Josh & Katie Pate
Missionaries to Côte d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast), Africa
www.pates2africa.com
Video Presentation
Having been reared in Christian homes, Josh and Katie both accepted Christ as Savior at a young age. After surrendering their lives to the Lord for use in His service, He began to confirm His call on their lives for missions. While at Camp BIMI during high school, God confirmed the direction of missions for Josh using II Corinthians 4:5-7. God worked in Katie’s heart regarding foreign missions while listening to a missionary preach in her home church. God directed both Josh and Katie to attend Ambassador Baptist College where Josh graduated with a degree in Missions and Katie with a degree in Elementary Education. They met while at Ambassador and were married in May, 2018. God blessed them with their first daughter, Allison, in September, 2019, their second daughter, Madelyn, in May 2021, and their third daughter, Bethanie, in December, 2023.
Josh completed a two-month internship in the Ivory Coast with BIMI Missionary Bob Mach in the summer of 2017. During this internship, God burdened and directed Josh towards church planting in the unreached villages of the Ivory Coast, beginning around the town of Bingerville. Josh and Katie took a survey trip together to this area in March, 2019 where God confirmed that He was directing them to this permanent work.
Josh served on staff at their sending church, Crossroads Baptist Church in Columbus, NC, from May, 2019 through August, 2020. During this 16-month period, Josh and Katie both had the opportunity to learn practical local-church ministry and gain valuable experience from their sending church.
The Pates traveled in full-time deputation from September, 2020 through February, 2022 and, subsequently, enrolled in French language school in Québec, Canada. After completing language school, the Pates arrived in the Ivory Coast on August 2, 2023.
During their first term, the Pate family anticipates gaining experience from veteran missionaries in the town of Bingerville while simultaneously working towards their first church plant in the nearby village of Anan. There is much spiritual potential in the Ivory Coast and the Pates look forward to being tools in the Lord’s hands to watch Him “do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think.” (Ephesians 3:20)
