Africa
The WELS One Africa Team currently works with established church bodies in Cameroon, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Nigeria, Uganda, and Zambia, partnering in outreach and assisting with theological education programs. The team is also exploring outreach opportunities and following up on promising contacts identified through Multi-Language Productionās TELL program in 15 countries. Nine missionaries serve on the One Africa Team, one of whom works exclusively with the TELL program.
Fast facts
- Mission partners in 7 countries
- Exploratory mission work in 15 countries
- 9 missionaries
- TELL church planters in 10 countries
Meet the One Africa Team
Rev. Ben Foxen - Tanzania
Missionary Benjamin Foxen serves on the outreach committee of the One Africa Team as it seeks to engage the whole continent of Africa with the gospel of our Savior, Jesus Christ. Foxen works primarily with churches in Tanzania and Uganda. The Foxen family moved from Zambia to Arusha, Tanzania, to support that work in early 2026.
Foxen graduated from Martin Luther College in 2005 and from Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary in 2010. Foxen served as a missionary to Russia from 2010-2016 and as pastor of Cross of Glory Lutheran Church in Peoria, Ariz., from 2016-2022.
He and his wife Rebekah, nƩe Laitinen, were married in 2006. God has blessed them with four children: Levi, Kirsi, Katya, and Leia.
Rev. Joel Hoff - TELL Missionary
Missionary Joel Hoff joined the TELL Network team in September 2022 as the TELL Missionary in Africa. He partners with the One Africa Team to equip and encourage men throughout Africa through TELL. As an instructor and mentor, he teaches TELL courses, walks alongside students as they grow in their understanding of Godās Word, and helps prepare them to serve as Bible leaders and disciple-makers in their own communities.
Before joining TELL, Hoff served in WELS mission fields in Cameroon (2010ā2013), Albania (2006ā2007), and Ukraine. In the United States, he served as pastor of Divine Peace in Renton, Washington (2013ā2018) and Trinity in Neenah, Wisconsin (2018ā2022).
Joel and his wife, Kate, live in Lusaka, Zambia, with their four sons: Micah, Caleb, Josiah, and Benjamin.
Rev. Howard Mohlke - Zambia
Missionary Howard Mohlke is the leader of the One Africa Team. He represents WELS in Africa, specifically maintaining and developing good working relationships with partner churches throughout the continent. He is also responsible for leading, managing, and holding accountable the team of missionaries who are tasked with developing and carrying out various aspects of WELS mission work in Africa. He and his wife Leslie are empty nesters, currently living in Lusaka, Zambia.
From 1991-2000, Mohlkeās first call was to be a missionary in Zambia, followed by being called as a pastor back in the United States from 2000-2017. In 2007, he became part of the Board for World Missions and continued in his pastoral and board positions until 2017, when he became Director of the Apache Christian Training School at the Native American mission in Arizona. In 2020, he accepted the call to become the One Africa Team leader.
The Mohlkes have five grown children: Elizabeth, Sarah, and Philip who went to Zambia as small children, and Timothy and Rachel who were born there. All are married and together have blessed the Mohlkes with eight grandchildren.
Rev. Mark Panning - Malawi
Missionary Mark Panning has served on the One Africa Team since 2006 and lives in Lilongwe, Malawi. He is the One Africa Teamās liaison to the Lutheran Church of Central AfricaāMalawi Synod and to ministry partners in Ethiopia, including the Lutheran Church of Ethiopia and several new outreach groups in western Ethiopia. He also consults on worker training programs for ministry partners throughout Africa. Prior to his service with the One Africa Team, he served for 13 years as a pastor in central Wisconsin.
Dr. Chris Pluger ā Zambia
Missionary Chris Pluger joined the One Africa Team in August 2026. He primarily works to develop ministry training programs with partner churches across the continent.
Pluger and his wife, Janine, come to the One Africa Team after ten years with Lutheran Bible Translators. During that time, he served as a translation consultant, working alongside mother-tongue speakers to help translate the Bible clearly and accurately into their language for the first time. Chris and Janine spent five years in Petauke, Zambia, with the Nsenga Bible Translation project and later served alongside multiple language projects in Ethiopia, where they lived for five years. In addition to his Bible translation experience, Pluger has more than fifteen years of teaching experience in the United States and abroad. He served at Wisconsin Lutheran High School and Great Plains Lutheran High School, where he taught Spanish, religion, and Latin, led student mission and study trips, and coached the chess team.
Pluger holds a PhD from South African Theological Seminary, an MA in Applied Linguistics from Dallas International University, and a BA from Martin Luther College (pastor track).
He and his wife, Janine, live in Chipata, Zambia. Their adult son, Sean, lives and works in Watertown, S.D.
Rev. John Roebke - Tanzania
Missionary John Roebke serves as the integrator of the One Africa Team. In this role, he helps team leader Howard Mohlke administer the work of the mission team. In addition, he oversees consultancy work with African national worker training programs, serves as liaison with WELS’ sister church in Kenya, and coordinates promotions for the One Africa Team through their blog and Facebook page.
Roebke served as a missionary in Bulgaria from 1994-2004. He planted a church in the Sofia suburb of Mladost and taught courses on English and the Bible. They also served in Vidin, where Roebke and a Bulgarian national vicar began work in urban and rural areas. From 2004-2008 Roebke served Peace in Wautoma, Wis., and then Lamb of God in Madison, Ala., from 2008-2017. In 2017, Roebke and his wife Nancy moved to Lilongwe, Malawi, to begin serving with the WELS One Africa Team. They relocated to Arusha, Tanzania, to continue their work in early 2026.
Roebke and his wife Nancy were married in 1993. They have two adult daughters, Liliana and Christiana, who were both born in Bulgaria and now live in the U.S.
Mr. Jake Vilhauer - Zambia
Missionary Jake Vilhauer serves on the One Africa Team outreach team, assisting in the work of reaching out to new contacts and developing relationships with potential new gospel outreach partners. His work focuses on French-speaking contacts. He also teaches classes and serves as a counselor for students in the TELL Network and serves as an advisor to the One Africa Team in educational matters. The Vilhauers started their ministry in France with a three-month immersion course in the French language, followed by an additional three months in Douala, Cameroon, using the French language. They then relocated to Lusaka, Zambia, to begin work with the One Africa Team.
Vilhauer graduated and was assigned from Martin Luther College in May 2024 with a major in secondary social studies and a minor in coaching. He married Madelynne (nƩe Hockenbery) in 2024. They welcomed their first baby, Suzanna, in 2025 and are expecting their second child in March 2027.
Access printable biographies and a complete directory of world missionaries in the world missionary biography resource package.
Senegal
In 2023, the Board for World Missions approved a plan to send two missionaries to Senegal to learn the culture and language of the Muslim Wolof tribe in preparation for sharing the gospel and gathering a congregation. The Wolof people make up a large portion of the population and have had very limited exposure to Christianity, making this a new opportunity for ārawā mission work starting from scratch. Missionary Dan Kroll, who previously served on the One Africa Team, accepted the call, and Missionary Stephen Gerling was assigned from Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary in May 2026 to serve alongside him. Both families will relocate and begin their work in September 2026, pending no unexpected delays. Their first six months will be spent living in with a Muslim Wolof family in Dakar, learning the language and culture, and building relationships that will lay the foundation for future gospel outreach. It is the prayer that this work will not only bring the gospel to the Wolof people but also serve as a resource and encouragement for future outreach in Muslim communities around the world. View photos from Senegal.
Meet the missionaries to Senegal
Rev. Stephen Gerling
Missionary Stephen Gerling graduated from Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary in May 2026. He was assigned to serve as a missionary to Senegal, a primarily Muslim nation, to serve the Wolof people. He will partner with Missionary Dan Kroll, initially focusing on learning the language, building relationships, and gaining an understanding of this unique culture to formulate a plan for future ministry. God willing, they will also serve as a resource for future outreach in Muslim communities around the world. They relocated and began their work in September 2026.
Gerling and his wife, Hannah (nƩe Stellick), grew up as missionary kids in East Asia and were married in 2018. In 2020, Gerling enrolled in the Pre-Seminary Certification program at Martin Luther College (MLC) to pursue becoming a second-career pastor. During their time at MLC and Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary, they were blessed with three children: Sofia, Silas (now in heaven), and Elisha.
Rev. Dan Kroll
Missionary Dan Kroll has accepted a call to serve as missionary to Senegal. He and his wife, Karen, will focus on language and culture immersion as they prepare for gospel outreach among the Wolof people, a Muslim population that has had very limited exposure to Christianity. Their early work will center on learning the Wolof language, adjusting to daily life, and laying the groundwork for long-term ministry. They relocated and began their work in September 2026.
Kroll graduated from Dr. Martin Luther College in 1983 and spent three years working on an evangelism program for WELS and Reformation in San Diego, Calif., before starting at Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary. In 1992, Kroll was assigned to Zambia. He served in congregational oversight and general church development through teaching small groups. He later served in Lake City, Minn. (2009-2014); Kumba, Cameroon (2014ā2018); and Lilongwe, Malawi (2018ā2026) before accepting the call to Senegal. Until they move in September, Dan will continue to serve as the One Africa Team liaison for West African partners in Cameroon and Nigeria and support outreach efforts in Liberia and western Ethiopia.
He and his wife, Karen, were married in 1991. They have five adult children and seven grandchildren: Ezekiel, his wife Amanda, and their children Oliver and Milo (Wis.); Josiah, his wife Becca, and their children Judah, Izzy, Ezra, Joanna, and Phoebe (Texas); Elijah and wife Makilah (Alaska); Jonah and wife Jamee (Fla.); and Gideon (Alaska).
Download and read more biographies at wels.net/missionarybios.
Hear more from new Missionary Stephen Gerling and his wife, Hannah:
Connect with the One Africa Team and the Central Africa Medical Mission
Red = Mission Partners: National church partners in fellowship with WELS and partnering in outreach
Blue = Exploratory missions work: Promising contacts reaching out for fellowship or other areas of assistance OR new outreach by WELS missionaries or national church partners
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PICTURES OF AFRICA
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