Our Missionaries
Luke and Annie Pearson came to the Philippines in January, 2001, when Annie was five months pregnant with their first child. After nine years of laying down their lives for the people of Palawan, their family has grown to five children.
Luke is principle of the Philippine Christian Fellowship Training Center, a two year school for the preparation of pastors. He is also a board member of Philippine Christian Fellowship. He administers the daily activities of both the Bible school and the Door of Hope Children’s Home. When his schedule permits he loves to visit the pastors of PCF churches spread all across Palawan, and other provinces. His previous experience as co-owner of Pearson Construction Company has provided him with skills that are invaluable in maintenance and various construction projects. He loves working with the children that God has placed in our care. When necessary he helps in counseling and disciplining the children. He deals with them lovingly and with great patience. He loves fishing, hunting, trapping, exploring, and outdoor sports in general. His strong leadership and godly example are like heavenly glue that does much to hold things together. He is loved by all.
Annie is a registered nurse and has special giftings in music ministry and counseling ladies. She leads the Bible school choirs that perform at conventions and pastors’ seminars. In general she and Luke set the standard for the staff in training and rearing the children with loving and godly, scripturally based principles. The girls of the Door of Hope are drawn to her warm and joyful personality, and gladly accept her as an authority figure in their lives. She cares for the sick, nurses and bandages cuts and scrapes, and comforts all she meets both spiritually and naturally.
They both fulfill the admonition of the apostle Paul to Timothy in 1Ti 4:12, which says, “ Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in love, in spirit, in faith, in purity.”
Luke and Annie are a great treasure from God to the Door of Hope.
John and Joy Stutzman have been involved in missions on Palawan since 1970. In recent years they have been spending six months each year in the Philippines. As chairman of Philippine Christian Fellowship and founder and chairman of the Door of Hope, John carries and imparts the vision for the ongoing ministry of these organizations. God has put a burden in his heart for hopeless and desperate children throughout the Philippines. His wife Joy is by his side, totally committed to the ministry that God has given to them. Though they are into their sixties, they gladly go to every place where the Holy Spirit opens the door; whether it be in remote mountain villages, accessible only by foot, or to violence plagued areas where the Lord alone is their “ strong defense.” They love the Philippines; they love the pastors of Philippine Christian Fellowship; and they have a special love for the children that God has entrusted to them at the Door of Hope.
On July 12, 2011, Joy Stutzman went to be with the Lord, shorlly before arrival in Manila, while napping in flight from the U.S. to the Philippines. This was a tremendous loss to her husband and to the work of the Lord in the Philippines. All who knew her loved her, and we rejoice in the promotion she has received to stand in the presence of the Lord she so loved. The love and compassion that flowed from her seem irreplacable. She is greatly missed, but the fragrance of her life abides with everyone she touched.