The Fellowship's 30 Years

This year, Kanto Gakuin University's The Fellowship group will be thirty years old!

The Fellowship started in 1979, when American Baptist missionaries, Charles and Judith DeRolf began inviting students over to their home for Bible studies and meals together. The DeRolfs continued leading this group until they retired from work in Japan in 2005. Here are some quick historical highlights of The Fellowship:

1982: The Fellowship becomes an official club of students at the university.

1985: Eiji Osato becomes a Bible teacher at Kanto Gakuin Mutsuura Jr./Sr. High school and begins helping out at the Fellowship.

1992: Eiji Osato and his wife, Emi (whom he met at the Fellowship group) become Japan Baptist Union missionaries to Thailand, working in leadership development among the Karen tribal group

1993: Fellowship goes to the USA (Yosemite National Park and Chicago, IL)

1994: Fellowship goes to Thailand to volunteer with the Osato family

late 1990s: The Fellowship takes a number of overseas trips (to Kuala Lampur, Malaysia, and to multiple places in the US)

1999: Sanae Nakajima, a Fellowship alum, founds "Free the Children, Japan"--an NGO which works to save children around the world from exploitation

(see http://www.ftcj.com/index.html )

2002: Fellowship goes to Boulder, CO, USA

2005: The DeRolf family retires from missionary work in Japan; Rev. Hogari becomes the advisor; Rev. Noh begins volunteering with the group

2006: The Fellowship begins annually welcoming two groups Korean college students for cultural exchange; Dwight begins volunteering with the group

This year, we start our 30th year of friendship-building and Christian witness. PTL!