Name: Scott and Sarah Berkey
Graduation Year: 2000
Major: Scott-Children’s Ministry | Sarah-Missions
Current Position: Missionaries serving with AGWM in Kenya
City and State: East Africa
Tell us about your career and what you do now.
Since graduating, we have been blessed to serve in a variety of roles and in a few incredible places. We spent the first 10 years of ministry on staff at churches in South Carolina and Texas as children’s pastors. In 2011, we were given the opportunity to come back to Springfield and serve as the National Director of Children’s Ministry for the Assemblies of God. It was kind of fun to be back in Springfield and to have the blessing of working alongside some great people! From there we were blessed with a unique opportunity that allowed us both to join the staff of a great church in Tucson, Arizona. The 7 years we spent in Arizona were great for our family and our ministry, but the entire time we could feel God moving us in a slightly different direction. In August of 2019, just before the pandemic hit, we filled out our application and began the process of selling everything we had to move around the world.
Now we serve here in Kenya as NextGen missionaries. We get to use all the things we learned at CBC and in our various stops as Children’s Pastors and Directors to help the Kenya Assemblies of God form a unified approach to ministry for Children, Teens and the Youth of Kenya. We also get to work with the sports ministry here. It has been awesome to see how God was preparing us all the way back in the late 90s to do what it is we are doing today!
What is your favorite memory from CBC?
There are a lot of great memories from our time at CBC.
Scott: I think it would have to be beating BBC in Basketball during the “Holy Wars” and all the incredible times I got to spend with the guys on road trips for Basketball. I loved the ministry opportunities we had and the time we got to spend with friends the most.
Sarah: The lifelong friendships that I still have are my most incredible memories of CBC. I also loved the prayer times we had during our Campus Missions Fellowship Services.
How did CBC help you identify/develop your calling?
CBC provided ways for us to develop a firm foundation in the Word. It also challenged us to get involved in practical ministry around the Springfield area. There were times of prayer and worship around the altar in chapel, moments of learning in classes that we will never forget, and times with friends in the dorms dreaming about what ministry was going to be like that really helped us develop our calling.
How did your experience at CBC prepare you for life after graduation?
Through CMF and playing on the Basketball team, we were taught how to lead and we were stretched to do more than we thought we could. This prepared us for all that God had for us as we have gone through the years! So many times we have looked back with amazement on what God has allowed us to be a part of, and we are thankful for the role that CBC played to bring us to where we are today.
What advice would you give a current student preparing for the workforce?
Don’t limit your education to the classroom. We both got involved in local churches while we were at CBC, and it gave us a strong foundation of ministry experience. Study hard for your classes and work hard to do your best in class, but look for ways to experiment and apply the things you are learning in the real world. It is also a good idea to find a good mentor who can help you grow!
What would you look for if you were in a position to hire a new graduate?
Number one thing we would look for is teachability. If someone is teachable, they can be taught anything, and we can find a place for them on our team.
We also value integrity, courage, and a strong Biblical foundation.