Nevin and Sherri Williams
Neither Nevin nor Sherri ever intended to marry again. However, God had different plans. Nevin had served in Burundi and as a WGM missionary evangelist. Sherri had served on the American Indian Field (now USA: Southwest Ministries) and at WGM headquarters. It was at WGM headquarters that God brought them together. They were married in 1992 and began a pastoral ministry to the missionaries and volunteers on the American Indian Field.
Nevin was raised on a farm outside Cedar Rapids, IA. He grew up in church and was saved at age seventeen during a district youth mission. Previous to this, he had felt a draw toward the ministry but set that aside and went to the University of Iowa with the intention of entering law enforcement. However, during his freshman year, God once again reminded him of the call to ministry. He changed majors and graduated from the university with a degree in psychology. He went on to Garrett Theological Seminary (now Garrett Evangelical Theological Seminary) in Illinois.
While pastoring a two-point charge during his seminary years, he met Dick Keim, a former WGM missionary to Burundi who was pastoring close by. He invited Dick to speak in his two churches. During the third time of watching Dick’s slide presentation, God spoke to him very clearly. Nevin said, “It almost sounded like an audible inner voice saying, ‘You must go and become a part of these people and take the Gospel to them.’ After much prayer, we said, ‘Yes’ and were accepted by WGM and appointed to Burundi in 1967.”
After eight months of French language study in Belgium, they arrived in Burundi in Mach of 1969 to minister in evangelism, church planting, and pastors’ training. For most of their ministry, they were located in the Kumoso Valley on the eastern edge of Burundi. Much of the area had been difficult to evangelize because of the open practice of the traditional religion and people’s fear of leaving it. However, after several people were delivered from demon possession, that attitude changed as they saw the power of God to change lives. Large numbers of Barundi were saved and churches planted.
In 1997, many missionaries were expelled from the country. After the weekly expulsions slowed, Nevin was asked to serve as field director. Despite the difficulties new churches were established in new areas. “Being field director in those days was a very stressful time,” Nevin shared, “but we saw God working in miraculous ways.”
By October of 1981, it was no longer possible for the Williams family to remain in Burundi. They returned to the States, and Nevin was appointed a WGM missionary evangelist based in Cedar Rapids. He traveled around the United States and western Canada speaking in revivals, camp meetings, Bible conferences, missionary conventions, and churches. “I got to meet so many of God’s wonderful people,” he recalled.
He was able to return to Africa three times to the Kenya and Tanzania fields for camp meetings, revivals, pastors’ retreats, conferences, and missionary staff retreats. “Every time I got off the plane,” he said, “I felt like I had come home again.” He also served as a chaplain to the Cedar Rapids Police Department.
In 1991, Nevin began to feel God leading him back to missionary service. He shared, “I was appointed to Tanzania for a short time, but a newly diagnosed medical issue caused the doctor to counsel against foreign service. One of the WGM doctors on homeland assignment from Kenya agreed with that recommendation.” The WGM administration offered him the role of missionary pastor on the American Indian Field to minister to the missionaries and volunteers serving at Southwest Indian School and on the Navajo and Tohono O’odham reservations.
Charlotte (Sherri) Meidinger grew up in Mandan, ND, and was saved at the age of ten in a Good News Club. The lady who ran the club was also faithful to pick up Sherri and her sister for church and Sunday school every week. After graduation from high school, she attended Asbury Camp in Washburn, ND. Here she was exposed to her first WGM missionaries, Gerry and Bunny Fish from Kenya. One of the speakers was Dr. Merne Harris, who was a professor at Vennard College in Iowa and would later become Vennard’s president. Through the Lord’s direction and the influence of Dr. Harris and his wife, Sherri attended and graduated from Vennard. It was at Vennard where she heard the message of heart holiness and was sanctified. “It was no longer my will,” she said, “but His will be done in my life.”
After graduation, Sherri moved to Chicago and taught kindergarten in a Nazarene church preschool. She returned to Vennard to serve as Dr. Harris’s secretary. Sherri met and married her husband here. God called them to minister to Native Americans, and in 1969 WGM appointed them to serve on the American Indian Field at Southwest Indian School.
Over their years at SIS, Sherri ministered in several different capacities including secretary, teaching, dorm mother to thirty Indian boys, and teaching missionary children. Later they moved to WGM headquarters to serve on the support staff. They left WGM to pursue other opportunities, but after a number of years Sherri returned to headquarters and served as secretary in the Men With Vision department and then as executive secretary to the vice president of Homeland Ministries. It was here she met Nevin. They were married and appointed by WGM to serve as missionary pastors on the American Indian Field.
It was a fulfilling ministry for Nevin & Sherri. Much time was spent listening, counseling, encouraging, and praying with and for the missionaries and volunteers. Visiting the missionaries on the reservations was always a special time. Nevin was able to preach in some Navajo churches and hold a couple of revivals on the Navajo reservation. He shared, “We also had the privilege of ministering to some missionaries serving with other organizations. Those friendships have lasted across the years.” On the Tohono O’odham reservation, Nevin was invited to preach at a number of events, services, home meetings, and gatherings.
While planning to change ministries and go to the Tohono O’odham reservation to assist WGM missionaries Erwin and Naomi Patricio who were in failing health, Nevin was asked to become field director. “I initially resisted because I could remember the stress when I held that position in Burundi. I knew some changes were coming, and it wasn’t going to be easy.” Nevin and Sherri continued to pray and ask God what He wanted. He made it clear that they should accept. During his time as AIF director, Nevin over saw the closing of Southwest Indian School, which was a very difficult but necessary thing to do. Ministry on that campus was refocused and has been used to impact Native lives for Christ building on the foundation laid at SIS.
Health issues necessitated Nevin stepping out of the field director’s position, and Nevin and Sherri spent a year serving on the Tohono O’odham reservation pastoring the O’odham Gospel Church at Choulic. They retired in 2001—after Nevin had served thirty-three years and Sherri twenty years—and moved back to Iowa. They have been active in their local church where Sherri was in charge of the women’s ministry and Nevin served on the church board and taught one of the adult Sunday school classes. Together they oversaw the greeter and follow-up ministry. Nevin also returned to the police department to serve as a chaplain for several years. “As we look back over our lives,” he stated, “it’s such a blessing to see how the Lord has led, provided, and enabled.” Nevin has two children, six grandchildren, and one great grandchild. Sherri has two children (twins) and two grandchildren.