Mission and Global Witness

Newberg First Presbyterian Church Mission Partners

Taliilee B. Fiqruu, Associate Director Frontier Fellowship

Taliilee’s frontier mission involvement began in 2001 as a volunteer soloist and worship leader with Light of Hope Ministry Ethiopia (LOHME) during her undergraduate studies at Mekane Yesus Seminary in Addis Ababa. She joined LOHME’s staff in 2006 and worked in various capacities, including gender issues coordinator, ethno-music composer and program coordinator. Since joining Frontier Fellowship in 2009, she’s served as a liaison between LOHME and US partner churches, organizing and leading short-term vision trips and ESL volunteers to engage Ethiopia’s Arsi Oromo people. She’s also involved in Oromo diaspora ministry in the US through home-based Bible studies and music in Oromo churches.

Taliilee earned her Master of Arts in Ministry Leadership followed by a Doctor of Ministry in Leadership and Global Perspectives at George Fox Evangelical Seminary (now Portland Seminary). She’s married to LOHME Director Urgessa Biru and enjoys playing guitar, writing songs, walking and coffee with friends.  Learn more at https://frontierfellowship.com/staff/

Bob and Gracie Eckblad (Tierra Nueva)

Bob and Gracie Ekblad are founders and co-directors of Tierra Nueva in Burlington, Washington.   Together they minister at Tierra Nueva and at their home-based retreat center New Earth Refuge in the Skagit Valley.  They have three children.   Bob is ordained in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.).  He holds a ThD in Old Testament and is known internationally for his courses and workshops on reading the Bible. Gracie is ordained in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A) and holds a Masters in Theology.  She pastors and teaches at Tierra Nueva and beyond, emphasizing discipleship and holistic healing and liberation.

As Directors of Tierra Nueva-New Earth, Bob and Gracie work together with a team of staff and volunteers to serve immigrants from Latin America, inmates, homeless people and people struggling with addictions. Bob’s roles include serving as director of The People’s Seminary, part-time chaplain to inmates in Skagit County Jail, teaching as Sessional Lecturer for Regent College of Vancouver, BC and serving as Associate Professor of Biblical Studies faculty at The Seattle School and at Westminster Theological Centre in the UK and Elder with Servants of Asia’s Urban Poor.  Learn more at http://www.bobekblad.com/ .

Erik and Maureen York- Cru

Erik and Maureen York serve as Directors of Leadership Development and Human Resources on the Executive Team for Athletes in Action, a Cru ministry seeking to reach every team, every sport, every nation with the good news of Jesus and to build movements of Christ through the platform of sport – from youth, college, international teams, pro sport and digital strategies. Erik and Maureen are blessed with three daughters.

They are passionate about living out and sharing the gospel of Jesus, raising up multiplying leaders who can impact their friends, family and communities, change culture and reach the world. They love building healthy teams in the grace and power of the Holy Spirit. They want to build transformational and missional communities who have a high view of Christ, exhibit humility before the Word of God, are Holy Spirit empowered, have a healthy view of themselves and the reality of sin, and have a heart for the world.  Learn more at https://give.cru.org/0437719 .

Dennis and Maribel Smith- Presbyterian Mission Co-workers in Argentina

After more than three decades of service in Guatemala, Dennis and Maribel Smith moved to Argentina in January 2011 when Dennis was appointed as PC(USA) regional liaison for South America. Maribel currently serves in ministry in the home; in Guatemala, she served as part of a network that treats post-traumatic stress and seeks alternatives to violence.

From their home in Buenos Aires, Dennis and Maribel continue to practice the gift of hospitality that so enriched their lives in Guatemala. “Our home is known as the Hotel Smith Pérez,” comments Maribel. “Over the decades, we’ve had the privilege of welcoming hundreds of people into our home – especially young people. Helping guests discover how and where God is present in Latin America has been a special gift.” Learn more at www.presbyterianmission.org/ministries/missionconnections/dennis-and-maribel-smith/

Brian and Julie – SIL International

Brian  received his Ph.D. in linguistics in 1994. He has been a member of SIL since 1984.  Was the assistant director of the Asia SIL school in Darwin, Australia.  Julie partners with Brian in ministry.

SIL International is a faith-based nonprofit organization committed to serving language communities worldwide as they build capacity for sustainable language development. SIL does this primarily through research, translation, training and materials development. SIL works alongside ethnolinguistic communities and their partners as they discover how language development addresses the challenging areas of their daily lives—social, cultural, political, economic and spiritual.

Founded in 1934, SIL (originally known as the Summer Institute of Linguistics, Inc.) has grown from a small summer linguistics training program with two students to a staff of over 4,800, from 84 countries. Currently SIL works alongside speakers of more than 1,700 languages in over 100 countries. The organization makes its services available to all, without regard to religious belief, political ideology, gender, race or ethnolinguistic background. Learn more at www.sil.org/about

Equal Exhange Fair Trade Coffee and Chocolate

Equal Exchange is a for-profit Fairtrade worker-owned, cooperative headquartered in West Bridgewater, Massachusetts. Equal Exchange distributes organic, gourmet coffee, tea, sugar, bananas, avocados, cocoa, and chocolate bars produced by farmer cooperatives in Latin America, Africa and Asia. Learn more at equalexchange.coop . Learn more at https://equalexchange.coop/products/coffee .

Love Inc.

Love Inc. works with 24 churches and 154 service agencies in the Newberg area (Carlton, Dayton, Dundee, Lafayette, Newberg, Sherwood, St. Paul, and Yamhill).  Since March of 2004 they have helped over 3,500 families in need. Newberg First Presbyterian assists with the Bike Ministry that provides nearly 100 refurbished bikes to individuals and families in need annually. Learn more at http://loveincnewberg.org/about/ .