago and has been serving faithfully ever since.
  • Dr. Shakira Brown is also a physician at Carpio Christian Clinic. In addition, she is the doctor who travels on the medical/evangelistic caravans to the Guaymi Indians in the southern part of Carpio.
  • Damaris Estrada leads a thriving ministry to women teaching sewing and crafts in Carpio and several other communities. She is used by God to minister to the women through daily devotionals, mentoring, and personal counseling.
Susan works as a nurse at the Carpio Christian Clinic, and leads children's Bible clubs, teachers Sunday School to a class of adolescents, leads a women's Bible study, and helps with short-term teams. Contact Susan Grosser.
 

Argentina

Kyle and Claudia Zimmerman, Global Outreach International, Argentina
Kyle and Claudia Zimmerman are missionaries serving as support staff at La Mision, a small Presbyterian church in the southern part of the city of Buenos Aires, Argentina. La Mision is a small church with a big heart, ministering to the poorest of the poor. Kyle is the director of vocational and recycling classes offered in two different community centers in the city's shanty towns. Claudia is assisting and teaching leadership and Bible classes in the developing seminary at La Mision. Together they lead a college and young professionals small discipleship group, and are part of a church-planting team targeting that same population. Contact Kyle and Claudia Zimmerman.
 

Honduras

Dr. Lisa Anderson-Umana, United World Mission, Honduras
Lisa grew up at Memorial Park and was sent out as a missionary with a Latin America Mission (now a ministry under United World Mission) in 1983. She has worked with Christian Camping her entire missionary career. Since 95% of camping is done by the local church, Lisa's role is to train church and para-church leaders to serve as counselors, program directors, and bible study curriculum writers. 

Over the years, Lisa and a team of Latin Americans have written an extensive curriculum to develop leaders, which is used in 12 countries of Latin America. Each of the 6 courses they have created entails an average of 150 hours of training and has proven to be deeply transformative.

Lisa and her husband, Alfredo, have two children: Valerie and Victor. Contact Dr. Lisa Anderson-Umana.

Sierra Leone

Pastor Thomas Kargobai, Rokassa, Sierra Leone, West Africa

Rokassa is a Muslim village in a remote part of Sierra Leone. EduNations built a Christian school that now has over 300 students attending. In addition to the school, MPC, EduNations, and a few other churches have provided them with:

  • Clean water
  • Latrines
  • A clinic 
  • A pastor
  • A junior and senior secondary school

The EPC hired a young Sierra Leonean Mission Evangelist named Thomas Kargobai to serve the village. Pastor Thomas is married to Mariama and they have a young daughter named Thomasella. Since his hiring, Pastor Thomas has made great inroads into this 100% Muslim village with approximately 80 Muslim converts to date. Each of them has been baptized by Pastor Dean and Pastor Betsy as well as other EPC pastors over these last few years. MPC has "adopted" Rokassa and Pastor Thomas in this exciting unreached area of the world! Contact Pastor Thomas Kargobai 

EduNations, Sierra Leone, West Africa

Motivated by compassion for “the least of these,” EduNations gives forgotten children tangible reasons to hope. Together we build and operate schools in Sierra Leone, West Africa. In addition to free Christian-based education in this largely Muslim country, EduNations brings clean water, health care and community development to remote and under resourced areas that are very open to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. With 98 Ebola orphans in our schools, there has never been a more crucial time to change the life of a child. A learning child is a healthy child, so our new partnership with Jericho Road community Health to operate our clinic in the village or Rokassa is a highly strategic relationship that invests in the well-being of an entire chiefdom. Rescuing even one child enriches a whole community, which strengthens a nation. By helping to educate forgotten children today, we create a brighter future for the nations of tomorrow. Contact EduNations or Visit their Website
 

Rwanda
Yohani Kayinamura, PhD., Umuryango Children's Network, Inc., Rwanda

Umuryango Children’s Network (Umuryango: means “family” in Kinyarwanda) is a non-profit Christian organization. Their mission is to transform the street children commonly known as “Mayibobo” from isolated outcasts into productive, fully integrated members of the community. By placing the street children in family homes where their emotional, spiritual and physical needs are met, and by equipping them with education and marketable skills, we hope to permanently transform these precious children from Rwanda’s Mayibobo into ethical leaders who are physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually whole. Umuryango Director and Founder, Yohani Kayinamura, asks MPC to pray that God will continue to bless the ministry as they devote their lives to saving the lives of the children by and for the glory of Christ Jesus. Contact Umuryango Children’s Network or Visit their Website

India

 Freedom Firm, Greg and Mala Malstead
Freedom Firm, India is dedicated to the liberation of children enslaved in commercial sexual exploitation, their rehabilitation, and to justice against those who have profited from their misery.

Currently, there are an estimated 500,000 minor girls in forced trafficking in India. These girls need counseling and a strong Christian support network to avoid returning to prostitution. Uneducated and often considered ineligible for marriage because of their sexual exploitation, rescued girls are in deperate need of basic education, medical care, and vocational training.

Freedom Firm deploys teams of undercover investigators who identify minor victims. With assistance from Freedom Firm, the police raid the brothels and rescue the girls who are then placed in protective custody or are reunited with their families *(if their families are safe). Freedom Firm works to bring accountability to police and court proceedings as charges are brought against the criminals. Freedom Firm supports the girl as she testifies against her perpetrators. The goal is to send traffickers and brothel keepers to jail, both to pay for their crimes and to act as a deterrent to those who buy and sell children. Freedom Firm walks alongside each victim through the recovery process, providing counselling, medical care, vocational training, and support in a variety of ways, long after rescue. Contact Freedom Firm.

AlongSideAsia, Dave and Cathy Hicks
Dave and Cathy strengthen, coach, and encourage leaders of 15 indigenous Great Commission ministries and church networks in India, Nepal and Bhutan. Thier passion is that South Asians might increasingly know, love and serve Jesus Christ.

Based in Kentucky and Geogia, the Hicks travel frequently to South Asia. Some of their Indian partners include: Dr. K. and Pramila Rajendran, Freedom Firm, Hindustan Institute of Missions, North Bengal Outreach, Nepal Gospel Centre, and Malda Christian Fellowship. Contact Dave and Cathy Hicks.

Global Consultants and Missionary Care, K. and Pramila Rajendran
Dr. K. and Pramila Rajendran are mission partners who are building a Global Movement of Christians innovatively finding ways to share the Gospel in all areas of their societies. Pramila's ministry focuses on missionary care and well-being.

Based in Bangalore, India, the Rajendran’s live at the forefront of worldwide witness for Christ.Contact K. and Pramila Rajendran.
 

Middle East

Frontiers
Frontiers teams are planting churches in 40 Muslim countries. The Frontiers vision is to send new teams to all the unengaged Muslim peoples of the world by the year 2025. More than 200 of these "unengaged" Muslim peoples live in North India, Pakistan, East Africa, the Arab Gulf, and the island of Sumatra in Indonesia. Visit the Frontiers website.

Presbyterian Order for World Evangelism
Our mission partner, who remains anonymous, is the director of the Presbyterian Order for World Evangelism. Find out more about their vision and mission on their website.
 

Spain

ABWE, Rev. Ken and Carolyn Muckle
Ken and Carolyn work as Church Planters in Cabanillas del Campo in the province of Guadalajara, Spain. In cooperation with the La Elipa Church of Madrid, they have been mentoring and working as a team with Federico and Lucia Alvarex, a young Spanish couple who have graduated from the Sefovan Seminar where Ken has been a teacher for the last 13 years. The Muckles have 4 children: Joe, Hannah, Samuel, and Nathan. Contact ABWE.
 

Thailand

Ethnos360  (formerly New Tribes Mission), Dave and Fran Jordan

Dave and Fran have been working among the Prai people of northern Thailand since 1979. At that time the Prai people were a remote animistic mountain people with no written language.  Today there are groups of Prai Christians in five villages in Thailand and in a number of other villages across the border in a limited access country.  Many have left their appeasement of evil spirits and put their trust in Christ.

By the end of 2019 the Prai combined Old Testament portions and New Testament will be at the printers.  There is a Prai scripture app with both audio and print as well as audio Bible lessons which can be added to as more material is available.  Ongoing evangelism and literacy efforts are taking place in the mountain villages by Prai coworkers, Dee and Shy as well as Lawa coworkers, Lian and Mali. 

Present needs are the continued equipping and training of Prai believers, and expanded Bible curriculum. Contact New Tribes Mission. 
 

East Asia

East Asia and Mekong Regions, Rev. Derek (Operations Manager) and Holly (Safe House Resident Manager)
For about 15 years, Rev. Derek has trained local leaders to start self-sustaining and self-reproducing churches among the least reached peoples in East and South East Asia. He also coaches a team of 40 missionaries doing the same. He collaborates with missiologists and other organizations to develop new innovative approaches, and has written a book on the subject, published through William Carey Library.

Holly serves victims of sex trafficking locally and in East Asia. She works alongside non-profit Living in Liberty, Pittsburgh's first and only safe ghouse for sex trafficked victims. She managers a team of dedicated volunteer staff for the 12-18 months residential living program providing holitstic care for women who are desperate for Christ's healing of body, mind, and spirit. Derek and Holly have two children: Cassandra and Alanna. Contact Rev. Derek and Holly.
 

United World Mission

China
This missionary is commissioned by the EPC to serve with United World Mission in unreached areas of China. The ministry goal is to establish self-reproducing churches across China. 

Budapest, Rev. Kevin Mason
Kevin is the Senior Director for Global Programs with visionSynergy (on loan from United World Mission). visionSynergy helps Christian orginazations work together for maximum impact by developing and strengthening strategic ministry networks and partnerships in critical areas of world mission. They play a unique role in the worldwide Christian movement as one of the few mission service organizations specifically dedicated to empowering ministry collaboration to accelerate progress of the gospel among the least reached peoples in the world. This means that the result of the relationships and programs he directs, disciple making movements and widespread church planting is taking place in areas where it is needed most. Kevin and his wife, Wendy, have four children: Chelsea, Cameron, Caroline, and Chad.
 

Get Involved

We hope you will consider getting involved in MPC missions that will enable you to grow in your relationship with Jesus. Being involved will not only allow you to be part of what God is doing through MPC missions, but will also give you an opportunity for sharing in the joy of people coming to know Jesus through building relationships with God's people, and seeing God move in miraculous ways.

Mission Trips
We have a long history of serving with our mission partners in the mission field. Some of our teams have served in Mexico, Honduras, Argentina, Brazil, Costa Rica, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, and India. Each year we send missions teams during the summer months to select missions partners. 

Mission Prayer Team
One aspect of support we offer our mission partners is prayer. We are in constant contact with our missions partners, and as we receive letters and prayer requests, we send them to our Misson Prayer Team. If you're interested in becoming part of our Mission Prayer Team, sign up here.

Learn More
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