Love For Lukulu & Beyond
Meet the Board
Dave Grzegorczyk
Dave is a member of St. Catherine of Siena Catholic Church located in Bay City, MI. He has served on the Love for Lukulu & Beyond board of directors for since 2012. Dave has traveled to Lukulu, Zambia on three occasions; 2010, 2011, 2012 and is scheduled to be part of the 2014 traveling team. Some of the skills Dave contributes to the success of our mission trips include: laying ceramic tile in the parish hall, helped with the construction of a basketball court, conducted a basketball skills camp and enjoys spending quality time sharing his faith with the youth of the village. “Being part of a traveling mission team has enabled me to experience God in ways I otherwise never would. To experience our Creator in the faces of the poor and in the beauty of simplicity is beyond what words can explain. The people of Lukulu have opened my eyes to a clearer understanding of what’s truly important in life; faith and family.”
Megan Shaner
Megan is a member of Woodside Bible Church in Troy, MI. She previously graduated from Valley Lutheran High school and Central Michigan University with a degree in Child Development and Leadership. She has been on the Love for Lukulu board since 2014 and has been on two trips to Lukulu. She has a passion and love for working with children that can be seen by everyone around her. "These trips have brought me closer with my Creator and have taught me more about myself than I ever thought possible. My favorite part is that we don't just do our work and leave, we give a little bit of our hearts to each and every person we meet in Zambia and create lasting relationships. The people I have met have taught me how to love purely and how to appreciate the little things in life. I can truly say that I have a family and home in Africa."
Bob Herek
Bob is a member of Our Lady of Czestochowa located in Bay City, MI, and has served on the board of directors for the Love for Lukulu and Beyond mission since 2014. He has traveled to Lukulu, Zambia on three occasions and to Columbia mission trip once. He is a retired Occupational Therapist who has treated patients of all ages and disabilities. His most important roles are husband (of 43 years) and father (two boys) and now a recent grandpa. Some of the projects worked on were painting several buildings such as 1st grade classroom/church/gym, construction of basketball court, beds, playground as well as treating patients. "Being a part of this group has been awesome. These folks have nothing but share all of themselves with you. To see in their faces and how much they appreciate you is like looking into the face of Our Lord." Even when he doesn't go they send letters and notes back to him (truly a family). "Go out to all the corners of the earth and share the word of the Lord. Their love of life, music and dance will pull you in and will never let you go." - Bob
Bob is always so hard at work while on the trips that we had a hard time finding a picture of him not doing physical labor! Here he is on the right working with the dirt being used to make the basketball court!
Tom Slivinski
Tom Slivinski is a practicing member of St. Dominic Catholic Parish in Saginaw Michigan. He has been a devout Catholic his whole life. He is a retired millwright and welder. His wife of 44 years is Debi. He has two grown sons, Tom and Alex . Alex and his wife Natalie have two children, Otto and Eddie. Tom has had the support of his family, friends, and fellow parishioners. Tom has prepared and fundraised for the last 8 missionary trips (2015-2018). He went to Lukulu in 2015, 2016, unable to go in 2017 due to medical issues. he went back in 2018, 2019, missed 2020, 2021 due to covid and went in 2022 and 2023. .Some of the projects Tom has worked on while in Lukulu are painting and tiling the girl’s dormitory, painting the parish hall, building homes for the elderly, and building a church in the Lukulu outstation Kalambwe. As a result of being a Lukulu Missionary, He feels truly blessed to be part of these wonderful life changing missionary experiences. The experiences are different from year to year, but the constants are the children, the people, and the spiritual music. Lukulu is not just a place. it is a place where I originally met a strangers who I now call family. God has truly blessed me with this opportunity to share our faith and love with one another ,and I wake up everyday thinking of my family so far away, but so close to my heart. God put each one of us on this earth, what we do with our time here matters.
John Hutchison
"The Love For Lukulu mission trip to Lukulu, Zambia in 2019 was one of those life events for me. I have had a few. When I was 4 years old I was literally run over by a car in front of my house in Lansing. The driver took off and my mother ran out of the house and found me lying in the road not breathing. Fortunately, God had prepared her. She had watched a special on tv the night before about emergency first aid and she knew what to do to get me breathing again. Coincidence? I don't think so. Years later while bear hunting I swerved my atv to avoid rolling it and went down a hill through the woods and into the water. Seconds before I would have drowned I heard a voice say "reach your hand back" which I did. The only person in our group who had seen me disappear into the woods had run down the hill and was barely able to reach out and grab my hand before I went under. Later when I thanked him for telling me to reach back, he said he never said anything. He just saw my hand reaching back and grabbed it. Coincidence? I believe that God has intervened more than once in my life to keep me here. So when I see an opportunity to make a difference in other people's lives I embrace it. The people of Lukulu touched my life in a way that it has never been touched before. It wasn't the most important event in my life, but it was right up there at the top. It is very enlightening to be with people who have little to nothing in the way of material things but are so happy. They struggle to simply exist from day to day, but they don't dwell on it because it is all they have ever known. Imagine how you feel when all of these people are coming up to you just to touch you or shake your hand and thank you for just being there with them and what you have done to make their lives just a little bit better. It makes you want to do more. Their smiles are like warm sunshine hitting your face. I know I can't save the world. But the people of Lukulu have shown me that I can make a difference in their lives as well as others. I hope that I can do that for many years to come."
Susan Swiercz-Watson
My name is Susan Swiercz-Watson. Born and raised in Bay City, MI where I still reside. I am a register nurse and a mother of 3 amazing kids. I learned of this amazing mission through past missionaries and decided to follow my heart and go on the 2018 Love for Lukulu mission trip. I will say it was the scariest best decision I’ve ever made. Upon returning I knew I wanted to continue being a part of this amazing organization. Whether or not I ever get back I am so thankful to be a part of continuing to make this trip happen each July. If you have ever felt this is something you wanted to do, just do it! It was a life changing experience that will be in my heart for life.
Steve Ramer
Hello, I am Steve Ramer. I am a former Love for Lukulu Missionary and now a Love for Lukulu Board Member. I am a proud husband, proud father of 2 daughters and their husbands, and a proud grandfather of 2 grandsons. I am a Navy Veteran, who is very proud of his country. I am involved in my community. I have building and construction skills. I am very devoted to my family, my friends, my volunteer opportunities, and my Christian faith. I came to know about the Love for Lukulu Mission 8 years ago from a close friend. I was so impressed with the mission, I wanted to become involved with it. I volunteered at their different fundraisers and went to their events. The more I learned about Love for Lukuku, the more I wanted to do. After talking to some of the Missionaries, I felt the call to become a Love for Lukulu Missionary.
When I did go to Lukulu, it was an eye opener. I got to see firsthand the programs the mission supports, how grateful the people of Lukulu are, and just how poor they are. In the Saginaw Community, I volunteer at the East Side Soup Kitchen, Mustard Seed Homeless Shelter, Saginaw Special Olympics, VFW Post 9809, and at Love for Lukulu. From volunteering at these organizations, I have seen hungry and homeless individuals, I have seen intellectually disabled individuals, and I have seen homeless veterans. I try to provide the veterans with resource information to help them out. I have compassion for the poor, the hungry, the homeless, the disadvantaged, the veterans, and the people of Lukulu. Being on the Love for Lukulu Board enables me to have a say in the monetary donations and decisions that best benefit the people of Lukulu. As a board member and former missionary, I feel I can help the mission and future Love for Lukulu Missionaries.
Fr. Christian Tabares
My name is Fr. Christian Tabares. I am a priest from the Diocese of Saginaw, Michigan. I currently serve as the pastor of two faith communities, St. Agnes Parish of Freeland and St. John Vianney Parish of Saginaw.
I was born and raised in Medellin, Colombia and moved to Saginaw, Mi, in June 2008. I was ordained as a Catholic priest in May 2010 at the Cathedral of St. Mary of the Assumption in Saginaw, Mi. I became an American Citizen in December 2019.
During my ministry in different parishes across the Diocese of Saginaw, I heard many great and inspiring stories about the Love for Lukulu mission trips to Zambia, Africa. So, I was amazed by the devotion and generosity of both the mission teams and the donors across the diocese who were committed to serve the poor in Lukulu. I similarly hoped to be able to join a mission trip at any point in time. This hope became true in the Summer of 2023 thanks to the kindness of the Love for Lukulu Board and the generosity of some parishioners who invited and sponsored my trip.
This mission touched my soul, heart, mind and ministry in ways beyond I could even imagine. The love, faith, hope, goodness, care, and joy that I was gifted with by the people of Lukulu eased the challenges and sacrifices that I dealt with due to the long and difficult travels as well as the heartbreaking experiences of extreme poverty, hunger, and other needs related to health conditions, education, job opportunities and infrastructure which are part of people’s daily lives.
By God’s grace and people’s bounty, I was given the opportunity to join the mission team for the second time in July 2024. This time, I was touched once more by the warm and caring welcome that the people in Lukulu offered us through words and actions, as well as by the life-giving liturgical services and community events which were filled with singing, dancing and laughter in spite of the difficulties and challenges that are afflicting the people in this region of Zambia.
I would like to invite you and everyone who may read this message to pray for and think about supporting our Love for Lukulu Mission.
You can make a difference in the lives of so many people, including your own, by joining a mission trip, offering your prayers and best thoughts, as well as, by donating money and other material goods that may be used to express God’s providential love and care for the poor and needy in Lukulu, Zambia, Africa.