Billy and Jen founded ARA in early 2018. At the time, they were full time missionaries serving at a hospital in West Africa. While living there, they met many African brothers and sisters with hearts for evangelism, a desire to share the Gospel, an ear for languages, and a passion for service. After much prayer, the Lord led them to start this mission organization to mobilize, equip, and support African believers to take the Gospel to the unreached and unengaged people groups within Africa. Since ARA was founded in 2018, they have continued to oversee the ministry and work of the African missionaries that ARA supports. They love interacting with ARA’s African missionaries whether it’s eating food together, playing with their children, strategizing, or worshiping and praying together. They also enjoy leading U.S. partners on trips to Africa to facilitate training/conferences for the missionaries. They count it a privilege and joy to serve the Lord alongside courageous brothers and sisters from different cultures and backgrounds as they unite together to reach Africa with the Gospel and hope of Jesus Christ!
Our Leadership
In 2012, Kevin and Lori took their first of many trips with their church to Liberia, West Africa. On one of their trips, they met Bilyl and Jen, and soon after, Billy received the call from the Lord to start Africans Reaching Africa. Kevin was blessed to be on the end of the phone call of Bill sharing his vision and Lori listening in. Kevin and Lori have felt overwhelmingly grateful to watch God at work reaching the unreached in West Africa through ARA and to be a part of His work through ARA.
Drs. Tim and Josette Chamberlain: Tim is a general surgeon and Josette is an OB/GYN physician. They have both been involved in medical missions in various countries throughout the years. While in Liberia in 2017 serving at a mission hospital, they met Bill and Jen who were serving at the same hospital. When Billy and Jen shared what was just a vision at the time, they knew this was of God and have been excited to participate and help in this role for the Gospel to go to unreached people groups.
Mitch Helmkamp is the Pastor of Theological Development at Gospel City Church in Granger, Indiana. He has a masters in Biblical Counseling from The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, and he has a passion to help equip the local church to reach the nations with the gospel of Jesus Christ. He and his wife, Alicia, first came out to West Africa to teach at a refresh conference back in 2019. He was immediately impressed by the godliness and giftedness of Bill and Jen, as well as each one of the ARA missionaries. It has been his joy and privilege to lead the weekly ARA prayer ministry over the past two years. He is excited to continue to serve ARA in any way he is needed. He is excited to see what God will continue to do through ARA. And he is excited to worship Jesus in heaven one day with all the people whom God saved through ARA missionaries (Ephesians 3:20-21).
David Jones has over thirty years of experience in a variety of ministries. He trained African pastors in Kenya for 2 years where he and his wife Helen served as missionaries; he worked on the English Standard Version of the Bible; and he currently serves as the senior pastor of the Village Church of Barrington in the Northwest Suburbs of Chicago. David has both a master of divinity degree at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, and a doctor of ministry degree at Phoenix Seminary. At the invitation of Bill and Jen, he visited West Africa in the winter of 2020 to help train ARA missionaries. He was profoundly touched by their faith and dedication to spreading the Gospel of Jesus Christ, particularly among unreached people groups.
Billy and Jen founded ARA in early 2018. At the time, they were full time missionaries serving at a hospital in West Africa. While living there, they met many African brothers and sisters with hearts for evangelism, a desire to share the Gospel, an ear for languages, and a passion for service. After much prayer, the Lord led them to start this mission organization to mobilize, equip, and support African believers to take the Gospel to the unreached and unengaged people groups within Africa. Since ARA was founded in 2018, they have continued to oversee the ministry and work of the African missionaries that ARA supports. They love interacting with ARA’s African missionaries whether it’s eating food together, playing with their children, strategizing, or worshiping and praying together. They also enjoy leading U.S. partners on trips to Africa to facilitate training/conferences for the missionaries. They count it a privilege and joy to serve the Lord alongside courageous brothers and sisters from different cultures and backgrounds as they unite together to reach Africa with the Gospel and hope of Jesus Christ!
In 2012, Kevin and Lori took their first of many trips with their church to Liberia, West Africa. On one of their trips, they met Billy and Jen, and soon after, Billy received the call from the Lord to start Africans Reaching Africa. Kevin was blessed to be on the end of the phone call of Bill sharing his vision and Lori listening in. Kevin and Lori have felt overwhelmingly grateful to watch God at work reaching the unreached in West Africa through ARA and to be a part of His work through ARA.
Drs. Tim and Josette Chamberlain: Tim is a general surgeon and Josette is an OB/GYN physician. They have both been involved in medical missions in various countries throughout the years. While in Liberia in 2017 serving at a mission hospital, they met Billy and Jen who were serving at the same hospital. When Billy and Jen shared what was just a vision at the time, they knew this was of God and have been excited to participate and help in this role for the Gospel to go to unreached people groups.
Mitch Helmkamp is the Pastor of Theological Development at Gospel City Church in Granger, Indiana. He has a masters in Biblical Counseling from The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, and he has a passion to help equip the local church to reach the nations with the gospel of Jesus Christ. He and his wife, Alicia, first came out to West Africa to teach at a refresh conference back in 2019. He was immediately impressed by the godliness and giftedness of Bill and Jen, as well as each one of the ARA missionaries. It has been his joy and privilege to lead the weekly ARA prayer ministry over the past two years. He is excited to continue to serve ARA in any way he is needed. He is excited to see what God will continue to do through ARA. And he is excited to worship Jesus in heaven one day with all the people whom God saved through ARA missionaries (Ephesians 3:20-21).
David Jones has over thirty years of experience in a variety of ministries. He trained African pastors in Kenya for 2 years where he and his wife Helen served as missionaries; he worked on the English Standard Version of the Bible; and he currently serves as the senior pastor of the Village Church of Barrington in the Northwest Suburbs of Chicago. David has both a master of divinity degree at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, and a doctor of ministry degree at Phoenix Seminary. At the invitation of Bill and Jen, he visited West Africa in the winter of 2020 to help train ARA missionaries. He was profoundly touched by their faith and dedication to spreading the Gospel of Jesus Christ, particularly among unreached people groups.