What, where, and when?

"What are you going to be doing?"  A question I hear almost daily that has a complicated answer.  I will be working with North-West University in Mafikeng, South Africa in their School of Agricultural Science department.  The department trains Animal Health Technicians who will work for the government.

"The main duties and responsibilities of the Animal Health Technician is to ensure a healthy, productive and reproductive livestock and animal population in South Africa by means of the following: prevent, control, and eradicate animal diseases through disease investigation, sampling, collecting & evaluating epidemiological data, implementing sound animal health strategies, veterinary extension and primary animal health care activities."

There is a small animal hospital at the college so I will probably spend most of my time seeing clients along with a group of 6 or so students. There may also be opportunities to teach lectures and labs and take students out into the surrounding countryside to put on animal health clinics for locals.

Of course, the main reason for this move will be the opportunity to mentor the students and share the gospel of Christ with students, faculty, and locals.

So, when am I going?  First, I have to raise the support that will allow me to live in South Africa without wages from the University.  Due to restrictions on hiring foreigners, NWU is only able to provide my housing and cannot pay a salary so I will need to raise my salary through donations from friends, family, and all other interested parties :)  My budget is not yet set, so no fund raising has started, but I'm looking forward to getting the ball rolling.  Once I have a monthly donation income equal to my budget then I will move to South Africa to start teaching.  Unless you are all extremely generous, it will likely take 12-18 months for the fund raising process to reach my budget.

I'll keep you up to date on the process as things happen!

Getting Started

Let's inaugurate this new blog for my anticipated Christian Veterinary Missions work in South Africa with a verse from Ephesians and my request to you.  


"Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador ... Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should." Ephesians 6:19-20