Habacuc and Liz Diaz-Ramos have been missionaries to Habacuc’s hometown, Santiago, Chile, since December 2006 with their children, Yael (06/03), Matías (02/06), and Tomás (03/07). They met in college and married in September of 2001. In the summer of 2002, the idea of Urban Action Ministries (UAM) presented itself. Since then God has been guiding Habacuc and Liz to make UAM a reality. Urban Action is a ministry that focuses on building meaningful relationships with urban youth in a culturally relevant context, to share the message of love, faith and hope of Jesus Christ.
John Laffoon, a small town Kentuckian, feels led by God to urban youth ministry in Santiago, Chile. John has a Bachelors in Education from Kentucky Christian University & a Teaching English as a Foreign Language certificate from Oxford Seminars. Teaching in schools, foreign language institutes and youth ministries since 2001 provided diverse experiences & in 2009, he affiliated with NMSI to do full-time youth ministry with UAM. John believes youth are a critical group to minister to and are often overlooked. He loves skating, getting together for meals and sharing the hope of Jesus with youth.
Gabe and Melissa married May 2005 and moved to Fort Myers shortly after! They connected with NMSI through friendship with former president and wife, Phil and Gwen Hudson. They serve in Bulgaria and have recently returned for their second term. They first arrived August of 2007 and minister to youth through education, discipleship and community development. Gabe and Melissa use their gifts and passions for youth and family, outdoor sports and recreation, and leadership development to share Christ among the unreached youth in the southern region of Bulgaria.
Rutherford and Tsahai Banda work in Malawi as GYWs. He has served as the National Coordinator for Teen Missions and led numerous youth teams from the US to Malawi, Mozambique and Tanzania. Rutherford has a B.A. in Theology and is currently the bishop of Grace Fellowship Church. Tsahai grew up in Lilongwe and has a degree in Bible. She served in Mozambique with Teen missions before teaching at the Bible School in Malawi. She now oversees the women’s ministry of Grace Bible and the orphan care program. They were married in 1999 and have two children, Chris & Chikondi.
Lloyd Ng’ambi connected to YouthHOPE at the Urbana conference in 2010. He is from Zambia and has a passion for transforming the lives of youth. He has degrees in Theology and Youth Ministry. Lloyd is the youth coordinator for the Central Church of Africa Presbytery, which means he is responsible for youth development and programs for about 60 churches. Lloyd is a youth worker in tune with youth and who is passionate about their growth. He desires to train youth workers who can train others and to develop a youth training farm that will generate funds for youth ministry in Zambia that will provide practical training.
Nego was born in Port Au Prince and received an education with Damou Christian Mission in Haiti. In 2003, he began discipleship training and serving in outreach ministries. Nego joined NMSI in January 2008. Ellen was born in Ontario, Canada, attended Durham College for graphic design and first went to Haiti in January 2008. Nego and Ellen met while working with Haitian youth at a summer outreach program in the mountains of Seguin. They were married in March 2009, and their mission is to see and fill needs. They work in creating networks that will help bring more projects & relief to Haitian youth.
As global youth workers in SE Asia, Ryan & Mary are working to develop a National Youth Pastor Conference, create resources for youth pastors and launch an entrepreneurship training center that will help underprivileged urban youth start small businesses. Ryan graduated from Johnson University in 2005, has worked with NMSI since & was a founding member of YouthHOPE. Ryan’s been to 18 countries in the past 6 years and fell in love with Mary & Southeast Asia over that time. Mary grew up in Asia working with her parents’ ministry, YWAM and CHE. Ryan and Mary were married in January 2011.
Niw & Jamie met in Thailand, where Niw grew up, in 2005 while serving at a children’s home. After marrying & joining NMSI they spent a year ministering among the Lisu people of northern Thailand while learning about the needs of the area to see what kind of ministry God would have them do long-term. Niw, Jamie & their son Anson will move to Chiang Mai in early 2012. With their teammates Adam & Kristy, they will work to create a sustainable mentorship & evangelistic program to reach youth living in children’s homes or on their own in the city. They desire for the teens of Chiang Mai to have bright futures with hope, purpose and most of all, for them to know Christ.
Adam & Kristy‘s story as a couple begins the same time YouthHOPE’s story began. They met in FL after moving down to work with YouthHOPE as recent Bible College graduates (Cincinnati Christian & Ozark Christian) with a passion for doing youth ministry outside of the States. They quickly took a liking to each other & were married in April of 2010. Adam & Kristy deeply value the 3 years they spent serving on the development team and trust that the knowledge & experience they gained during that time will be of great value as they now focus on ministering to youth in Chiang Mai, Thailand.
Andrew & Grace Maina are both products of youth ministry. They accepted Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour in High school, as a result of high school ministry in their respective schools. They were married in October 2004 and have been blessed by two warrior boys, Nicholas and Gabriel. They spent over a decade doing full time youth ministry in Kenya, Africa before receiving a calling to work with youth in Zambia. They have partnered with YouthHOPE to live out their calling in Zambia alongside Lloyd Ng’ambi. They are deeply humbled and excited to be part of what the Lord is doing through youth in this end time harvest time.
Alfred and Cicilla‘s journey started with these words from the Lord Christ, “I know your afflictions and your poverty, yet you are rich! (Revelation 2:9). They desire to reach unreached youth to fulfill the great commission of Jesus Christ. Nearly 1,000 young people gather in the summer through regional and national conferences to study the bible and learn about social justices. Through these camps, Alfred and Cicilla hope to see the youth of Bangladesh, equipped with biblical knowledge and develop bonds of true unity and love in Jesus Christ.
