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Latin America

Don & Ruthie Harris

Casilla de Correo 39
Tandil, 7000, Prov. De Bs. As. Argentina
Gospel Fellowship Association: 1809 Wade Hampton Blvd., Greenville, SC 29609
Email: donruthieharris@yahoo.com

Mike and Faith Goldfuss

Calle Allende 26
Col. Sto. Tomas Ajusco
Del. Tlalpan, Mexico, DF
CP 14710 Mexico
Email: mikegoldfuss@hotmail.com
GFA Missions: www.gfamissions.org

Mike and Faith Goldfuss have been in Mexico City, Mexico since September of 1995. Mike and Faith grew up together in Mentor, Ohio, going to the same church and Christian school. They became high school sweethearts and were married in May 1992 after both finished their undergraduate and most of their postgraduate studies at Bob Jones University.

They have seven children, Michael John II, Cristiana Faith, Carissa Grace, Crystalyn Joy, Matthew Josiah, Cherith Hope, and Caralyn Joy. The Lord took Crystalyn Joy to Himself in 2001 after just three months of life. The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away, blessed be the name of the Lord (Job l:2b) The Goldfusses have a website at http://www.obf.net/~obf.goldfuss/. Faith homeschools, a major responsibility for her on the field. If anybody out there would love the chance to serve the Lord in Mexico helping with teaching piano in the church, etc., please feel free to contact them. The first year that Mike and Faith spent in Mexico City, they helped Tom and Jean Zartman, another GFA couple who were located about 25 minutes away. During that year, they spent time getting the Gospel out in their neighborhood. After about a year, four or five people regularly went with them to the Zartmans church, and they decided it was time to start a local assembly in their own living room. They have seen over 1000 different people attend services throughout the years. Many leave, but several have stayed, and little by little, the Lord is building the church. About 60 people regularly attend on Sunday. There are a lot of professing Christians in Mexico City but seemingly very few true converts to Christ. Although the work has been slow in many ways, the Lord is calling out a people for Himself.

Throughout the years, the difficulty has been in finding faithful men. There are several in the church now. One man has been very faithful, and he has been studying with Mike each week and preaching on Wednesday nights with much marked improvement. Mike and Faith are praying that the Lord will allow the man,or another like him, to take over the church so that they can go to another part of the city and plant another church.

Tom and Jean Zartman

Missionaries to Mexico
3201 S. Jackson Road, #107
Pharr, Texas 78577 USA
Email: tjzartman@gmail.com
GFA Missions: www.gfamissions.org

Tom and Jean Zartman have been on the mission field since 1965, and with GFA since 1986. Tom was born in Hanover, Pa., the Lord saved him out of an unsaved family. He enrolled in Lancaster School of the Bible, and in Missions class the Lord called him to missions. Tom started out as a missionary in Spain for 2 years, learning the language and discipling various people. He then went to Uruguay for 5 years, working in the distribution of literature, Bible teaching, and evangelistic work. Jean began her missionary service in Iceland and was there until the end of 1972. Tom and Jean were married in Pennsylvania and went together to Uruguay in January 1973. They ministered in Rocha for 5 years in a work that continues fruitfully. Two sons, Joel David and Benjamin, were born to them in Rocha. After a year of furlough, during which Juliana was born, they went to Colombia, South America, and lived and worked in Bucaramange and Sogamoso. Ruben was born in Sogamoso. Then followed furloughing for a year in Mentor, Ohio, joining GFA, and going to Mexico City. They worked in Mexico City for 11 years in sowing the seed and doing church work. Mexicans value family above all else. From there they moved to Saltillo in the north for 5 years, leaving a small house church. There they also had a large childrens ministry. They have now been in Monterrey since 2004 sowing the Seed and awaiting the Lords timing for the harvest. Tom goes door to door, the people are mainly Roman Catholic and have been for years. They follow tradition. Otherwise, all the sects are present, with the Pentecostals leading in number. The biggest hindrance to the work is indifference, no sense of sin and need; the biggest stumbling block is apathy, unwilling to break with tradition, materialism, and social pressure. Their greatest need is PRAYER, PRAYER, and PRAYER. Their advice to someone who wants to become a missionary would be to "be 'in the way' by doing His will now, in study, preparation, evangelistic opportunities, and Christian service. Pray for His guidance."

Rev. & Mrs. Mark & Carol Mavar

APDO 0843-00136 Panama
GFA Missions: www.gfamissions.org

A firefighter/paramedic becomes a missionary? Mark was raised in Cleveland, Ohio in a Catholic home, where he grew from an altar boy in his younger years into a real roughneck, rebellious teen. At age 21, after hearing the testimony of salvation and seeing a real change in the life of a very close friend, Mark realized his lost condition and accepted Christ as his Lord and Savior. In 1982 he met Carol at the church where she and her family regularly attended and in 1984 they were married. After much work, study, and sacrifice, in 1988 Marks lifelong dream of becoming a firefighter/paramedic was realized. Never would he have imagined the changes the Lord had in mind for him over the next decade.! In 1996 Mark and Carol went on a short-term missions trip to Panama where the Lord planted the seed for missions in Marks heart. The Mavar family began attending Grace Church of Mentor in 1997 and 4 years later Mark graduated from Grace Bible Institute and signed with Gospel Fellowship Association as a full time missionary to Panama. In 2002 the Mavar family arrived in Panama and started working with a veteran missionary where they studied and learned the language (Spanish). In 2003 Mark began visitation to decide where they would locate and plant a church. In Chorrera, 2004, they rented a home for church meetings and began services. In Panama, men work 6-7 days per week, the people are mostly Catholic, and in general, apathetic about the things of the Lord. They are mostly poor according to U.S. standards. Panama is a mix of people groups including various indigenous groups, Hispanics, Chinese, and West Indies blacks. Although mostly poor, Panamanians are very materialistic and concerned about appearances. They are friendly enough to Americans, but are resentful and politically opposed to the U.S. government. Mormons, Jehovahs Witnesses, and Pentecostals are very active and cause much religious confusion. Mark and Carol have raised 4 children, the oldest son being married, and all currently students at Bob Jones University. Mark and Carol are greatly dependent on our prayers and they have a need for good Spanish materials for teaching. Currently they are grounding and discipling the people for church organization as they study through Jim Berg's "Changed Into His Image" interactive study guide. What would be their advice to someone who wants to become a missionary? "It is not for the faint of heart. Unless you know for certain God is calling, dont go. It isnt easy, nevertheless with the call of the Lord upon you, it is a blessing not to be missed!"

Don and Pat Garwood

Casilla de Correo 6716
Montevideo, Uruguay 11000
Email: dongarwd@chasque.net
GFA Missions: www.gfamissions.org

Don and Pat Garwood have a church plant, Maranatha Bible Church, in Montevido, Uruguay. Don was born and raised in Dayton, Ohio and Pat in Grand Rapids, Michigan but reared in, Mt. Alaska, Indiana, Pa, and Ohio (her father was a pastor). They met through a letter from their home church. Dan was saved at 25, and with the assurance of salvation offered to go anywhere the Lord would lead him. A missionary in Kentucky encouraged him to go to Bible School at ABC, and he had 3 years of Bible School, and language training in Spanish in Uruguay and Rio Grande Language School. Pat was saved at age 6 and knew by 10 years of age the Lord wanted her on the mission field. She went to Bible College and has a BA in elementary ed, and a Masters in Education, learning Spanish in Uruguay with a tutor. Don has started 3 churches in Uruguay, 2 of them are in national hands. Theyre praying God will raise up nationals for a third church. The people are of European descent and very indifferent to spiritual things; it is an agraian society, and the government is socialistic. The greatest competition are the Mormons, Jehovah Witnesses, and the Pentecostals. Their greatest need is for additional workers, mainly men, but whole families. Their advice to those interested in mission work in Uruguay: go to a Bible College that is mission-minded, read biographies and autobiographies of famous missionaries, missions and church history, talk with the missionaries you meet, visit different fields and see what the missionary does, get as much experience as possible in a variety of ministry areas while preparing, and ask the Lord to keep you from becoming distracted from serving Him on the mission field.