Dana Jacobs

Dana exuded love, compassion, and genuine concern for all people. She cared deeply for every tiny abandoned or orphaned baby who came through the gate of the Africa Gospel Church Baby Centre, whispering to each one, “Your parents are coming for you.”

It was a sacred calling to care for these children and to tell them that they were loved, they were wanted, and they would have a family someday.

This calling to serve with World Gospel Mission in Kenya came after some resistance. At the time her husband, Dan, felt God’s pull to Kenya in 2005, Dana was happy and comfortable in the life they had built in the United States, the result of years of hard work. They had four kids, a lovely home, and a secure future. But God had something else for them, and when Dana surrendered to His leading, they found that He enabled them to find purpose in a ministry that was greater than anything they could have imagined.

Dan gave leadership as the director of the baby center while Dana coordinated the many teams and visitors who came to the center each year. In this role, she managed the logistics involved in housing and feeding large groups, helped visitors process what they were experiencing, and served as a liaison between supporting partners and Kenyan staff. And she was famous for her delicious homemade pizza.

Dana made Kenya her home. She embraced the role of sister and mother to staff and babies alike. Dana’s impact on the lives of children will stretch across decades and around the world. She simply loved and valued all little children, and they knew it. Children flocked to Dana, and she happily allowed herself to be a conduit of the saving love of Jesus Christ, communicating His love to all.

“When you go in obedience to God’s calling and surrender your life to Him, miraculous things happen.” Dana wrote this in 2016 when she was at WGM headquarters for a training event. We are grateful for the years of remission she was able to have after her cancer diagnosis. Yet we still grieve, wondering why Dana lost her life at this time. Our hearts hurt for Dan, Hope, Carson, Talia, Nathan, and Andrea, and for all who knew and loved Dana.

We have confidence in knowing that she loved her Savior to the utmost and served Him with everything she had. We rest in the knowledge that she is with Jesus today. Hebrews 10:23 (NIV) reminds us, “Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.” We rejoice that Dana is in the presence of the Source of that hope today.