Summer Update and Ministry changes

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In May we said goodbye to our nineteen 2018-19 GAP students. Second semester was full of adventure, ministry, growing friendships and personal growth for many. We love seeing the continued excitement and yearning to learn as students jump in and make the most out of the second half of their year. This year was a challenging one for many of us here at GAP, with lots of problems and situations that came up that we had never dealt with before. From all the health issues (affecting staff and many students), to learning how to handle the many different personality types in the villa this year, to the immense spiritual battles and growth, we tried our best to lead this class well and always point them back to Christ! We saw God do amazing things in and through many of the students. God brought many of them to a saving relationship with Him, and we were honored to be a part of many of their baptisms! We saw students really begin to dive in to the Word of God and get answers to questions of faith and theology. We are thankful for another year of watching God work within the program, and encourage you all to continue to pray for this class as they head home to family and friends, and try their best to live out newfound and strengthened faith in the challenging culture of the States. If you are interested in learning more about the GAP year program, feel free to reach out to us with questions, or visit this page for more information.

GAP 2018-19 graduating students


There are some exciting changes coming up in our ministry here in Costa Rica! Over this past year, we have loved working full time with the GAP program, and were happy to be there to fill in some needed roles. However, we felt the pull towards ministering to Costa Ricans, and missed going out on the weekends to serve in a church. We have been encouraged to really think and pray about our purpose and our calling here, and to pursue that wholeheartedly. An opportunity has come up with one of our fellow SCORE missionary couples in the town of Santa Rosa (about a 3 hour drive from San Jose). They have been serving there for about 4 years, and now have a church and ministry in the town. They have many people in and around Santa Rosa with the strong desire to learn the Word and participate in Bible studies, and need help to get more things running and to expand the ministry. We have decided to make the move come this Fall to serve in and help expand the church in Santa Rosa!

Church building in progress in Santa Rosa


This will be a big change for the two of us. Brandon has been in San Jose serving with the GAP year program for the past 8 years and Samantha has been here for the past 4 years. We are looking forward to taking what we have learned (in our native language) and put it all to use now full-time with Costa Rican's (still serving with SCORE International). Another big change will be the environment. We are both from rural Lancaster County but for the past number of years we have been living in the city of San Jose, Costa Rica. We will experience a change of scenery by moving out to the countryside of Santa Rosa. We are very excited to work alongside and encourage those in the town of Santa Rosa as we try to further develop through discipleship. We will be here in San Jose for the beginning of the 2019-20 GAP year to help get things started, and will phase out towards the end of September. We are confident in the staff that is in place to run the GAP year as we transition our ministry. Please keep us in your prayers as we continue to pray through these changes and begin this new stage.

View of the Arenal volcano from Santa Rosa

We are so thankful for all of our friends and family who support us through prayer and encouragement as well as financially! Though transitions can be challenging, we are so encouraged by those of you who reach out and pray for us regularly. We are excited to see how God will challenge and grow us through this adventure.

Prayer Requests:

  • The transition from San Jose to Santa Rosa
  • Search for a house in Santa Rosa
  • Fruitful response to new ministry opportunities 
  • For protection and guidance as we will be serving in a new community
  • New GAP students that will be coming in August
  • A smooth process as we go about getting our Costa Rican residency
  • Financial support as we will need to raise $1,000 more per month to cover medical bills and cost of living
If you would like to learn how to support us financially Click here.

Adventuring with some of the GAP girls!

Soccer game with our friends Jafet and Rachel

Hanging out with the family in Santa Rosa

Always happy to have family come and visit!

Watching the baseball clinic we held with a group

Baseball game after a clinic with the group!


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