Gerritt & Tara Kenyon

Gerritt & Tara Kenyon have been ministering in Panama since 2010.  As they have been sharing the gospel in the public high schools of Panama City through ethics and character presentations, an urgent need has emerged through altar-time conversations with students.  An alarming number of students, primarily, though not exclusively, girls, have come to them ruined by the horror of sexual abuse.  Through these altar times, the Holy Spirit has burdened the Kenyons to take action in the lives of these girls, mending these broken daughters.

In response, they have hosted an annual Girls-Only event since 2012 called “ILUMINA” to address these taboo issues and facilitate healing through dynamic testimonies and the presentation of the gospel as their hope & future.  They minister to over 3,000 girls throughout each conference.  They hosted their first boys conference in 2017 and ministered to over 700 young men in the one day event.

In addition to the annual conference and on-going school ministry, the Kenyons have opened El Refuge Urban Ministry Center as a place where students can go before and after school, the hours when sexual abuse is known to commonly take place.  At El Refuge, students get help with homework, learn English and advanced computer programs, as they participate in mentoring and discipleship.