Meet the Missionaries
Howard and Aileen Ostendorff are members of Awaken Church in Columbia, SC. Howard was born and raised in Charleston, SC. He began to follow Christ in 1970. He attended Clemson University in South Carolina where he obtained a B.A. in History, and later earned a Masters in Theology from Dallas Theological Seminary and a Doctorate in Ministry from Westminster Theological Seminary. Aileen was born in Maryland but grew up in Westchester, CA. She received Christ at the age of 9, but fully gave her life over to Him at age 18. She graduated from UCLA with a B.S. in History. Howard and Aileen met in Oklahoma City in 1973 where they both worked for Campus Crusade for Christ, and were married in 1975 in Inglewood, CA. They have 5 adult children: Jenny age 40, Sarah age 38, David and Daniel (twins) ages 34, and Ambrose (unofficially adopted Kenyan son) age 36.
The Journey
The Ostendorffs are long-time missionaries of Del Rey Church, sent from our congregation many years ago. For forty years they have sought to obey and fulfill the Great Commission found in Matthew 28:18-20. This has led them to over twenty-eight countries and two decades of ministry in Africa. Their major commitment in Africa was serving on staff at the Nairobi International School of Theology (NIST) in Kenya, Africa. After their time at NIST, and later serving as the Director of Global Outreach at Family Life, Howard and Aileen followed the leading of the Lord and joined Freedom in Christ Ministries (FICM). They moved to Little Rock in 2010, where they became field staff, with Howard also assuming leadership as Regional Director of the South Central U.S.
During the summer of 2013 the Ostendorffs returned to Kenya to visit old friends from their time at NIST and host some seminars for FICM. It was a unique break from their usual duties in the U.S. However, on their return home to Arkansas, an executive asked them if they would consider a position as Africa Directors for FICM. Counting the cost, as this situation demonstrates, is not a one-time assessment. Howard and Aileen are now grandparents. They have served as missionaries for decades. What about settling down? What about funds needed to make the move? What about family? The outcome, though, was that they immediately felt a strong call, which was later confirmed through a period of prayer and consultation. God was calling them to return to Africa with Freedom In Christ Ministries. Their house was put up for sale. Howard finished the final edits for the marriage curriculum he’d rewritten for FICM, and they headed back to Kenya. Time was of the essence. They began to reconnect with friends and establish partnerships with key figures and churches in Nairobi. They looked for a house, bought a car, and still managed to host some seminars. Their move became final in September 2014. Ultimately their goal in taking this position was to lay a foundation for a future successor to take over and continue the work in Africa to see healthy and strong local churches planted.
In July 2018 the Ostendorffs moved back to the U.S., having completed the task they set out to accomplish with FICM in Africa. Howard has continued responsibilities of communicating with and encouraging the Africa representative, but also works locally with FICM. Aileen concentrates more on mentoring and training women locally in South Carolina, but still travels with Howard as needed to Africa to assist the work.