Mark Rainbow (Team Leader)

I am 22, born on 11th February 1986. I originate from a town called Southwell, in Nottinghamshire England, where my parents still live with my brother Alex who is 16. I also have a sister, Helen, who is 24 and lives and works in London. I currently live in Durham, where I have just finished reading Theology at the University. I will be starting work at Christchurch Durham as an Associate at the beginning of September. Having grown up in a Christian family I am very privileged to be able to say that I cannot remember a day when I would not have said I was a Christian. I am very grateful to God for his work in keeping me Christian and helping me to see more and more of his grace and love, while also seeing more and more my own sinfulness.

I have visited Japan once before, last summer, when I was part of the Serve Japan team to Sapporo to work with Richard East and fmZERO. I am very excited at the prospect of returning this year and once again being involved in the hands on work amongst students in Sapporo.

I am a keen sportsman, and I love playing Football and Cricket. I also enjoy baseball. I have been privileged enough to be able to travel to various places in the world, which I have always found very enjoyable. I love to explore the outdoors, and to see different landscapes and sceneries. I also enjoy history, and a sad fact about me is that I can name every American President since the 1st World War.

Annie Wood

Hello! My name is Annie Wood and I am 19 years old. My birthday is on 11th December. I live in the south-east of London, but I study at university in Durham. I am a student, and I have just finished my first year at university studying history. I have two siblings, both are older than me. My brother is 26 years old, and my sister is 24 years old. I grew up in a Christian family, but it was only when I was about 14 that I fully realised the consequences of trusting in Jesus; full assurance of eternal life, and a call to live a distinct life with Jesus at the centre of it. I particularly enjoy playing the saxophone, and also football- I am in a women´s football team at university, but we do not win many games!

Rob Brown

My name is Rob Brown. I am 21 years old and, although originally from north London, I now live in Durham. I have a small family with just one sister and two cousins. I am very excited about the year ahead as I look forward to starting work as an apprentice at my local church, having finished my degree in Classics only a few weeks ago. Although I was taken to church when I was very young I only became a Christian in my last year of School, as I realised that if I thought the gospel was true then I needed to submit my whole life to Jesus. I am also very excited about this summer as it will be my first trip to Japan. My interests are primarily in sport and especially rugby, football and cricket and these both as a spectator and participant. Having said this I also enjoy walking and watching films.

Natalie Lee

Hello! My name is Natalie Lee. I´m 19 years old so am still a teenager (just!) and my birthday is on 10th August. I come from quite a multicultural background as my family tend to move about as much as we manage to. I was born in Hong Kong and grew up there until I was 13 years old. My family then moved to Belgium because of my mum´s job and that´s when I started going to school in Kent. My parents stayed in Belgium for 4 / 5 years until about two years ago when they moved again to Singapore, while I stayed in the UK with my sister who lives in Cambridge at the moment. I am now a student at Durham University studying Geography and have just finished my first year.

Although my parents aren´t Christians, I went to a Christian school and was brought up knowing a good few Bible stories. I did not know what believing in Jesus really meant but have always been moved by how loving Christians are and what strong characters they have. I went along to the Christian Union in my secondary school but I was still living my own life until three years ago when the gospel was so clearly explained to me on a conference that I realised what Jesus has done for us on the cross and what the right response should be. I was deeply convicted and amazed at Jesus´ love and there was nothing I could do except to ask for his mercy. There´ve been so many times when I have fallen short of his glory. I have found it particularly hard when I´m at home and it is a real challenge to settle in a home church as my family move from place to place, but God has never failed to strike me with his faithfulness and keep me in Christ who has sealed me in his righteousness. God is amazing!

I went to Japan with a group of friends 2 years ago to Osaka for a week. One of my friends is half Japanese and she did prove to be useful as she spoke fluent Japanese, making it much easier to get by during our stay. I was fascinated by the language and have been trying hard to learn it very slowly on my own. I guess my diverse background also helped me develop an interest in different cultures and I do think culture is often best expressed in food! I love cooking all sorts of things and exploring different kinds of cuisines while trying my hardest to watch my waistline! So I try to play a lot of basketball at college and do a bit of running every now and then. I play a few musical instruments as well, most especially classical guitar. I am very much looking forward to going to Sapporo to see the Lord work in Japan.

Tom Welch

Hi! My name is Tom Welch, I am 19 and I was born on 24th November 1988. I´m currently at Durham University, having just completed my first year in Philosophy, but am restarting next year doing Classics instead. I was born in Stevenage, and when not in Durham live with my parents and 17-year old sister Jo in Letchworth Garden City, a small suburb on the train line to London, home to the world´s first roundabout. I am lucky enough to have been brought up in a Christian household, and so cannot remember a specific moment when I became Christian, although there have been a few pivotal moments along the way. Coming to university has clarified my understanding of the good news of grace and the lordship of Jesus, and has helped me to realise the urgency of the need to spread this message to the ends of the earth.

My interests include reading, although it has been a struggle to read for pleasure outside of university requirements this year, and table tennis - I have also played the drums for eight years, but my skill level in no way reflects that amount of time! I have never been to Japan before and am greatly looking forward to arriving, although it is in many ways a daunting prospect. I have been enjoying learning a little of the language in preparation.