Revived German campaign continues to thrive

Clint and April Everhart continue to share God’s love to the people of Germany with the help of Oklahoma Christian University students.

April, Oklahoma Christian alumna, first went on the Germany Campaign as a student.

“Some friends of mine asked if I would be interested in the trip,” April said. “It sounded like a great opportunity since I was interested in both singing and missions. I went for four summers in a row.”

April’s husband, Clint, later became interested in the campaign and joined the team for two summers.

At that time, the campaign was led by Clyde and Gwen Antwine. Students traveled each summer to Germany to serve local churches and spread the gospel.

In 2004, the Everharts decided to join a two-year program called Helpers in Missions through Memorial Road Church of Christ.

After their two-year commitment expired, the Everharts stayed in Germany for three additional years to serve as missionaries. They returned to Oklahoma in 2009, after a total of five years abroad.

However, the Everharts knew they wanted to return to Germany and revive the Germany Campaign that had been so successful in previous years.

“I talked to my work about taking a month of unpaid leave during a time of year where we could go back,” Clint said. “They were fine with it, so we started making preparations to return.”

In 2013, the Everharts traveled to Germany by themselves to get a feel for how they would want to structure a campaign. They tried to mimic their travels as if there was a group with them, in order to fully prepare for the campaign.

Last summer, their planning took action as they led a group of nine to serve in both Chemnitz and Leipzig, Germany.

The group consisted of the Everharts, three Oklahoma Christian students, Kim and Jeff Seaman and their four sons. Kim Seaman, Oklahoma Christian alumna participated in the Germany Campaign as a student.

On the campaign, the group connected with churches in Germany to assist them in reaching more in the community. They traveled to schools and public gatherings where they would sing a capella church songs in both English and German.

Freshman Jevon Seamen said the experiences he had on the Germany Campaign were valuable.

“We would get people interested in wondering why we were so happy or why were singing,” Seaman said . “We would then invite them to a church gathering and try to show them that the church is not necessarily what they think it is.”

Germany has a large population who identify as agnostic or atheist, and generally the German people are only familiar with Catholic and Lutheran ideologies. The team worked to transform people’s previous notions about religion.

Other challenges the team faced were the cultural differences of the German people.

“A couple of people in our group described the German people as having a tough outer shell, but a soft inside,” Seaman said . “Once you get to the inside, you can become really good friends with them. They’re some of the most neat and altruistic people you’ll ever meet.”

Clint said mission work in Germany is very different because of the German culture.

“It does typically take the German culture longer to analyze and make the commitment,” Clint said. “But when they do make the commitment, they’re all in and it’s 100 percent built on a really solid foundation.”

Sophomore Erika Carter experienced the revived campaign last summer and said she highly recommends it to other students.

“It’s incredible to experience German culture in such a hands on way,” Carter said. “In the suburbs of Germany, you get a different feel for Europe and for people from a different culture. Being able to broaden your perspective and learn how to reach out to other people was absolutely incredible.”

This summer, the campaign will take place from May 26 through June 26. The trip will cost $3,600 and is open to interested Oklahoma Christian students. Clint and April Everhart will lead the campaign.