Peru
From its desert coast to the Andes Mountains and the Amazon Jungle, Peru is one of the most ecologically diverse places in the world, rich with natural resources. Once home to several Andean civilizations, including the Inca Empire, it was conquered in 1533 by Spain. Due to its vast territory and gold and silver production, Peru was considered to be Spain’s most important colony. While achieving independence from Spain in 1821, the colonial legacy continues through a racialized social structure and an economy rooted in harmful extractive activity.
About our work
Jed and Jenny Koball
Jed Koball assists the Peru Joining Hands Network (Red Uniendo Manos Peru). Joining Hands is an initiative of the Presbyterian Hunger Program that addresses root causes of hunger in partnership with networks of churches and non-governmental organizations in countries with high poverty rates. These networks lead the struggle against hunger and poverty at the local level and are joined by Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) presbyteries and congregational partners that address the same concerns on the global level. Red Uniendo Manos Peru is a network of eight Peruvian NGOs and churches located throughout Peru. These eight come together to identify the root causes of poverty and injustices and to address them in their local contexts by shaping and participating in strategic advocacy campaigns at the national and local levels. Red Uniendo Manos Peru tackles issues such as environmental contamination from the mining industry, the growing water crisis due to global warming, and trade policies that disadvantage many Peruvians. Jed helps facilitate partnerships between Red Uniendo Manos Peru and PC(USA) churches and entities in the U.S. to enhance participation in global advocacy campaigns. He resources the national and local work of the network in Peru as needed. Read more about Jed and Jenny's ministry on their profile page, which you can find here.
Chenoa Stock
Chenoa serves in Peru as delegations and partnership coordinator for PERUSA, a new program of the Joining Hands Peru Network. Through this program, she works with PC(USA) delegations to foster partnerships with our Peruvian covenant partners, the Evangelical Church of Peru (IEP) and the Joining Hands Peru Network.
Chenoa organizes, accompanies, and interprets for visiting delegations, helping to ensure that these visits reflect the mutual mission priorities of the partners. She sets up in-country logistics, assists in planning itineraries, and works with trip leaders and the communities that are visited by the delegations. Read more about Chenoa's ministry on her profile page, which you can find here.
The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) partners with three institutions in Peru, the most historical of them being the Evangelical Church of Peru/Iglesia Evangélica Peruana (IEP). Presbyterians from both Scotland and the U.S. first arrived in Peru in the early 20th century and were instrumental in the creation of the IEP. With significant pastoral presence in Quechua-speaking regions, in southern Peru, the IEP has placed major emphasis on leadership training rooted in local culture through a network of Bible Institutes. Partnership with the IEP is facilitated through the PERUSA program that works to build bridges between PC(USA) congregations and IEP initiatives. PERUSA cultivates these partnerships through solidarity visits and virtual dialogue spaces.
At the end of the 20th century, a few members of the IEP joined with other ecumenical and civil society organizations in Peru to form the Peru Joining Hands Network/Red Uniendo Manos Peru (RUMP), a second covenant partner of the PC(USA). This network was created for the church and civil society to work more collaboratively in addressing systemic poverty and the legacies of colonialism. In this vein, with the support of the Presbyterian Hunger Program, RUMP accompanies and organizes historically harmed communities and generates advocacy campaigns at local, national and international levels for environmental justice, indigenous land rights and reparations for Afro-Peruvians.
Also, near the turn of the century, members of the ecumenical community in Peru established the Evangelical Theological Education Association/Asociación Educativa
Teológica Evangélica (AETE) to develop leaders for a more inclusive church. Through the Young Adult Volunteer Program, the PC(USA) has partnered with AETE since 2020 to support this work and to provide experiences for young leaders from the U.S. and Peru in congregational and community settings to address gender equity, racism, LGBTQIA inclusion, and environmental justice.
Short-term mission trips can be a powerful way to connect in faith with sisters and brothers from Peru.
The Young Adult Volunteer Program has volunteers in Peru who spend a year working with members of the Joining Hands Network. Each institution has its own work in different communities in Peru, but together they do advocacy around economic development, environmental protection, and human rights. For more information, contact Jenny Koball at jenny.koball@pcusa.org.
The Joining Hands program which relates directly with the Presbyterian Hunger Program helps U.S. presbyterians engage more deeply in addressing root causes of poverty through global advocacy campaigns. For more information about the advocacy work being doing together with Peruvian partners and how to get involved, contact Jed Koball at jed.koball@pcusa.org.
For information about the PERUSA program which provides opportunities for Presbyterians to participate in short term mission service with IEP churches or Bible Institutes or with Joining Hands-Peru member groups contact Chenoa Stock at chenoa.stock@pcusa.org.
Mission coworkers serving in the country:
Jed and Jenny Koball
Jed - jed.koball@pcusa.org
Jenny - jenny.koball@pcusa.org
Chenoa Stock
Chenoa - chenoa.stock@pcusa.org