In January of 2017, Brad and Danyel and their children took the plunge to move in to our neighborhood and help us in our work here on the Plateau. In the months from then to now, they have had almost every experience you can have as an overseas missionary:
frequent illness from new bacteria and allergens and parasites
a midnight emergency medical evacuation
the death of a close loved one when you are far away
daily cross-cultural experiences–some pleasant, some not so much, some to make your head spin
the frustration of trying to understand a totally different context while you are still trying to learn the language and the pace of life is not waiting up for you
Etc
Trust me, they got stories. I’m sure they actually felt like this a lot of times:
Through it all, they have put their whole heart and soul into it. They have learned a lot, and we have been blessed by their whole-hearted support and participation in Lemuel’s ministry on the Plateau.
As the Brunsches wrap up 18 months of service in Haiti, we have some exciting news to share with you. For a long time, we have identified a great need for Lemuel to have a full-time staff member based in the United States who could represent the organization and do necessary ground work. This need has only been increasing. Originally, we did not consider Brad for this role for two reasons. First, we all believed (and still believe) that God was calling the Brunsches to Haiti at that time. Secondly, Brad did not yet have sufficient experience and knowledge to fill this crucial representative position. That has now changed.
Not only has Brad been connected with our ministry since 2011, but he has spent the last year and a half getting to know Lemuel’s work and context on a far deeper level. Furthermore, he also understands the US context. For these reasons, we feel that Brad is specially equipped to fill this new role, which will also involve trips to Haiti every year for teams and projects. We have asked him and his family to relocate to Lancaster, Pennsylvania–where we already have a small home base–and establish a center of operations for us there.
Brad’s new role in the States will have many advantages. From the US (the land of internet), he will better be able to:
Communicate and meet with supporters and project contacts
Fund raise for Lemuel and strengthen our support base
Prep and travel with teams
Do important US errands
Assist with US administrative and other tasks
As a ministry, our desire is to focus more time and energy on investing more deeply in the people on our staff and in our community. We cannot do that well and focus on international relations and support development at the same time. But, we also cannot do one without the other. Brad’s role Stateside is not only a good thing. It is an essential piece in enabling us to do what we feel God is calling us to do here on the Plateau.