Don Chavis

I serve as a missionary to Europe’s Child Missions, Inc. Most of our ministry is based out of Italy, primarily by providing humanitarian assistance to children in need.  I also facilitate youth camps and plant churches in several different countries.

I became a missionary after taking several short-term trips. Missions got into my spiritual DNA, and I could not lose the passion for it. I then began to feel the call of God towards missions and surrendered to that call.

One of the most memorable moments from the mission field was in our first children’s camp. We had limited supplies and wanted to have the children make cards for someone and give them away as an act of love or kindness. At the end of our class, this beautiful little Roma gypsy girl named Mihaela came up to me and gave me her card. I smiled as she went out to play with the other children.

After a few minutes, I opened the card and my heart broke. There was no writing. I realized that she could not convey her thoughts because she was unable to write. I stood there with tears rolling down my face. At that moment, I knew God was calling me to make a difference. On that hot afternoon underneath that make-shift tent I told the Lord, “If you will give me partners that will support this ministry, I will do my best to help change a generation, one child at a time.”