About

OPC Short-Term Missions & Disaster Response seeks to…

  • Assist those who desire to serve to find an opportunity to suitable to their gifts and expectations
  • Assist churches or fields that need help finding a short-term team or individual who might serve in that capacity.
  • Assist the church in assessing the extent of disasters that affect our church properties or members
  • Mobilize the church to respond to needs created by a disaster
  • Encourage the church, in general, to strive towards service within and outside the church

The History of OPC Short-Term Missions

In 2005, when Katrina rolled onto our Gulf Coast shores and many within the church expressed their interest, willingness and desire to serve, this was the start of the OPC recognizing the need for one to labor full-time in coordinating not only the churches disaster response efforts, but also short-term missions in general.  Coupled with this was the growing work-load of Committee on Diaconal Ministries, as more and more diaconal needs within the church became apparent to this committee.  Along with this, over the last decade the Committee on Foreign Missions has also seen a great increase in short-term involvement with OPC foreign fields. These together precipitated the need for one to labor full time in the capacity of a short-term missions and disaster response coordinator.

Short-Term Missions Oversight

The Short-Term Missions and Disaster Response Coordinator reports to the Committee on Diaconal Ministries.  He also serves as a part-time administrator for the CDM.  But he also serves both the Committee on Home Missions and Church Extension and the Committee on Foreign Missions in coordinating and facilitating short-term missions and disaster response efforts both at home and around the world.

Meet the Short-Term Missions & Disaster Response Coordinator

David Nakhla David Nakhla grew up in the OPC at Calvary OPC in La Mirada, CA.  He has always had a keen interest in missions and OPC missionaries.  He was thrilled to meet his wife, Faith, an OPC “MK” (missionary kid) on a short-term missions trip.  Over the years, David enjoyed several mission trips to OPC fields (Eritrea, Uganda & Haiti) as well as participation in several Disaster Response efforts (Katrina and Haiti).  In 1997, David was ordained as a Deacon, and in 2002, he was ordained as a Ruling Elder.  After 15 years of working as an engineer, he opted to make a career change and responded to the call to serve the OPC as its first Short-Term Missions and Disaster Response Coordinator.  In August, 2010, the Nakhlas relocated from Southern California to the Philadelphia area to take up this new work.  David and Faith have been blessed with 5 children: Tina, Maddie, Emma, Josiah, and Marcus.  For more information, please read this article.