Matt and Kari met in high school, started dating shortly after graduating, and married two years later in 1996. They have two children, Anna and Jared. Anna and her husband, Diego, live in Chiapas, Mexico, and Jared and his wife, Chloe, live in McKinney, TX.

Matt and Kari have been involved in mission efforts since 1995 through various projects, education, financial support, and multiple mission trips to 5 different countries. Matt is a credentialed minister with the Assemblies of God and spent 13 years in full-time ministry between two churches, primarily in kid’s ministry, before moving into missions and outreach.

Matt and Jared took their first trip to Chiapas in October 2015, and they returned with Kari and Anna in March 2016. Their family fell in love with the people of Chiapas. Since that time, Matt has been leading teams to build churches throughout Southern Mexico, and the family continues to be actively involved with the ministry.