Meet the Hartzlers

Jay and Sheri Hartzler are Nazarene missionaries who will be heading to Romania to begin a one-year assignment in August 2013. Jay will be working with the children of Tigmandru teaching music and helping develop a woodshop and teaching woodworking skills. He will also be directing choirs and helping train choir directors in Sighisoara. Sheri will be working with Veritas in a variety of ways in promotion and marketing as well as accompanying the choirs and teaching piano lessons for some of the children. We will begin our assignment in early September by leading a one-week music camp for children in Sighisoara.

Jay is on leave from teaching at a Mennonite high school.  We spent a year in Mennonite Voluntary Service working for Habitat for Humanity in Evansville, IN.  Sheri worked for 20 plus years in outreach media for the Mennonite Church.

They have two grown boys who will remain in the United States.

Engage: How did you first recognize God’s call to be involved in missions?

Hartzlers: We feel our life has been one of mission.  Whether teaching (Jay) or working in media on behalf of the Mennonite Church (Sheri), or serving jointly with Habitat for Humanity and now with the Nazarenes, we have been conscious of God’s call on our lives. The specific call for Romania came after Jay’s choir sang and worked there on two different trips.

Engage: What is your favorite aspect of what you will do in your present assignment?

Hartzlers: For Jay, working with the children in a variety of activities is what draws him. They seem to have a life where they cannot escape their poverty and social status. Their parents work very hard to make a living and are often not present in their lives. Just being a part of their lives and helping them experience joy is what he hopes to accomplish.

We will be able to answer this better once we’ve been in Romania for a while. Currently we are anticipating what we’ll be doing but recognize that things could change once we actually get there.

Engage: What are some of the challenges that you face in carrying out your work? Share any relevant stories to illustrate this.

Hartzlers: Language will be a big issue for us but an almost a greater issue will be understanding the social and political influences on their lives … both in the lives of the children and in the lives of the adults.

Engage: Please share a story of a significant event or moment that has happened in your current assignment.

Hartzlers: God leads in wondrous ways. This past year our lives have been in transition in our current jobs and the opportunity arose to go to Romania. Along the way doors opened and each time we felt God was guiding us to serve. Our financial support was secured in less than a month and that was a humbling acknowledgement of the support of our church community.

Engage: How do you maintain a close relationship with God (and your family, if applicable) in the midst of the demands of missionary service?

Hartzlers: As Mennonites we believe strongly in the importance of living and working within a faith community. While this community will be with Nazarenes instead of Mennonites in this coming year, we expect that our relationship with God will be enhanced and enriched by our interactions with the faith communities in Sighisaora and Tigmandru. In the age of communication we will not have difficulty communicating with our family here in the States. Indeed, there will be demands but we see those demands as part of our calling and do not see them as something to worry about.

Engage: What are the rewards of what you do?

Hartzlers: In Jay’s regular work as a teacher the rewards are seeing the joy in the lives of the students when they accomplish something and are pleased with the results.  The desire they have to move forward and their ability to share what they have learned is an incredible sense of satisfaction.

Engage: What advice would you have for others exploring a possible call to missions, or embarking on their first missionary assignment?

Hartzlers: International experiences have always proved stretching and enriching for us and we would encourage people to be open to God’s call to mission whether in the U.S. or in another part of the world.

Reprinted from Engage magazine