Well, my dear and faithful blog readers, the time has come to attempt to encapsulate my/our twelve-year South African posting with Hands and Feet International (HFI) into this final installment, or at the least, cover the wind-up of my roles since my last update (# 54) published February 25th – thanks for your patience 😊!
On April 1st, I provided my 30-day formal notice of stepping down from the volunteer roles I’ve had the privilege to serve in:
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- Strategic Advisor, African Continental Church Expansion Team (ACET)
- Director and Chairman of Hillsong Kenya Board
- Director and Co-chairman of the Innovation Hub Africa
- Executive Advisor for the Business Sustainability team of EMI’s Minga Mission Hospital Enhancement Program
I’ll get to more specific updates pertaining to the last couple months of activities winding up each of the above roles, but to get my typing fingers limbered up for what will likely be my longest update to this blog yet (you’re now forewarned), I felt my mind stepping back and reflecting more broadly on the bigger picture of my/our volunteer journey in South Africa and how it actually had its genesis in the first time I set foot on African soil. It was August 1998, when as a board member of First Assembly church, Calgary I was invited to tag along with our Senior Pastor, Rev. Kenn Gill, on a two-week pastoral training trip to rural Uganda. It was my first time on the continent and up until then, Sonya and I had clocked in a half-dozen short-term missions’ trips to Central and South America, but never to an African country which held some mystery and curiosity in my missional heart. After meeting Pastor Gary Skinner, a seasoned pioneer Canadian missionary since the early 1980’s, who together with his wife Marilyn launched the Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada (PAOC’s) work in the country, spending time meeting members of the Watoto orphan children’s program, meeting many young and on-fire pastors in up-country rural Uganda, as well as a side trip to Kigali, Rwanda, my heart was captured with warm, black African smiles and unmatched natural beauty of the land, flora and fauna. It wasn’t long after that I took Sonya and our two oldest kids back to Kampala, Uganda in April 2000, to lead a work team that built an orphan home as part of the Watoto ministries. I’d return a third time in 2002 leading another orphan home building team and take a side trip to Lilongwe Malawi – which was the genesis of launching Lifeline Malawi with Dr. Chris Brooks and saying yes to our first call to serve fulltime (2004-2006) with our family living in Lilongwe, Malawi.
This backdrop laid the foundation for the Lord’s second call for us as a couple to return to Africa in January, 2014 and start what became a 12-year period of calling Cape Town our “second home”; serving first as Operations Director of Partners in Hope hospital in Lilongwe, Malawi through 2016 and then shifting into a string of volunteer roles based in Cape Town, connected with Hillsong Church Africa, and finally looping in a brief stint helping out a Zambian mission hospital move operationally to the next level through the auspices of Engineering Ministries International (EMI).
This extended period of volunteer service has hopefully been an example in action of walking out the mission of HFI: Combining passion (what we love) with our seasoned strengths (what we’ve grown to be good at over our lifetime and which we enjoy doing).
As I reflect on what I love to do and what have become my strengths through vocational practice and application, I would narrow it down to:
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- mentoring and coaching leaders;
- helping teams be operationally effective;
- building strategic, long-term plans and helping teams achieve their outcomes, and
- influencing through structured governance.
Combining my love for the people and land of Africa, God put a volunteer service opportunity before me/us in latter 2013 that was hard to say no to…. even with the sacrifices that would come with saying “yes, we’ll go”. I believe one of the many facets as humans of being created in the image of God is the desire to leave a legacy – something that continues to bring value to people after we depart or have a say in how things get done. Which brings me to consider the difference between achievement and fulfilment. Looking back over these past twelve years, it’s not the elements and outcomes which were achieved that we played a small part in, but rather the sense of fulfilment that serving brought. That answering a call to go resulted in a deep sense of fulfilling both what God equipped me to do well, along with being with people and living in places I loved to be with/in.
I used to think that the only thing I could take credit for was my willingness to go (to say yes to the call, given my free will). All the rest along one’s journey of serving out the call (provision, outcomes, any other good thing) is 100% to God’s glory and none to mine. Then the more I contemplated the scripture in Philippians 2:13 which says that says God is at work in me to will (want to) and to act out (perform) His will. This verse confirms for me that God gets the credit for me/us saying yes to go, as well as accomplishing all that He wanted us to. God actively works within believers, giving them the desire, the faith and power to align their actions with His will and purpose. Only by the grace of God have I, have we been able to enjoy a measure of success and impact to people we loved to serve alongside and invest in their journeys.
Well, enough philosophical waxing! Let’s get on with a summary of final updates for each role area as promised…
EMI – Minga Mission Hospital
EMI (Engineering Ministries International) decided that a third onsite trip would be beneficial to continue making progress with the hospital’s In-Charge leadership, their Board of Directors, and the regional Ministry of Health where EMI had pursued an MOU (Memorandum of Understanding) to further set out and formalize a longer-term partnership of transformative health care services and infrastructure enhancements that had potential to serve several more district hospitals in the Eastern Province, beyond the current project with Minga Mission Hospital (MMH). If you’re reading this update and would like to refresh yourself with the overall MMH mandate and my activities there for the first two trips, please click on TRIP-1 for the Sep-2024 update and TRIP-2 for the January-2025 update.
To keep the trip # 3 costs lower, it was agreed that only Dr. Jason Fader would attend representing the medical capabilities expansion project and I would represent the business sustainability 5-year roadmap program.
Our accommodations were once again at the Catholic Mission Nunnery adjacent to the hospital property. Although very basic, my room was equipped with all that I needed for the short stay, keeping me protected from the “mozzi’s” (mosquitos carrying Malaria), and providing a place to prepare for the training sessions.
At the end of trip # 2, I made a joke to Sister Asperanza that it would be very nice of the next time we came onsite that she would set up their board room with nice white table cloths and have flowers on the tables – like they did when they welcomed the Minister of Health and his entourage (see the photos in Trip # 2 update HERE). Low and behold, Sister took me seriously and indeed had the boardroom for our training and workshops beautifully set up complete with white table cloths, name cards for all participants and flowers! (see below).
This quick, 4-day on-site trip built on the foundations laid over the previous 8 months. We spent two days workshopping with the In-Charge Leadership team, helping them further their understanding and build buy-in of the change plan that will be needed to create organizational readiness to take on the new assets being built and donated as part of the Helmsley Foundation grant. I trained them in the ADKAR methodology, commonly used worldwide to help teams build change management training approaches for their teams taking on major change initiatives. Then we spent time walking through further in-depth analysis of each phase of the 5-year transitional roadmap that was presented on the last trip, gathering information and building a cost and patient services revenue model to justify a grant extension funding request to Helmsley that covers a two-year ramp up period from when the new surgical suite is delivered in March, 2027 until when the staff gain the capacity and competencies to reach the patient surgeries and procedures volumes that will allow a break-even operation by March, 2029.
A full day was dedicated to the hospital’s Board of Directors, holding workshops to train up their members and get them reinvigorated and inspired to provide the right level of engaged, governing leadership and support for the senior management team in light of the 5-year roadmap that will bring the hospital through much internal change, expansion and community impact. All of the training was well received by the Board members.
And a final day was spent by Dr. Jason with the clinical staff ensuring they were ready to restart and slowly ramp up surgical services, following the completion of renovations to the existing operating theatre, affectionately named after St. Paul. All renovations were handled by a local Zambian contractor.
While Dr. Jason worked with the clinical team to help them prepare to begin ramping up surgical procedures, I spent time with Sister Donatila (accounting lead) and Victor Phiri (HR and Systems lead) to do a full financial systems assessment; including data and information flow maps and a high-level systems application architecture. All these were brought back and handed over to Daniel Steenkamp and his team to feed into the next phases of financial systems redesign for the hospital. We also reviewed the leadership’s plans and facilities to continue their ramp up of providing patients with “fast-track” health services under the government’s NHIMA (a medical insurance scheme across Zambia). Ramping up further NHIMA capabilities has been a key stream for new revenue for the hospital and will continue to be so until the new surgical suite infrastructure is delivered.
After one of the very full days of trainings and meetings, I took a walk around the hospital campus just to get some fresh air and enjoy the softer sunlight leading up to sundown. I noticed a huge Frangipani tree, covered in blossoms – a reminder of my love for the beauty, intricateness and vibrant colors of African flowers.
As I had given my “30-day notice” in advance of my arrival for this third on-site trip, Sister Asperanza was aware this would be my final in-person visit with the hospital’s leadership team and so arranged to have a hand-decorated cake made honoring my contribution to the hospital sustainability program, the In-Charge team and the Board as they sang one of their special farewell songs in Swahili following dinner on our final night together at the nunnery.
It was such a poignant moment for me as we had quickly built trusting relationships over the course of the last 9 short months working together.
They gave me a parting gift – a beautiful hand-painted chitenge (pr. “chi-ten-gee”) which the local women wear wrapped around their waist. It was a lovely gift that I brought home and gave to Sonya who had so graciously supported me taking on this project and these three trips away over the past nine months [see photo and shout-out below].
I’m excited to share that since that third onsite trip to MMH, EMI selected a general contractor late April and following the official contract signing (photo below),
a moving ground breaking ceremony and prayer was held on 27-May. The project is scheduled to be completed and new infrastructure handed over by March, 2027.
iHub Board
Stepping down from the iHub was probably the hardest to do of all my roles as I’ve been involved in it the longest, as a co-founder going back to 2018, iHub has produced much fruit in transformed and re-directed young lives, plus leaving an excellent leadership team, many of whom we worked together for most of those years. As I stepped down, Lourens and Regan decided to invite Sbu Ncala, who was our past Managing Director, to become a board member. Sbu accepted and so the three continue to provide iHub governing oversight going forward. It’s wonderful and deeply satisfying to see iHub grow from strength to strength. With 2025’s largest cohort ever plus the plans to re-launch the Cape Town iHub in 2026, strong financial and missional backing from Hillsong globally, and excellent leadership breadth and depth, the future looks very bright.
2025 Cohort
The strategic roadmap the organization was being refined just as I stepped down, and includes adding new technical streams to further take advantage of AI trends, program accreditation, adding more partnerships for job placements and pursuing more funding streams related to Broad Black-based Economic Empowerment sources.
To view a recent publication from Hillsong Global showcasing the iHub and its sustainable social impact story happening in South Africa, please click HERE
I’m confident that as I check in with the team from time to time that there will be many more good reports of growth and lives impacted not only in South Africa but other African countries like Kenya and Nigeria that are on the longer-term roadmap.
Hillsong – ACET
The original Hillsong Africa vision of launching 50 churches in 50 of the most influential cities across the continent over the next 30 years continues to be at the core of this strategic planning and advisory team.
As I stepped down from my role as Strategic Advisor, Paul White, one of the long-time pastors who launched several new locations across South Africa was slotted in to take on my accountabilities for the ACET as well as step into a Program Manager role that will oversee and coordinate ongoing research and support of new church plants and steward the longer-term church planting roadmap.
For the near-term, getting a formal non-profit organization registered in Nigeria remains top priority and we continue to pray for a break-through in that regard. And next on the list of cities to explore the best approach to getting a Hillsong Connect underway is Accra, the capital of Ghana (West Africa).
I deeply enjoyed the 4 years I was able to serve in this capacity, leading the design and helping implement Hillsong’s continental church planting strategy. I’m especially honored to have been deeply involved in the registration and set-up of Hillsong Kenya NPO and the preparation and launch of Hillsong Nairobi location church. I had a catch-up call in early August with Pastor Enock Ngone and was pleased to hear how the Nairobi congregation continues to go from strength to strength, even in the midst of more political and economic challenges the country is walking through.
Hillsong – Kenya Board
My role chairing the Hillsong Kenya board was an outcome of my role on the ACET and it was my pleasure to lead the inaugural board of directors to get Hillsong’s footprint in Kenya established and provide governing oversight to Pastor Enock and his leadership team to launch and grow the Nairobi church over the last two years.
Starting in February, the board shifted to a bi-monthly cadence of meetings so that helped reduce the workload for myself as chair. Once I stepped down, Lourens Kruger assumed the role of Chairman and Alima Awori and James Nkoana will continue as directors. I am confident that the board will continue with solid momentum, where the governance model and structures we set in place can be easily lifted and applied to the next countries and cities Hillsong chooses to launch African church locations.
BONUS: iHub Student Coaching – Thando follow-up
Although I formally stepped down as an iHub student coach-mentor in Q4-2024 (after investing in four students’ learning journeys as part of cohorts 2021-2024), I have kept in touch with Nadia Mabika whom I coached in 2023 and Thando Zondi whom I coached in 2024.
I continued to support Thando Zondi as she prepped for several job interviews in the first couple months of 2025 and then in March, she asked me to help her polish her application to The Forge Program, pitching her entrepreneurial concept called “OmniHealth”, a mobile-based and digitally enabled healthcare service designed to improve access to quality care for chronic patients in underserved rural communities of South Africa. Thando’s proposal got her accepted into the first round of 99 entrepreneurs selected from applicants across Africa who were all flown up to Mohammed VI Polytechnic University (UM6P) in Morocco mid-April for their annual 10-day “selection boot camp” to further test her abilities as a high potential entrepreneur and vet her business concept more thoroughly against her peers. I’m super pleased to share that Thando received word in late May that her concept was one of 33 founders chosen to move forward with The Forge Program at UM6P in Benguerra, Morocco!
Congratulatory Letter
The Forge is a residency-based, 12-month entrepreneurial program launched to support and scale high-impact tech startups with global potential. Hosted at UM6P’s StartGate campus, the program provides founders with financial support, mentorship from world-class experts, cutting-edge infrastructure, global networks, and a comprehensive ecosystem across four key phases: Ideation, Incubation, Acceleration, and Scaling. The program also focuses on the personal development of founders and the creation of a sustainable and impactful entrepreneurial ecosystem in Africa. Learn more about The Forge program by clicking HERE.
The program is a “full-ride”, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that completely blew Thando away. She expressed over and over to me that she could have never made it through the Forge’s assessment “gauntlet” without the soft-skills rounding that she received through the iHub program.
This summer I continued to connect with Thando as she got herself prepared to leave Johannesburg and move onto campus to be resident for the 12-month UM6P program. I assisted going over her contract with The Forge helping her understand the T’s & C’s and ensuring she’s set up for success, meeting all expectations. My last communication with her was the last week of August as she excitedly shared with me that her Moroccan student visa was in hand and that she’d be flying there on August 29th. I can’t wait to hear back from her once she’s settled in and sleeves rolled up with the program. What an opportunity for someone with such amazing potential!
I’d like to share two special, keepsake videos that I will treasure for years to come which encapsulate the joy I’ve experienced investing my time mentoring iHub students over the last couple years and in particular with Nadia and Thando. The first video was shared with me by Nadia (first to speak) and Thando (second to speak), unsolicited, once they heard that I had stepped down from all my roles with the iHub as part of us relocating back to Canada permanently. Please click on the video thumbnail below to view it…
The second video was professionally produced by the Hillsong Africa Foundation creative team as part of their annual fundraising campaign. This “impact story” video showcases Thando’s journey from an iHub student through acceptance into The Forge entrepreneurial incubator program. Please click on the video thumbnail below to view it…
Coming in for a landing
As I come full circle on this final update, and wherever my roles were connected with the outworkings of Hillsong church on the continent, the closest working relationship and friendship that I will treasure and hopefully be able to maintain regular connection with is Lourens Kruger, COO of Hillsong Africa.
Lourens (Lou) Kruger
I will certainly miss our tri-weekly in person and Zoom check-ins, working lunches at our favorite spots across Constantia, and of course co-laboring on boards, committees, attending weekly Hillsong Team meetings at Century City church, and just him being a faithful friend and brother in Christ. He and his wife Michele have become good friends with Sonya and I as couples and hopefully we can enjoy hosting them when they come visit us on a trip through Canada someday.
My last word has to be a huge “thank you” to my wife and life partner Sonya. She has been integrated into much of whatever success and impact I’ve been able to enjoy being a part of these many years on mission. Day in and out, trip after trip, she’s been my encourager, confidant and mirror of wisdom and discernment. The decisions we took to move and live overseas were taken as a couple, and we equally shared the load of what those decisions meant by way of stretching our faith, obedience, commitment, hard work and sacrifice. She is pictured below donning the Chitenge gifted by the Minga sisters and standing in front of one of our favorite keepsakes – a painting of the Baobab tree we used to drive past weekly on visits out to the Ngodzi Health Centre near Salima, Malawi.
Well… that’s a wrap! Thank you for enduring the longest update post yet – but hopefully between the narrative, pictures and video, you’ve been left with the sense of my deep and humble gratitude to the King of Kings for the joy and privilege of being able to serve these past 12 years to His honor and glory and to leave a little deposit of hope and eternal value on this amazingly beautiful continent and with some of the warmest-hearted people I’ve had the privilege to serve alongside of. With God’s continuing favor and blessing, may all of it bear fruit to grow His Kingdom and bring glory to His name for years to come.
I’ll leave this equation with you as a final thought, borrowed from Craig Groeschel, which resonates with my Engineering brain:
(Consistency + Faithfulness) x Time = Lasting Impact
And I’ll let the sisters of Minga Mission Hospital provide this perspective on life as the last, last word (taken from the bulletin board in the Minga Nunnery)…
