wfn.org | [PCUSANEWS] 12 new PC(USA) mission workers begin service

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This story and photos available online:

www.pcusa.org/pcnews/2009/09116<http://www.pcusa.org/pcnews/2009/09116

>12 new PC(USA) mission workers begin service

New appointees will undertake a wide variety of
international assignments

>by Pat Cole
>Associate for Mission Communications

LOUISVILLE - A dozen new Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)
international mission personnel attended orientation in
January and have begun their international assignments or
will begin them in coming weeks.

The Rev. Sara Armstrong and Rusty Edmondson

[www.pcusa.org/missionconnections/profiles/edmondsonr] will
serve in Peru as delegations and partnerships coordinators.
They will organize, coordinate, and translate for
Presbyterians visiting from the United States, helping to
ensure that these visits reflect the mutual mission
priorities of the partner churches. They will serve at the
invitation of the Evangelical Presbyterian and Reformed
Church of Peru.

A minister member of the Santa Fe Presbytery, Sara was
associate pastor for mission and pastoral care at Central
United Methodist Church in Albuquerque, NM, prior to
entering mission service. She also has served two bilingual
Presbyterian congregations in New Mexico and Colorado and
three churches in Ohio. Her experience also includes
service as a chaplain at Menaul School in Albuquerque and
as executive director of a faith-based charity.

Sara earned an undergraduate degree from Smith College in
Northampton, MA, and a Master of Divinity degree from
McCormick Theological Seminary in Chicago.

Rusty founded Zapata Builders, LLC, a commercial
construction company, and SimpleVentures, a
marketing/investment firm, in Colorado and New Mexico.
Prior to that, he worked in the maintenance and
interpretive divisions of the National Park Service. He is
a graduate of New Mexico State University, where he studied
agricultural engineering.  Rusty is a member of Alamosa
(CO) Presbyterian Church.

>They will arrive in Peru in March.

Alexandra Buck

[www.pcusa.org/missionconnections/profiles/bucka] is
project facilitator for Bridge of Hope, a fair trade
project developed in 2005 by the Joining Hands network in
Peru. Joining Hands is a program of the Presbyterian Hunger
Program that addresses the root causes of hunger through
networks of churches and grassroots organizations in
developing countries.  The networks are also linked to
PC(USA) presbyteries and congregations that support the
networks' struggle against hunger.

Buck facilitates a fair trade bridge between artisans in
Peru and consumers in the United States. The availability
of new markets has significantly increased the income of
the Peruvian artisans.

Prior to her mission appointment, Buck was a young adult
intern with the Presbyterian U.N. Office. She holds a
bachelor's degree in Hispanic and international studies
from Macalester College in St. Paul, MN, and is a member of
West Granville Presbyterian Church in Milwaukee, WI.

Amanda Craft

[www.pcusa.org/missionconnections/profiles/crafta] is
serving in Guatemala, where her assignment focuses on
women's leadership development. Her work in Guatemala is at
the invitation of the National Evangelical Presbyterian
Church of Guatemala.

Craft enters mission service after working for eight years
as an associate for education and advocacy for the
Presbyterian Peacemaking Program. From 1999 to 2000 she was
a PC(USA) Young Adult Volunteer program in Guatemala. She
holds a bachelor's degree from Denison University in
Granville, OH. She is a member of Highland Presbyterian
Church in Louisville.

Craft is married to Omar Alexander Chan Giron, who
accompanies her in her ministry in Guatemala.

The Rev. David Diercksen

[www.pcusa.org/missionconnections/profiles/diercksend] is
serving along the border between the United States and
Mexico at Puentes de Cristo, one of six sites of the
Presbyterian Border Ministry. Puentes de Cristo's work is
concentrated along Mexico's northeastern boundary with the
United States.

The Presbyterian Border Ministry is a joint ministry
between the PC(USA) and the National Presbyterian Church of
Mexico. Diercksen is the U.S. coordinator for the Puentes
De Cristo site.

Working closely with his Mexican Presbyterian counterpart,
Diercksen will facilitate the work of the numerous mission
teams that visit the border region each year.

A minister member of Pittsburgh Presbytery, Diercksen has
served congregations in Pennsylvania, New York and Maine.
Most recently he was pastor and head of staff at Heritage
Presbyterian Church in Pittsburgh.

Diercksen earned a bachelor's degree from Westminster
College in New Wilmington, PA, a Master of Divinity degree
from Princeton Theological Seminary in Princeton, NJ, and a
Master of Education degree from the University of
Pittsburgh.

Diercksen is being accompanied by his wife, Nadine, in his
new ministry.

Dr. John and Gwenda Fletcher

[www.pcusa.org/missionconnections/profiles/fletcherj] will
serve in the Democratic Republic of Congo. John, a
physician, will work at the Christian Medical Institute of
the Kasai. A major part of his assignment is to help form a
network of support and collaboration among all the
Presbyterian Community of Congo's mission hospitals. He
will also teach medical residents, medical students and
nursing students.  Gwenda will work as an education
consultant with the Presbyterian Community of Congo.

The Fletchers previously served in the Congo from 1989 to
2002. Both of them grew up in India as children of
Presbyterian mission workers.

John is a graduate of the University of Washington, where
he received both his undergraduate and medical degrees.
Gwenda holds a bachelor's degree in education from Lewis
and Clark College in Portland, OR, and a master's degree in
special education from Portland State University.

Both are ordained elders and members of First Presbyterian
Church, Yuma, AZ.  They will arrive in Congo in April after
completing language study.

The Rev. Brenda Harcourt

[www.pcusa.org/missionconnections/profiles/harcourtb] is a
leadership trainer for the Presbyterian Church of East
Africa in Kenya. She works in the eastern and Mt. Kenya
regions to help improve the leadership skills of both
clergy and lay leaders.

Harcourt's assignment in Kenya is her second appointment as
a PC(USA) mission worker. From 1989 to 1991 she was a
seminary instructor in Ghana, serving with the Evangelical
Presbyterian Church, Ghana.

Immediately prior to her new mission appointment, Harcourt
was pastor of First Presbyterian Church in Oregon, IL. She
also has been pastor of a congregation in Pennsylvania, a
conference center director and a chaplain.

Harcourt holds a bachelor's degree from Millersville
University in Millersville, PA, and a Master of Divinity
from Lancaster Theological Seminary in Lancaster, PA.

Jed Koball

[www.pcusa.org/missionconnections/profiles/koballj] is
serving in Peru with Joining Hands as a companionship
facilitator. He will be facilitating the relationship
between the Peruvian network, Uniendo Manos Contra Pobreza
(Joining Hands Against Poverty) and PC(USA) congregations.

Koball served as a Young Adult Volunteer in the Philippines
from 1996 to 1997.  Prior to re-entering mission service,
he was interim associate pastor at Larchmont Presbyterian
Church in Larchmont, NY. He also has worked in Nicaragua
with Bridges to Community, a not-for-profit community
development organization.

Koball earned a bachelor's degree from St. Andrews
Presbyterian College in Laurinburg, NC, and a master's in
theology from McCormick Theological Seminary in Chicago.

Nancy McGaughey

[www.pcusa.org/missionconnections/profiles/mcgaugheyn]
works in Sudan as a health coordinator with the Association
of Christian Resource Organizations Serving Sudan (ACROSS).
She serves at the invitation of the Presbyterian Church of
Sudan, the PC(USA)'s partner in southern Sudan.

McGaughey, a registered nurse, brings 15 years of mission
experience to her assignment in Sudan.  She worked in Nepal
from 1987 to 2002 as a PC(USA) mission worker and from 1977
to 1980 with the Peace Corps.  Most recently she has worked
at Clare Medical Center in Crawfordville, IN. She is a
member of Russellville Community Church, a congregation of
the United Church of Christ/Disciples of Christ in
Russellville, IN.

She holds an associate's degree in nursing from Indiana
University, a bachelor's degree in vocational home
economics from Purdue University, and a master's in
vocational and technical education from Purdue.

The Rev. Stacey Steck

[www.pcusa.org/missionconnections/profiles/stecks] is
serving in Costa Rica as associate for congregational
growth and development with the Costa Rican Presbyterian
Church. He also will assist U.S. Presbyterians who travel
to Costa Rica on mission trips and serve as half-time
pastor of an English-speaking congregation, Escazu
Christians Fellowship.

Steck has been living in Costa Rica since 2006, serving the
Escazú Christian Fellowship. Prior to moving to Costa Rica,
he was stated supply pastor and head of staff at First
Presbyterian Church in St. Cloud, MN.

Steck holds a B.A. degree from the American University in
Washington, DC, and an M.Div. from Pittsburgh Theological
Seminary. He is a minister member of Minnesota Valleys
Presbytery.

Nathaniel Veltman

[www.pcusa.org/missionconnections/profiles/veltmann] is a
development consultant with the Ethiopian Evangelical
Church Mekane Yesus. He will be working with the five
synods of the church in the western region of the country
in a variety of development projects.

Veltman recently received a master's degree in
international development from the University of
Pittsburgh. His undergraduate degree is from Calvin College
in Grand Rapids, MI. While a student, he participated in
service opportunities in Ghana and Malawi.

Veltman is a member of Shadyside Presbyterian Church in
Pittsburgh.

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