Jim and Candy met on a blind date set up by a mutual friend. They were married a couple of years later and have two amazing adult sons, Christian and Carson. Their mid-life redirection to the Czech Republic in 2019 was the culmination of God’s decade-long preparation process. They now live and serve in Písek, the site of their first short term mission trip to the Czech Republic. From the outset, all of their ministry efforts have been based on personal relationships. Through forging authentic relationships, they earn the privilege to tell others about Christ in a real and personal way. They have fully embraced this next season of their lives with equal parts of humility and enthusiasm.
Candy’s journey with Jesus began her second year in college when she first learned about a personal relationship with Jesus. This set her on a path of discovering God’s incredible love and plan for her life. After college, Candy put her education, love of sports and gift of administration to work organizing youth sports programs for the City of Westminster, CO. She later accepted a position organizing special events for the city of Highlands Ranch. After serving as a lay coordinator for Vacation Bible School, Candy discovered the joy of using her gifts to serve God. As Candy continued to volunteer, God began tugging at her heart and she felt called to leave the safety and security of her position with the city and go to work in children’s ministry at their home church, Cherry Hills Community Church where she served for 21 years.
After graduating from college Jim began a 35-year career working in the commercial banking industry helping middle-market businesses and large group medical practices to grow and thrive. While that career was rewarding in some ways, life felt hollow in the most important areas. It was only after Candy introduced Jim to a personal relationship with Christ that his life truly opened up and took on its full meaning. Over the years Jim volunteered in numerous programs at Cherry Hills including sports ministry.
As Candy and Jim raised their sons they began serving on and leading short-term missions’ trips to Juarez Mexico, Mississippi in the years after hurricane Katrina, Mozambique Africa and eventually to the Czech Republic. Their first trip to the Czech Republic involved leading a basketball camp in partnership with Elim Church in Písek. Sports served as a connection point from which relationships could be built. Before the camp ended, they found themselves promising to return the following summer, and then the next and the next. Over the course of ten years they recruited, trained and led 17 teams for basketball, soccer and children’s English camps, all the while developing many relationships with the Czech people. Písek began to feel like their second home, and in 2014, God made it clear he was calling them to serve in the Czech Republic as full-time missionaries.
In July of 2019, ten years after their first trip to the Czech Republic, Jim and Candy left Highlands Ranch, CO and moved to Písek. In addition to studying the Czech language, they co-lead Elim church’s middle school ministry, assist with English classes at Cesta school, and disciple teenagers.