As a young married couple fresh off a conversion experience, Frank and Genie Summers took a radical step. They sold their belongings and left behind a comfortable life in the United States to serve as Catholic missionaries abroad along with their son, Beau.
Many thought they were crazy. They were indeed crazy for the Lord. They knew the Lord was calling them, and they could not ignore that call.
After working among the poor with their family in several countries including Tonga, the Bahamas, American Samoa, the Philippines and Mexico – their own children growing in number along the way (seven in all) – they were inspired to train other families and individuals to serve as foreign missionaries.
They saw that the harvest was great and the laborers few, and that more laborers were needed in the vineyard of foreign Catholic missions. Thus, Family Missions Company (FMC) was born.
In 1997, the small organization began operations, and in 2001 the Summerses led the first formal training for FMC missionaries. From a humble home base in southwest Louisiana, these missionaries were sent to the ends of the earth.
Twenty-five years after the founding of FMC, hundreds of missionaries from across the United States and other parts of the world have been trained to serve in Central and South America, the Caribbean, Asia, Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
The objective of Family Missions Company is to serve the poor, preach the Gospel and make disciples – carrying out both corporal and spiritual works of mercy. While recognizing that the poor have needs that cannot be neglected, FMC also knows that only Jesus can feed their souls and ultimately satisfy them.
FMC missionaries serve both in places that are culturally Catholic but under-evangelized and in countries where the majority of the population has never heard the Good News. They take on a variety of ministries according to the needs of the area they are serving and the gifts God has given each missionary team or family.
John Paul Plummer began his journey with FMC as an intern in 2016. During that time, he experienced the call to full-time foreign missions and has served in northern Peru since 2018.
Plummer and his teammates live in an area where two priests are responsible for more than 100 villages – some of which require several hours of travel and a four-wheel-drive vehicle to reach. The presence of missionaries is essential for providing catechesis and evangelization, equipping local lay leaders and assisting the people in their material needs.
One of the projects Plummer’s team has spearheaded is that of creating sustainable income for families and individuals struggling to make ends meet. Last year, they sought to assist Rider, Monica and their two small children, whose mud home had suffered significant rain damage. This family was working odd jobs and making only enough money to buy food each day. There was little hope of saving to repair their home.
The missionaries could have simply raised funds for the repairs. Instead, they found a way to help Rider and Monica sustain themselves for the long term. They invested in the equipment necessary for the couple to start a bakery and the training to run it.
The business has become a success. The family bakes bread daily for customers from all over town, and now they are looking to expand their selection.
Not only do Rider and Monica have a sustainable source of income, but they also have a more manageable schedule. This allows them to be evangelists in their own village, serving alongside the missionaries in some of their efforts.
The missionaries have also helped start a successful family restaurant and are now beginning a tilapia farm for a man who is too fragile in health to work an intense job. Plummer says he finds joy “seeing how the locals take pride in their jobs, work hard and support themselves and their families through these means.”
In this area of northern Peru, FMC has three missionary families and a team of women, in addition to the team of men that Plummer leads. Peru is just one of the locations throughout the world where FMC missionaries are carrying out Christ’s command to “go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel.” (Mark 16:15)
To learn more about becoming a full-time missionary, supporting FMC’s work or going on a weeklong mission trip, visit familymissionscompany.com.
Cate Broadbent has served as a missionary in Mexico and Peru. She is currently the manager of media and communications for Family Missions Company and lives in Colorado with her husband, Mike.