Suzanne Bell is a missionary with the New York-based La Cosecha Community Church, which is part of the Assemblies of God denomination. She is temporarily living in Winnetka, as she and her British-born husband, John, are planning to return to Palenque, Columbia, later this year for a mission.
Q: How did you wind up in Winnetka?
A: As missionaries and as people who work internationally, we constantly need visas and immigration documents. We need a visa to live in Columbia and each of us are from two different countries. Once our previous visa ran out, we realized that since we are from different countries, we need a home country. So now we are doing documentation for my husband to become a U.S. citizen.
We came here for a sabbatical and we were housed by a beautiful family in Lake Bluff. That host family referred us to someone who attends Winnetka Bible Church. We came and met with the pastor, and he let us know they have apartments available for missionaries passing through.
Q: What specifically are you doing in Winnetka?
A: We are getting to know people, and at the same time I am pursuing a master’s degree in global development and social justice online from St. John’s University.
Q: Why did you want to study global development?
A: Because of working in South America for the past 17 years, I have seen how bringing the message of the Bible to people needs to go hand in hand with understanding the economic and global context of the day, so that people can develop holistically to their fullest potential. We do a lot of community development work with children and women at risk in Palenque, where they live on less than two dollars a day.
Q: When you are on the ground as a missionary, what do you do?
A: People come in for different things, but we have a focus on academic strengthening, pastoral care and community development partnerships.
Shout Out is a weekly feature in which we get to know and introduce our readers to their fellow community members and local visitors throughout suburban Chicago.
Daniel I. Dorfman is a freelancer for Pioneer Press.
