Author: Jurgen & Katja

Under the Mangotree
By Jurgen & Katja

Under the Mangotree

(Below you will find the story of Emy van Polen-Manuel. She has written down this story, for us to put on our website, to tell people about the importance of missionary work.)

My name is Emy van Polen-Manuel and this is my testimony.

I have been born on the Philippines in a small village called General Mamerto Natividad. I am the oldest daughter in my family and after me my parents received one son and another six daughters.

There was a little Catholic church in our village but I did not really like the services. One day a woman from a far and strange country arrived in our village. She sat down under a big Mangotree and told beautiful Biblestories with colourful pictures. My mother did not like this at all and did not want me to go anymore. Still, as a child I was drawn to these meeting so I went secretly.

The stories were about Jesus and I started to understand them. I enjoyed  the singing with the other children. After a while my mother discoverd that I was not only visiting under the Mangotree but also attended sundayschool. She was very angry and tried to prevent me from going. She said: “If you want to meet that evangelist you will have to clean te house first and then you will have to water the plants en tidy the garden!”

I did this every sunday, very early in the morning, and afterwards I went to sundayschool. It was there that I gave my heart to Jesus en He has never forsaken me after that!

After me my brother and later my sisters all accepted Christ and we have been baptist in the river. Some time later my father followed and lastly my mother accepted Jesus as well. My brother is a pastor in a small church near the our homevillage.

Beacuse of a shortage of nurses in the Netherlands I ended up in Eindhoven. There I met my husband and together we received two sons. They married as well and now we are blessed with five grandchildren and awaiting two more. I am a very happy grandmother as all our children and their families know Jesus as their personal saviour, Creator and Lord.

God is good foor al of us! He really loves everybody and He loves you! What is your answer to His neverending love?

General: Willem & Renske Bas
By Jurgen & Katja

General: Willem & Renske Bas

Willem and Renske Bas joined the team in 2018. They both have a heart for mission and the un-reached. Willem and Renske are practical people and when we asked them to join the homefrontcommittee they first wanted to know what their function would be. They are very employable so we gave them the label ‘general’ They are people of prayer, they love children and they are never to busy for a chat! We value their input greatly, and are happy with them in our team

Logistics: David Pavlotzky
By Jurgen & Katja

Logistics: David Pavlotzky

Logistical support can entail many things. David helped us when we moved to England and later he send our newsletters. When we came back to Holland he helped us getting a house. Now, whilst on the field, he supports us in practical matters like maintaining a server on which he hosts our website. Also other thing which we can’t manage from Madagascar, David is our man.

David is also our contact person in Holland:
Tel.:+31 654203683

Prayer
By Jurgen & Katja

Prayer

The most important way in which you can support us is through your prayers. “Unless the Lord builds the house, the builders labour in vain… (Psalm 127:1). We believe God has led us sofar and that his blessing cannot be missed.

More specifically you can pray for the current events.  You can read about the most recent developments in the topics on the left of our ‘Welcome’ page. More specific prayer and praise requests can be found in our newsletters (archive).

Ofcourse, you can subscribe to our newsletters right away. Your ongoing prayers are much appreciated.

Moral support
By Jurgen & Katja

Moral support

A sportsman receives a lot of support from his supporters, who cheer and exhort the sportsman, especially when the going gets tough. In the same way missionaries needs supports, a ‘Keep up the good work!’ every now and then.

We love to be and stay in touch with family and friends. We like to be missionaries together with you. Together we can do more and reach further.

You can contact us through email:

Contactform

of through post. You can find our details on our contact page.

Financial Support
By Jurgen & Katja

Financial Support

A third important form of support is financial support. As we are not paid a salary by AIM or by the churches that support us, there is the need of financial support to make our mission possible.

All donations are welcome, large, and small, just once or regularly. Your donations will be used for e.g. visa and other paperwork, housing and schooling. Besides those practical matters we will have certain costs in the ministry work as well (travelling, local helpers, study materials etc.). Finally, we need to save for home-assignments (after a couple of years we will have furlough to visit family and friends).

Regular donations may be paid with the following form(s):

Mandate form for donors from the UK. The form can be sent by post to AIM-UK (address can be found on the forms). Please download and print the forms, do not e-mail but send the forms through the post. Banks will only act on the instructions if it is an original form (not a scanned signature).

We advise donors from other countries to contact AIM directly, as forms and procedures differ per country:

US: receipting.us@aimint.org

EU: accountsofficer.eu@aimint.org

NL: finance.nl@aimint.org

For other countries, please contact one of the offices above and ask for the applicable e-mail address.

Donations for our car:

We do have ongoing costs (repairs; maintenance cost approx €2000 per year). If you want to give specifically for our transport you can use the same procedure as described above, just mention to the office that it is a gift for the car.

One-off donations

On off donations can be done by sending a cheque or bank transfer. Cheques should be made payable to AIM International and sent to AIM International, Halifax Place, Nottingham, NG1 1QN (please send a small letter to explain it is to support us).

If you want to make a bank transfer then you will need to contact the office for a reference number (otherwise when the money comes into their bank they do not know it’s for our support).

Also, tell the office when your donation is meant for our car.

One-off payments can also be done with the form above.

For sponsors from other country, please contact the AIM office in your country (see addresses above)

One-off alternatives:

Buy us a cup of coffee

Donate with PayPal

Donate through STRIPE

For questions about financial support:

accountsofficer.eu@aimint.org or Tel: +44 (0)115 9838 120

We are grateful for your support!

Jurgen
By Jurgen & Katja

Jurgen

Jurgen was trained and has worked as a bread-baker. Through the testimony and efforts of his first employer he has embraced Christ Jesus as his Lord. After our oldest daughter was born he became a homemaker until he started studying Theology & Mission in 2011. He is preparing himself for our missionary work through his studies, reading and various courses. In his spare time he maintains his website on defending the faith.

Katja
By Jurgen & Katja

Katja

Katja has helped her mother in her flower shop from a young age. During her Law Study she worked at a bailiff’s office. After graduation she became a lawyer in 2002. Since Jurgen started his Theology Study she took his place as a homemaker and started home educating the children, also in preparation for conditions on the mission field. Now, on the field, she is still the children’s teacher which gives us great flexibility. She loves being there for her family. As a passtime she enjoys being in the outdoors and reading.

Vanya
By Jurgen & Katja

Vanya

Vanya is our oldest child (2004). She loves to read and play music on her flute and violin. Vanya moved back to the Netherlands in September 2025 to study maths at the university.