Bob & Kathy are Beyond Checkered Flags Ministries’ Pastors/Chaplains to one of NASCAR’s national race series,

NASCAR’s ARCA Menards Series West.

As Beyond Checkered Flags Ministries, Bob and Kathy work in a ministry alliance with Motor Racing Outreach Association and Youth With A Mission. Motor Racing Outreach (MRO).

As you will come to see, Bob and Kathy’s YWAM experience, plus Bob’s life-long relationship with racing, will blend into a unique new ministry alliance using the strengths of YWAM and MRO to reach not only the racing community, but the world as well for the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

MRO takes “church to the track” as they conduct on site Chapel services, Bible studies, personalized counseling, a children’s program, and perform crisis intervention to the racers, their families, and team in the event of racing accidents. Special conferences at year’s end help to develop stronger marriages, family, and personal relationships, plus provide leadership training, and personal witnessing resources to the racing community.

Born near Rochester, New York, Bob has been involved with, and loved the sport of auto racing since around the age of five. The youngest of two boys, his parents brought him up in the church, but it was really not until 1978 and living in Oregon before he totally committed his life to serving Jesus Christ. Bob says: “that was the greatest day of my life. I met my personal Savior and my future wife in one morning!” He immediately recognized God’s call on his life for ministry and began classes with Aloha School of the Bible and Portland Bible College through his local church. Prior to this, his career included four years in the U.S. Air Force and long haul trucking across America until he married his wife Kathy in 1980. He trained in college as an architect while working at Eastman Kodak before entering the Air Force.

Kathy is a native Oregonian from Aloha, Oregon and became a Christian during High School. She graduated from Aloha High School in 1974. Bob and Kathy became best friends upon meeting at a church College & Career group in 1978. At that time Kathy worked at a bank in Aloha. Their time was spent ministering with their local church outreach every Saturday night for a number of years. Married in 1980, their daughters became Christians at a young age and have traveled internationally in ministry with their parents since 1987 and on their own as they grew. Today, both girls are married with families of their own serving the Lord God Jesus Christ.

After leaving trucking, Bob worked as a Letter Carrier with the U.S. Postal Service as he attended Bible College. In 1987 Bob and Kathy went into full time ministry with Youth With A Mission, (YWAM), one of the largest inter-denominational missionary training, evangelistic, and mercy ministry agencies around the world today. They have led outreach teams to Europe, the former Soviet bloc nations and Mexico. Bob was the YWAM ministry Administrator at the Salem, Oregon campus while Kathy used her accounting talents as Financial Administrator for many years.

“Kathy is my best friend and my ministry partner in every thing I have done, and the race ministry is even more effective when she can be with me,” says Bob. Bob and Kathy actively attend Church on the Hill in Salem and enjoy working with the Marriage ministry, and numerous other seminars throughout each year.

Bob says: “It is such a privilege to now give back to the sport in such a special way, after all the fun and joy it has given me through the years. With Kathy we have a powerful ministry team that can offer so much love, care, and assistance to each person involved in the racing community. We want to be available when someone has a need to talk or counsel.” We share here to simply Love on people.

Bob and Kathy’s favorite scripture for their family is Psalms 127:1 ” If you do not build your house with the Lord, you are laboring in vain to build it.” They believe that no matter what you try to accomplish, the Lord Jesus Christ is the foundation and the first person to involve in the goal or issue at hand.

Their desire to live out before their racing constituents comes from 2 Corinthians 2:14 in the Amplified Bible text. ” But thanks be to God, Who in Christ always leads us in triumph – as trophies of Christ’s victory – and through us spreads and makes evident the fragrance of the knowledge of God everywhere, for we are the sweet smelling fragrance of Christ, unto God, among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing.” Through their ministry the goal is to change and improve lives to follow in their footsteps among the racing community.