The Hodgmans have served with NCEM since 1980.
It was at a neighbourhood children’s Bible club in Terrace (BC) that Denise learned of God’s love and chose to follow Him. Her parents weren’t believers at the time, but soon after made the same decision.
Teen years in Salmon Arm (BC) were filled with activities like helping lead her church youth group and teaching Sunday school. At school there was sports, and Denise loved debating spiritual things with unsaved classmates.
Besides visiting missionaries, Denise’s church had sent out several missionaries who she, of course, knew personally. As a student at Peace River Bible Institute, she heard about NCEM’s summer program, and was already also thinking about life after college. “I was looking for an experience that would force me to depend on God, not myself, and would push me to live out all the biblical truths that were in my head,” she remembers.
Rollie was raised in a pastor’s home in Estevan (SK), and spent his teen years on the Bible school campus at Pambrun (SK). It was as a young child that he’d given his heart to the Lord, a choice reinforced by Sunday school, church clubs and Bible camp.
He heard many visiting missionaries speak in both Estevan and Pambrun. As a result, attending Bible college became a big decision. “After all,” he recalls thinking, “if I didn’t go to Bible school, I’d be off the hook for missions!”
At Winnipeg Bible College Rollie struggled in preaching class, but got enthused about print communication. After graphics arts training and some related employment, NCEM’s Art Tarry visited him telling of the need in the Mission’s Printshop. “It still took over a year, and some circumstances, to help me see clearly that that’s where the Lord wanted me,” he says.
As it turned out, in October 1980 Rollie and Denise were at NCEM Headquarters for their application interviews the same day. Denise would be stationed in northern Saskatchewan and Yukon and, after a mostly long distance courtship, Rollie proposed to her in the Northern Lights magazine (in secret code, of course — Denise had to circle the first letter in each sentence on a certain page). This publication remained a big part of his work for many years. They reside in Prince Albert, and have four married sons.
Denise recalls her decision to serve with NCEM: “It seemed unfair that as a teen I had youth group, Christian parents, Bible camp, visiting Bible school groups, lots of Christian friends … when the lone Christian teens in northern villages had none of these. At least I could be one friend for them.”
That same ministry calling has continued in the Hodgmans’ urban location, as they assisted in First Nations church planting and youth outreach for several years. Denise continues to connect with First Nations women, takes opportunities to teach young adults about cross-cultural ministry, while Rollie carries on with publications projects.
