Jim & Karen Avella
Jim and Karen Avella met and married on the island of Guam in the Pacific in 1993. Karen is a missionary kid who was born in France and grew up in Monaco and South Africa. She met Jim while serving as a single missionary with Trans World Radio on Guam when one day Jim came to share his testimony in their staff meeting.
Jim is an unlikely missionary. He grew up exposed to religion, but not the life changing power of the Gospel of Christ. At the age of 17 Jim joined the United States Marine Corps, where he excelled, eventually becoming part of the elite Force Reconnaissance and serving four tours in Vietnam. Following his time in the Marine Corps he worked 11 years as a mercenary. God spared Jim’s life on many occasions but he attributed it to his own invincibility. God finally got a hold of Jim’s life in a dramatic and personal way. He surrendered his heart to Christ and became a new creation. Since then God has continued to shape and direct Jim’s life.
God directed the Avella’s path from Guam to join BBI in 1996 and they arrived on Roatan in May of 1998 to work with BBI’s radio station, Radio HRGS. Jim worked in various technical areas and maintenance and Karen helped with on air shifts. They returned to the States in 2001 and then served with Trans World Radio in South Africa for five years at the Africa Regional Office. During this time Jim grew in his field of primary interest, computers and networking. Jim and Karen are now back in the US and serving with BBI at the home office. Jim is in charge of IT/IS (computers), maintaining individual computers as well as the mission network and serving as the help desk. Karen helps in the Reception. Jim and Karen have also made a couple of trips to Roatan to help out at Radio HRGS on a temporary basis, while some of the staff is away on furlough.
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