Int'l Resourcing

Home, But Not Home

From Tathiana:

Recently, God blessed us by giving us the opportunity to return to Brazil after living here in the US for two years. This trip was very important for us in this continued season of transition to the US - yes, we’re certainly still in transition.

The feeling of arriving in Brazil and hugging the people we love is a kind of joy that makes your chest almost explode. Our time in Belo Horizonte was full of happiness, laughter, and good food, just like any good Brazilian event. We were able to visit our old home and the school where the kids studied. We spent precious time with family and friends. The bonds we have there are so strong that even with the distance, it feels like nothing can break them, as if we remain connected by an invisible thread.

This trip made me realize how much I missed being myself – being 100% understood without having to second-guess my own words. I miss being known. I now empathize more with Jon, who lived for 21 years outside his cultural comfort zone.

Our goodbyes were hard, especially for Sara and me. During our last week in Brazil, Sara said that her life there was so good, and she didn’t understand why we had to move. She was very honest and said she felt angry with Jon and me for taking her away from the friends she loved. As hard as it was to hear, I believe this was a necessary step for her in our process of transition.

We returned to the US a little over two weeks ago, and I won’t lie – reentry has been hard. It hasn't helped that I got sick, and Isaac is being treated for pneumonia. I’ve been fighting not to believe lies about our move here. American life really does meet many of our needs, but it also brings greater financial and relational challenges. Since arriving in the US two years ago, we’ve seen God's provision through family, partners and even new supporters. However, we have continued to work hard to raise a salary that matches the cost of living here. We’re still looking to raise an additional $1,200 per month to reach 100% of our budget. Even with me working as a substitute teacher, it’s still been hard to find margin with all the costs of establishing a new life in a new land. This has often brought us stress and discouragement, and it’s easy to fall into the trap of comparison.

I recently read that there is no explanation or medicine to cure the pain of being separated from your home country. It’s the price you pay for living far away.

But Jesus, oh Jesus, He can walk with me through this valley. That is my hope.

People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return. Instead, they were longing for a better country—a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them. - Hebrews 11:14-16




First Half of 2025 + Brazil Trip

2025 Campus Outreach Resource Connect in Chattanooga, TN

The first half of 2025 has been full of projects with Campus Outreach SERVE. Below, I have listed some of the highlights over the past 5 months. Together with our partners, we celebrate the impact on so many teams and campuses around the world. And the finale is our first trip to Brazil since we moved in 2023.

Resource Connect (photo above): In February, I participated in the 2025 CO Resource Connect in Chattanooga. This annual conference brings together operations, financial, communications and administrative staff from Campus Outreach regions domestically, and we always have international staff join us virtually or personally. Our time in Chattanooga was helpful to network, collaborate, discuss best practices and gear up for the 2026 Campus Outreach National Conference that will be held at the Chattanooga Convention Center in January of 2026.

2024 Annual Impact Report: Lots of hours were dedicated to the 2024 Annual Impact Report over the past 9 months. This was my first year to quarterback the Report. It is a much larger and broader print media piece than I have done in years, so collaboration and planning were key. We learned a lot, especially about printinglarge quantity products and mailing them out to individual donors. The digital version will be out soon, and everyone can take pleasure in knowing that YOU helped make that happen.

Website launch: Almost 2 years ago, a major revamp of the Campus Outreach and CO SERVE websites began. The culmination of years of work is currently launching, so stay tuned for the official re-launch. From conceptualization to implementation, it took a lot of work. I came in on the phase of building the content and populating the pages, and preparing video elements - so it is a project I am convinced will benefit so many staff, students, supporters and others for many years to come. 

Season 3 of the CO podcast: Due to the previous two projects (Annual Impact Report and Websites), our podcast schedule for the staff-focused StaffCast was pushed back. Currently, we are publishing every few weeks and will conclude Season 3 this summer. Each recorded interview of approximately 1 hour of content takes about 12-15 hours of editing and preparation to complete and publish. These podcast episodes have been such a blessing to me as I hear over and over the wisdom and God-glorifying truth shared by our guests. Feedback from staff in the USA and overseas has been very positive, and we have accumulated over 10,000 downloads in just 2.5 years of production. 

Pre-Deployment Training session

Pre-Deployment Training Session: I recently had the privilege of pulling from my 20 years of experience in Brazil, and particularly as a member and elder of our local church in Belo Horizonte, to lead a session in our Pre-Deployment Training for 5 staff members about to deploy to their field assignments on 4 different continents. The session was “Engaging the Local Church,” and I enjoyed helping these new staff prepare for their relationship with their partner church in a healthy and humble manner.

Brazil Trip: And to close out the first half of 2025, our entire family will be taking our first trip back to Brazil since we moved in June of 2023. We hoped, prayed and desired to be able to reconnect with our family, friends and culture in Belo Horizonte, but were unsure it would happen. The Lord worked out so many details, and we were able to use a lot of frequent flier miles to make it happen. We will spend almost a month in BH and I will get the opportunity to work while on the ground in several projects with the CO team and local church while there. This time, our 16-year-old cat stays home - no more international travel for her. 

Conference Weeks

International Resource Staff from Brazil, Thailand, South Africa and the Philippines

The second half of February is booked with great opportunities. From February 20 through March 3rd, I am participating in three Birmingham conferences: The Campus Outreach Resource Connect, a College Missions Retreat and the Briarwood Presbyterian World Missions Conference.

The Resource Connect is an annual conference for Campus Outreach staff who have what we call "resource" roles. The idea behind the Resource staff for Campus Outreach is more than administrative, office or operations staff. Since Campus Outreach is specifically a college ministry, the resource staff and resource teams are those who help resource, support and serve the campus ministries while also being vitally engaged in the main thrust of the campus ministries. The Resource Connect is a time to encourage, support and collaborate between resource staff and teams. It is always an encouraging time for those staff who are often behind the scenes and making things happen. The last Resource Connect I participated in was in 2018, so it was a joy to reconnect with these valuable staff, including four international staff I personally connected with and helped process after the Resource Connect wrapped up.

I will also be participating in the World Missions Conference at Briarwood Presbyterian Church in Birmingham. Briarwood is Campus Outreach's founding church. This is a church that is committed to missions: including teaching, sending and supporting. Briarwood has been one of our cornerstone financial partners for 20 years. The last time I was in the country to participate in their World Missions Conference was in 2004. I am excited to participate and share what God has done in Brazil and to share about what our new season of life and ministry will bring with Campus Outreach Serve.

Right before the Briarwood Missions Conference, I am participating in a College Missions Conference where I get to have dozens of conversations with college students who are considering the next steps after graduating and how their place in the Kingdom of God affects their decisions. I, also, am participating in a Q&A with a panel of missionaries and will be teaching on Sunday morning.

If anyone will be at the Briarwood World Missions conference this year, please stop by our booth so we can reconnect.

New Role with CO SERVE

Before I explain about the coming season of life and ministry, I want to begin by voicing how grateful our family is for the care that Campus Outreach SERVE (CO SERVE) has provided for our transition: allowing time to settle, constant check-ins from Member Care, referrals to other resources and personal touches as we finalized my new role. 

Over the past year, I have had multiple conversations with directors in the CO SERVE office. In October, I submitted a proposal that reflected my desire for even greater impact on the global work of Campus Outreach. Over the past 20 years I have come to understand what motivates me, my profile as a team player, my gifts, abilities and the vision I believe in that drives me to continue working under the mission and ministry of Campus Outreach. I am happy to say that I believe my next chapter will fit me well and will leverage what God has done in our lives to expand our impact even further.

Over the 21 years in Brazil, I wore a lot of hats and served in many roles. A few things were always present that came from my gifting and my education in Communications. Design, advertising, operations and project management were always part of what I found myself engaged in - even in the midst of front-line, interpersonal college ministry. I loved the personal ministry, but I also loved making things happen for others through behind-the-scenes setup, details and thinking about how to develop the team around me. One highlight of the conversations over the past months with the CO SERVE directors has been that my unique blend of Staff experience, profile, gifting and international perspective set me up to lead in a way that someone who was hired without those elements would not be able to.

I am happy to announce that my new role is Creative Content and Media Specialist with Campus Outreach SERVE, while also dedicating time each week to directly assisting regional field teams in Latin America and the UK. 

That may not mean a lot to some people, so let me give some highlights:

  • Production of the CO SERVE Annual Report for its public of 13,000 financial partners and 200 domestic and international staff. 

  • Take on oversight and production of the podcast series "CO Staff Cast" directed at the over 700 Campus Outreach staff around the globe.

  • Content management for the www.campusoutreach.org and COSERVE.org websites with their over 45,000 unique visitors over the past year, including 7000 from outside the US.

  • Resource and consult for administrative teams from regional teams in Latin America and the UK based on 20 years of experience in Brazil.

This is a great opportunity to not only continue to impact the colleges of the world with the gospel, but also to expand our personal impact on the global reach of Campus Outreach while stepping into a role for which God has been shaping me over the past 25 years. It is humbling to see God's care, sovereignty and goodness to have us right here, right now.  

In the next few days, I will be posting more information about the financial impact of our transition to the US, our support goals for the next season and opportunities to partner with us and work together as God provides for our needs. Our year-end giving campaign will begin soon, and I will explain more via updates and personal meetings. Thanks to all our partners for your care and support.