Richard grew up in a Buddhist home in Seattle before receiving Christ at age 19. He started his SEND missionary career in 1989 as a single. Keri gave her life to the Lord at a young age and prayed to go into missions. God answered her prayers, and she joined Richard in 1992.

The Japanese population is dropping, suicides continue, families are in crisis and their only hope is in Christ. What is our role in reaching the Japanese? In April of 2014, Toyota announced that it would move its U.S national headquarters from Los Angeles, California to Plano, Texas (Dallas-Fort Worth). Three years later, after spending over a billion dollars in construction costs, Toyota opened up a 100-acre campus on July 6, 2017. The result of Toyota’s move has resulted in an increase in Japanese companies bringing their businesses to Texas. This has been called the “Toyota Effect”. It is estimated that there are over 150 Japanese firms in the Dallas-Fort Worth area with either a regional headquarters or operations in that area. On top of that are restaurants and other small businesses opening up to cater to the increasing Japanese population. What an opportunity!

Our goal is to evangelize and train up mature disciples in Texas who will return to Japan as missionaries to their own people. Our prayer is to empower disciples who will impact their own families, friends, and neighbors.

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