Serving the Lord Abroad: A dream come true?
Bethel graduate has followed his calling to Belize and Hawaii, but now he is back where he started in Minnesota.
By Sarah Bushard | Clarion Correspondent
As 25-year-old Dillon Crum sat at the airport waiting for his flight to board all he could do was smile. He had his wife Amber to his right and a good dark roast coffee to his left. He had taken many flights in his life to escape the Minnesota cold, but this one had no return flight.
Destination: Belize.
He heard the soothing Delta agent’s voice come through the speakers indicating that they were ready to board. Crum and his wife said one last prayer in Minnesota and then proceed toward the gate. A new adventure had begun.
“All passengers please secure all overhead luggage in the bins above you, tray tables in the upright position and your seat backs up. We are ready to pull back from the gate,” the Delta agent said.
The smell of coffee, the passenger’s bacon-egg-and-cheese bagel behind him and the cologne of the passenger next to him all swirled in the air.
Crum and his wife both are graduates of Bethel University. Dillon has a degree in international relations, Amber in biology. Both have had a desire to spread God’s word.
When they received the opportunity to travel with the mission company Praying Pelican, it was not an easy “Yes” like they initially thought. There were a lot of risks came with this opportunity. As a millennial, money had always been in the forefront of their minds. This opportunity wasn’t going to reward them in enormous amounts of monetary value but rather in many other ways that a price could not define. As a couple they decided that this was a risk they were willing to take.
“We knew whatever happened,” Crum said, “the Lord would provide us with what we needed.”
After landing in Belize City, they traveled to their main camp. Walking into camp, they saw about 50 teenage missionaries and their leaders were gathered in the main chapel. Crum’s wife Amber was fluent in Spanish, along with many Praying Pelican employees.
“The relationships that I built in Belize are beautifully unique.” — Amber Crum, wife and missionary
While in Belize they traveled to many locations, including Belize City, Bermudian Landing, Ladyville, Corozal for day service trips. Missions groups came and went but the most important part of their job was networking with the sponsors of the cities they were located in. Amber became a key member of their team during these interactions due to the fact that she became fluent in Spanish during her time at Bethel. The relationships that they built during these times are still bonded today.
Time passed and Dillon and Amber decided that it was time to move back to Minnesota to get married. They cherished the time they spent in Minnesota, reconnecting with friends and family that they were separated from for so long. Dillon and Amber did not stray away from the typical wedding planning stress. Parent relationships were struggling and approval was at an all-time low. During this time Dillon and Amber leaned on some of their best friends for support.
“Having them back in Minnesota was awesome. It was a whirlwind of three months but I was so blessed to have been a part of it all.” — Darin Bushard, Bethel roommate
At the end of this period of time, relationships had been mended so Amber and Dillon decided that there was another adventure awaits them.
Hawaii was calling their names. This time there was no calling from a mission’s company. There was no set job in place. There wasn’t even housing lined up for them but that didn’t slow them down. When arriving in Hawaii life was very different: time slowed down, crashing waves filled the humid soft air. They loved it. As they believed, the Lord provided the opportunities they needed. Both Amber and Dillion started working at a horticulture therapy camp for at risk youth. This program was not faith based but that did not stop them from pursuing the Lord and spreading the Gospel in small ways.
After much time in Hawaii Dillon and Amber were faced with another challenge. A little baby was in their near future and the debate of moving again began to rise.
“We didn’t want to be selfish,” Crum said. “Both of our parents were in the lower 48 states and knew they would love to be there for the firsts of their grandchild.”
Once again, they found themselves buying plane tickets back to Minnesota. Unfortunately, their arrival date was during the epic polar vortex that Minnesota experienced last winter. Amber came first and came alone. The fears and anxiety of traveling while pregnant were at bay because she knew she had a welcoming family and friends to greet her.
“It was a pure blessing that I was able to be at home with Amber when she first came,” Casey Bushard, a family friend said. “I think if I wasn’t there she would have turned around and went right back to Hawaii.”
Baby Judah was welcomed into the world in April. Life fell into place. Dillon has since been working at Bethel University on the grounds keeping crew, Amber is a live-in home health aide and Judah is growing bigger every day. Working at Bethel was never a goal of Dillon’s but now he doesn’t know what else he could find the same amount of fulfilment from. He loves to watch the Bethel community continues to grow and prosper.
“I love that when I am at work we can talk about a scripture we are studying or a podcast that we are listening to and the conversation is real and raw,” Crum said. “We are all encouraging each other to be strong Godlymen which is seen all across the Bethel community. Our interactions are far deeper than surface level.”
For the Crum family, the Hawaiian Islands will be forever calling their name, when it feels right they will not hesitate to follow that calling.
Bio box: About Dillon Crum
- Go to Movie: Saving Private Ryan.
- Favorite Food: Chicken fried steak *disclaimer, he is from Texas*.
- Dream Missions Location: Hawaii.
- Preferred cup of coffee: Black.
- Dream Occupation: Organic vegetable farmer in Hawaii.
Source: Dillon Crum
Follow Along map: Dillon’s travels
- Born in Conroe, Texas
- Lived in: Sacramnto, California and Seattle, Washington during childhood
- Attended Bethel for four years
- Missions in Belize: Belize City, Bermudian Landing, Ladyville, Corozal
- Hawaii: Kailua-Kona and worked in Hilo
- Minnesota
Source: Dillon Crum
Fast Facts: Praying Pelican Missions
- Location: Bloomington, MN
- Specialty: Short term mission trips
- How many countries do they travel to: 14.
- Where the name began: Pelicans are common in the carribian and that is where this ministry began, the founders wanted to incorporate something fun and memorable into their logo.
- Missionaries: 50,000 have served
Source: Praying Pelican Missions Website
