Nick and Nikki grew up in the same small town in Washington State. When they were 12 and 15 they went on a mission trip to Mexico with their church. This became a yearly tradition and the two young kids soon became good friends. Nick enjoyed short term mission trips, but very clearly remembers saying “God please never call me to do it long term.”
Two weeks before Nick and Nikki were engaged, Nikki made Nick promise that when she graduated college they would move abroad for a year. Nick had already purchased the ring and assumed that by the time she graduated she would be ready to start a family and have a normal life; therefore he agreed. Nikki however never quit talking about her desire to move abroad. During her Junior year of college, Nikki decided to go to Kenya for a month with some friends. Nick was thrilled to hear this as he hoped this would get it out of her system and then they could move on with life. Nikki returned from Kenya even more fired up about moving abroad. Nick started to realize that he might have to follow through with his promise.
View More: http://kaditiedephotography.pass.us/nick-and-nikky-family-sessionThe two began looking into many options, begrudgingly by Nick. It wasn’t until touring the UN building in NYC and seeing billboards of children dying of preventable diseases that Nick finally had a change of heart. He decided to type “Orphanage” into Google and found a place called Children of the Promise (COTP). Long Story Short, the two moved there in June of 2010 for what they thought would be a one-year commitment. Instead, they found themselves serving at COTP for 5.5 years. After COTP they served a quick 8 month stint at Danitas Children. During their time there, they began feeling called to start their own organization; something that they both said they would never do. What started out as a joke, “maybe we should start our own non-profit,” suddenly turned into an amazing plan.
In June 2016, with only $500 donated at that point, they took a leap of faith and purchased a small plot of land to start their mission. They had plans of building a house and starting a farm and a family health program. They had no idea if or when the money would come in to make their visions a reality. But they faithfully moved forward knowing God would provide far beyond what they could imagine.