Our Story
In the spring of 1990 John and Sue Woelke were praying for a ministry that they could both be involved in. They went to Missions Fest in Vancouver and while walking around, Sue tripped on a floor fitting and fell onto the floor in front of the Lighthouse Harbour Ministries (LHM) of Vancouver, BC. After talking to the volunteers at the booth they decided to start Nanaimo Lighthouse Ministries; they had found the ministry that God wanted them to belong to.
LHM trained the Woelkes and the few other volunteers, that they had to help them, visit the seamen on the ships. They started taking toques to the seamen and since the ships stayed in port longer in those days, they brought them to their homes to call their families, pray with them, and disciple them. Eventually an office was donated and a board was established to manage the ministry. The first celebration and fundraising breakfast was held in the spring of 1992 with 65 people attending. Eventually they began taking Christmas presents to the seamen, wrapping more and more each year. By 2014 the ministry was wrapping 600 Christmas presents.
There has been a wedding on the prow of a ship, baptisms, weeping with the men when they received sad news from home, rejoicing with them in glad news, scripture shared, prayer in the mess room, on the deck, as well as in Nanaimo homes. The prayers of many supporters have undergirded all of this.
Seeing the results of the ministry touch the lives of seamen and their families was a tremendous joy for everyone involved. Now, after 30 years of ministry, we are embracing new ways of communicating the love of God to the seafarers who visit our ports.
We hope that you are blessed, encouraged, and inspired by what you find here in our Virtual Seaman's Centre.
God bless you,
LHM trained the Woelkes and the few other volunteers, that they had to help them, visit the seamen on the ships. They started taking toques to the seamen and since the ships stayed in port longer in those days, they brought them to their homes to call their families, pray with them, and disciple them. Eventually an office was donated and a board was established to manage the ministry. The first celebration and fundraising breakfast was held in the spring of 1992 with 65 people attending. Eventually they began taking Christmas presents to the seamen, wrapping more and more each year. By 2014 the ministry was wrapping 600 Christmas presents.
There has been a wedding on the prow of a ship, baptisms, weeping with the men when they received sad news from home, rejoicing with them in glad news, scripture shared, prayer in the mess room, on the deck, as well as in Nanaimo homes. The prayers of many supporters have undergirded all of this.
Seeing the results of the ministry touch the lives of seamen and their families was a tremendous joy for everyone involved. Now, after 30 years of ministry, we are embracing new ways of communicating the love of God to the seafarers who visit our ports.
We hope that you are blessed, encouraged, and inspired by what you find here in our Virtual Seaman's Centre.
God bless you,