Posted: January 14, 2020
A composer, health manager and auto mechanic – all church leaders – joined the Mennonite World Conference team. These newly appointed regional representatives complete the team that helps Mennonite World Conference and its member churches maintain a close connections to encourage one another in following Jesus, our hope.
Regional representatives are part-time volunteer staff who develop relationships with MWC member churches, associate-members and potential member. They represent MWC to these churches by sharing information about resources and news from the rest of the world. They represent their churches to MWC by sharing prayer requests.
Jeremiah Choi
In addition to his leadership as General Council delegate for Hong Kong Mennonite Church and service on the Peace Commission (2018–2021), Jeremiah Choi has taken the role of regional representative for Northeast Asia. He trained in music composition, majored in pastoral care at seminary, and has written songs for the church in Chinese. He began serving as pastor in 1989, helped start Hope Mennonite Church and currently serves as lead pastor of Agape Mennonite Church, Hong Kong. He and his wife Wendy Lee have two children.
Jumanne Magiri Mafwiri
Jumanne Magiri Mafwiri adds regional representative for Eastern Africa to the ways he serves the church with his professional skills of health management. He serves Kanisa Mennonita Tanzania as a deacon, board member and General Council delegate to MWC. He has also trained community health workers in Kenya and DR Congo. Coming from a large family, he was pleased to encounter the diverse Anabaptist-Mennonite family at Assemblies in Zimbabwe (2003), Paraguay (2009) and the USA (2015). Jumanne Magiri Mafwiri and his wife Nyamisi Yango have six adult children.
Barrón Tapia
Freddy Barrón
Pastor, executive church leader, school director, theologian and automotive mechanic Freddy Barrón dons another hat as regional representative for the southern cone (Latin America). He serves Iglesia Evangélica Menonita Boliviana as a local pastor and national vice president. He is director of SAC mission school and co-director of IMFOLID, a Mennonite leadership development institute, along with his wife. Freddy Barrón and his wife Margrit Kipfer have two married daughters and a younger son and daughter.
Communications team
The MWC Communications team welcomes Elina Ciptadi Perkins as interim chief communications director. Former AMIGOS representative for Asia (precursor to YABs – Young AnaBaptist Committee), she was raised in MWC member church Gereja Kristen Muria Indonesia (GKMI) and currently works in communications from Singapore. Elina Ciptadi joins Karla Braun on the team while Kristina Toews is on maternity leave. Alexandro Marthin continues to serve as social media coordinator in a volunteer capacity from Indonesia.
—Mennonite World Conference release
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