About us
“For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.
​
Habakkuk 2:14
our story
We grew up on opposite sides of the world. Angel was raised in Brazil as a missionary kid surrounded by the 3rd largest city on the planet, Sao Paulo. I was born and raised in the amazing state of Georgia, where the south goes to be trendy! This is where I grew up with a passion for sports, especially basketball and developed the habits of southerners that are mostly all good but hard to break (Sorry if I say Yes Sir or Yes Ma'am too often).
Angel loves volleyball, singing and playing guitar. Growing up in Brazil with missionary parents with her two older brothers gave her a unique worldview. Besides her intense love of God and people, she loves to spend time teaching our kids and pouring into their lives.
Our paths crossed for the first time in 2002 at Toccoa Falls College in northeast Georgia. Through playing college basketball on the girls and guys teams we became close friends talking for hours on the phone, and then falling in love on a road trip to play! Though our calls didn't match up at this point God was working on both of hearts, just in different ways. It soon became clear that we were better as a team serving Jesus than we were apart. We married in January 2005 on a surprisingly warm winter day. Little did we know that on that day God had already laid the groundwork for what we would be doing in Colombia. We felt and continue to feel God's leading in our lives, molding us to be his tools and working in his perfect will.
Fast forward 11 years and we have 3 beautiful girls. See? I told you coaching women's basketball was a sign! Taylor, Reagan, and McKinley are our pride and joy (Side Note: We didn't name our kids after US Presidents on purpose... Until the 3rd one!). Our church, The Bridge Church, announced its first short-term mission trip to the Dominican Republic. Of course, when your pastor asks if you will go you have to say yes! Little did we know, this trip would be the catalyst for where we would be today. After that 1st trip, God definitely laid on our hearts the call to international missions.
​
Kat Guild felt a call to missions as a teenager. Growing up in Charlotte, NC she actively participated in music ministry at her local church, singing and playing violin in the church orchestra. When Kat encountered the gospel in a personal way in high school she began to experience the joy of sharing her faith with others. Consequently, this led her to serve several summers at WinShape Camps in Georgia, as a camp counselor and girls’ camp pastor, and in Costa Rica as a volunteer for WinShape Camps international.
Kat studied Public Relations and Advertising at UNC-Chapel Hill, where she got involved with CRU and Destíno campus ministries. As a result, she immersed herself in the Word of God through a gospel-centered community. Toward the end of her college career, she spent a semester studying abroad in Quito, Ecuador where she grew her love for the people of Latin America and the Spanish language. Though she only spent 5 months in Ecuador, she knew she would be coming back to live in South America at some point in her life.
Now that Kat is living in Barranquilla, she desires to use her gifts of building authentic relationships and shares how the love of Christ continues to transform her life. She also enjoys spending time outdoors with her friends and her puppy, who brings so much fun to her life.
We are commissioned under a really cool organization called SAM (South American Mission). SAM has been working to see the Church of Jesus Christ multiplied and transforming communities by embodying the Kingdom of God. They have focused their efforts in South America specifically wanting to see dynamic churches multiplied across the region that transform local communities and the world as they embody the Kingdom of God. We love that they long to see dynamic churches spread across South America that transform communities as they embody the Kingdom of God. God has chosen all of us—broken yet redeemed human beings—to be his agents of transformation.
​
​
SAM is part of the Therefore Alliance, which encapsulates 5 different mission organizations that work to further the Gospel message around the world. The Therefore Alliance envisions the church transforming our world. Founded more than 125 years ago, TEAM (a member of the Therefore Alliance and our former missions org) and SAM have developed a ministry partnership to better work alongside each other instead of independently. They have worked diligently to integrate ministry area strengths and lean on each other's organizational structures to become even more impactful for the Kingdom of God.
​
​
SAM today has over 80 missionaries serving in Bolivia, Colombia, Brazil, Paraguay, and Peru. Today, more than 575 TEAM missionaries and staff serve in more than 35 countries.
our ministry
Our team has been called to the business hub and port city of Barranquilla, Colombia. Barranquilla is in the northwestern part of the country located on the Caribbean Sea. Home to an estimated 1.8 million people, Barranquilla is a business hub with a focus on commerce and trade.
Barranquilla is a cosmopolitan and primarily industrial city, often visited by businessmen of all nationalities. However, the main attraction for tourism is its carnival "Carnaval de Barranquilla," which takes place four days before Ash Wednesday. Residents are known as "Barranquilleros" and are characterized by their outgoing and friendly attitude and relaxed behavior. This makes the average Barranquilla resident an optimistic and open individual, as well as goal-directed and hard-working.
God knew what he was doing when he called the Ballews & Kat to Barranquilla. Joel's 10 years of entrepreneurial and business experience will be a starting point for a ministry field that is newly opened in Colombia for TEAM/SAM (South American Mission). We are creating a co-working space (called Co.Labor) that can reach that professional demographic and become a church plant training ground for local pastors looking to advance the Gospel message throughout their local community. Through partnerships with international church planting networks and Christian business leaders, we believe that God can use this co-working space network to impact the 10's of thousands of people all over South America.
​
The change in the economic status of neighboring Venezuela has also added a new ministry area that the Ballews would have never expected. The flood of Venezuelan refugees to Colombia has exceeded 3.8 million people. These immigrants come with very little but flood the country daily. Joel & Angel see many of these hurting, hungry and desperate people on their doorstep daily. Out of necessity, they developed a program of satisfying basic needs through blessing bags as well as they are working to put Bibles in the hands of those traveling with very little hope.
​
Our Family
