The Gardner Family (Dan & Terri)

Location: Okinawa, Japan

Ministry: Terri and Dan were raised in Minnesota in Christian homes. He graduated from High School in 1967 and went to Pillsbury Baptist Bible College for 1 year, dropped out and worked as a cabinet maker for that year. Terri graduated from High School in 1968 and they got married in 1969. He went back to College and graduated from Pillsbury in 1974 with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Bible. During their college days they yielded their lives as missionaries to go to Japan through the ministry of another missionary in Japan speaking at our Mission Conference.

After graduation from Pillsbury Baptist Bible College they went to Hyles-Anderson College for one year and received the Pastor Refresher Degree and graduated in 1975, joined Baptist International Missions, Inc., started on deputation, and for 18 months traveled around gathering support. In January of 1977, they left for the mission field and arrived in Tokyo on January 6th.

They first worked with missionary Jim Norton for one and a half years, then helped another missionary start Faith Baptist Church in Sagamihara (sah gah me ha dah) City. Then in 1981 God led them to Okinawa, Japan where they started Grace Baptist Church, which now has a Japanese Pastor. The church now has their own building and property worth about 2 million dollars. Then the Gardners started another church on Okinawa, called Faith Baptist Church, which they are at right now and are in the process of constructing a building that they are praying will be done in May of 2009.

They also have a camp ministry there, which allows them to minister to children from the American Military community, about 50,000 Americans on this island, as well as the Japanese community throughout the summer, which is their main ministry.

They also have a northern outreach ministry, which they presently go to once a month and preach to lay the ground work for a more permanent ministry in that area.

They have been on the mission field for 32 1/2 years; have been married for 40 years this coming July, and are not sure what God has for them in the future. They are just serving Him in this present place and doing what He wants them to do to win souls and establish churches.

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