Founded by passionate leaders with a heart for cross cultural ministry
QUEST Academy is supported by a dedicated board of trustees. Together, we empower leaders to impact nations through transformative education and community-focused outreach.
Board of Trustees
Marcus Baeder
“Marcus was born and raised in Switzerland. His parents shared the gospel with him at a young age and he decided to follow Jesus when he was 10 years old. He moved to the USA at age 17, where he studied biology (BA) and public health (MPH, Epidemiology). He then spent 3 years in breast cancer research at Georgetown University’s Lombardi Cancer Center, particularly in the area of molecular genetics and epidemiology. Marcus and his wife Jen joined SIM in 2005 and moved to Burkina Faso in 2007, where Marcus worked with HOPE for AIDS as Technical Advisor for 5 years. During that time, he also served as HOPE for AIDS International Coordinator from 2011 to 2017. In 2014, Marcus and his family moved to South Africa, and started serving as the SIM International Projects Coordinator and Southern Africa Zonal Coordinator for a few years, before filling in as Interim Regional Director for Southern Africa, and briefly as Acting Regional Director for Pacific Asia. He is the SIM Regional Director for Europe since February 2020. Marcus enjoys cooking, mountain-biking, and snowboarding, as well as listening to and playing music. Marcus has a lovely wife, Jen, a 11-year old son, Silas, and 2 year old son, Elias. They live in Möhlin, Switzerland, about 30min East of Basel.“
JOHN BECKER
John is the Director of Ministries for African Inland Mission (AIM)and the International Coordinator for the Vision 5:9 Network. He serves Muslim communities in Africa, Europe, and North America, with a passion for launching collaborative missional efforts. A contributing author of several books, including Where There Is Now a Church, John finds great joy in sharing the love of Jesus with people of other faiths.
REV DR ARTHUR BROWN
Arthur is the Director of Mission for BMS World Mission UK, with a background in youth and community development, cross-cultural Christian ministry, multi-faith work, and higher education. He also served 14 years in Lebanon at the Arab Baptist Theological Seminary leading the Institute of Middle East Studies program and taught as faculty on the IMES Master’s degree in Middle East & North African Studies. He is committed to social and racial justice and peace-building and passionate about helping the local Church to be fully engaged with its community.
Jan Pieter Mostert
Has been director of the Gave Foundation since 2011. The Gave Foundation helps churches and Christians to warmly welcome refugees on the basis of a Biblical calling. Gave longs for refugees to serve Jesus Christ together with European Christians.
Jan Pieter experiences it as a mission to follow Jesus together with other Christians in serving people who are (temporarily) vulnerable.
Before becoming director of Gave, Jan Pieter was manager of care at an evangelical foundation for people with a mental handicap. Besides his work at Gave Foundation he is chairman of ‘Association Dit Koningskind’, a Christian organization that promotes interests and organizes care for people with disabilities. He is also a member of the Supervisory Board of “De Hoop GGZ”, a care organization that helps people with psychiatric problems and addiction on the basis of the Gospel.
Rev. Dr. SASAN TAVASSOLI
Dr. Sasan Tavassoli serves with the Outreach Foundation as a missionary to the Persian speaking world. He has been a pastor, teacher, and theologian for over two decades including teaching on Christian satellite TV. He is also a co-founder of Pars Theological Center in London and is involved in leadership training and theological education for the purpose of equipping and resourcing the leaders of the house church movements. He graduated from Reformed Theological Seminary (MA), Columbia Theological Seminary (ThM), and earned his PhD in Islamic Studies from the University of Birmingham.
Rev. Dr. Rafik Wagdy
Rafik is the founder of the Message to All Nations (MAN) ministry and serves as a faculty member at the Anglican Seminary in Cairo, Alexandria. He holds a bachelor’s degree in medicine, a Certificate in Theology and Apologetics from Wycliffe Hall at the University of Oxford, and a master’s in organizational leadership and management. Additionally, Rafik is the host of several television programs.
JOHNNIE BLACK
Having come to faith at a young age, Johnnie was involved in various youth mission teams during his teenage years and always felt a desire to serve God in a ‘full time’ ministry role. It was during his early career in finance that Johnnie started to realise that his ‘full time’ job was also a full-time ministry role and since then he has sought to ensure that his whole live is both worship and ministry.
With a background in the financial world Johnnie headed up the UK Risk Management division of what was at the time one of Europe’s best performing banks before leaving to become a management consultant to more than ten companies at board level. He is currently a director in KVS Group (UK), Warmflow and for the past 15 years has been a part of the House of VicRyn Trust. He also sits as a non-executive director of OFTEC who represent the oil industry in the UK & Ireland and is a member of the Bank of England Decision Maker Panel. He is married to Sharon and is the proud father of 3 daughters. Johnnie has also served in local and international church leadership roles for over 25 years.
Hubert Keil
Hubert Keil, born in 1958 in Kolitzheim Germany, married, three adult children. Diploma in international agriculture GHK Kassel, BA equiv. Biblisch-Theologische Academy Wiedenest. Community development in South Asia, mission mobilizer, director for intercultural ministries, pioneering migrant ministries in the Eastern Mediterranean region, promoting intercultural outreach and evangelistic campaigns, gathering and supporting the Afghan diaspora church in Europe.
