Born and raised in a very nomadic family, I had early dreams of shooting for National Geographic someday. While I never ended up working for them, my love for science, storytelling, culture, people, and travel never left me. For over 20 years, I have been serving abroad in international communities working directly with missionaries and refugee restoration programs. I quickly realized that I loved to support those leaders that were directly involved in the communities. My focus became to offer them an extra set of hands so that they could serve those that they have been called to serve. Maximizing someone is a joy to me!
I feel that I have a pretty dynamic career story, which helps me to believe that I can handle just about anything! Some of the most interesting jobs that I have had are as a clinical scientist, a water quality technician, a nanny, a substitute teacher, and a professional scuba diver. However, being an executive assistant and project manager for years has truly supercharged what I get to do with missions. I have an eye for developing systems, pioneering a vision, and managing people across several different industry landscapes. Outside of work, you can find me cooking big dinners for people, serving at local clinics, doing farm work, and just enjoying a very simple life.
Africa has been on my mind and heart for years now. I’ve kept telling myself that I will go…soon. Next year. Or the year after that. But once the pandemic hit, it became very clear to me that I am being called NOW to focus on improving the quality of life in international communities. And within 6 months, I was working for a humanitarian relief organization that was serving the migrant farmworkers in the Pacific Northwest. I leaned into becoming the basecamp manager and the “catch-all”, however Africa was still running around in my mind. So, I started telling anyone that would listen and asking for direct connections to organizations that are doing work there. Luke Pinneo, a mutual friend and partner with our Village Drill program, introduced me to Kris and I got to hear the “why” behind the work that TXV does in Africa.
I knew very quickly that this was a slam dunk: A trusted organization with great leadership, already invested into international missions in Ghana AND looking for someone to maximize in-country efforts. Fast-forward to a little over a year now that I’ve been working with Kris. I have a front row seat to the incredible level of intentionality and integrity that he infuses into TXV. I have a weekly call with both him and the team in Ghana and it’s the highlight of my week! I love getting to connect with the team about needs and ideas before I take my first trip in August. For both TXV and myself, we believe every person matters to God and we can show this by the way we live out our work. I am beyond honored to partner with the entire TXV team as we elevate solutions for our global family.
-Adie Gateley
