About Us
Tonya comes from a family of missionaries. Her grandparents and great-grandparents served as missionaries in Africa, South America, and South-East Asia. Tonya grew up hearing stories about far away jungles and the wild frontiers of frontline mission work. Tonya and Jared met in Micronesia while serving as student missionaries at the mission school on the island of Yap in 2002 and 2003. After returning to the US and marrying, Tonya and Jared were sponsored by their church in Lincoln, Nebraska, Allon Chapel, to travel to Rwanda in the summer of 2005 for evangelistic outreach. In 2006, after they both graduated from Union College, they made the decision to join Adventist Frontier Missions, having a deep desire in their hearts to go and reach the unreached.
Late in 2007, Jared and Tonya joined the Gorkha Project in Darjeeling, India. They worked alongside Jonathan and Karen Lovitt until 2012, helping to establish a church and English language school. After that, they served briefly among the Nepali people of Nepal in 2012 and 2013, helping to encourage and strengthen the believers in that region.
In 2014, Jared and Tonya moved to Thailand where they served with AFM in partnership with the Thai Adventist Mission as administrators and teachers at the mission school in Ubon Ratchathani for two years. In 2016, they transitioned to a new target community about 20 kilometers outside of the city of Ubon to start a children’s and youth ministry in the village of Baan Krasop. In September of 2018, they completed construction of the Little Explorers Creative Learning Center, which serves as a center of influence for reaching the unreached Isan people of north-east Thailand.
Tonya & Jared Wright - Nilubon Srisai
We previously lived and worked with the Gorkha people of India and Nepal from 2007 to 2013. Now we serve the Isan Buddhists of Thailand along with our sons, Justus and Jon Marc. Our vision is to develop and mentor local Isan Thai church planting leaders who are committed to fulfilling the Great Commission and forming healing communities in every province and every district of northeast Thailand so that all 23 million Isan Thai people will have an opportunity to know Jesus as a real person who cares about their lives.
Our good friend and fellow AFM colleague, Nilubon Srisai, coordinates all of our programs and outreach activities in the community. She is a certified facilitator for trauma healing groups and is working to help families heal and grow. She also has years of experience in mentoring new disciples and training local leaders to lead worship groups.
In 2024, fellow AFM colleagues, Pastor Claudette and Rene Aleman, joined the Isan Thai project. They live about a four hour drive away from Ubon Ratchathani province in Khon Kaen province. They are also certified facilitators for trauma healing groups, and we are working closely with them to train local church planting leaders who are inspired and equipped to catalyze a church planting movement.
Frontier Stories
Namjai
Often in our work, it feels like we are swimming upstream against an impossibly strong current. But then we see the way that Namjai’s mother looks at her daughter now, with hope in her eyes—hope for a better future for Namjai and her siblings.
By:
Tonya & Jared Wright - Nilubon Srisai
December 01 2019, 3:13 pm | Comments 0
Crisis Breeds Connection
Jared and Ming liaised between ADRA Thailand, local government officials and community leaders, aid workers, and the SDA church and school in Ubon. Though we are saddened by the losses sustained by so many here in our corner of Thailand, this tragedy allowed us to establish many relationships and new connections.
By:
Tonya & Jared Wright - Nilubon Srisai
November 01 2019, 5:39 pm | Comments 0
Upsetting the World
When we see the kids and our friends here forming real relationships with Jesus, finding peace in their lives and truly beginning to understand that there is a God who loves them, we know it’s worth it.
By:
Tonya & Jared Wright - Nilubon Srisai
October 01 2019, 2:10 pm | Comments 0
The Snake and the Promise
Thank you for continuing to pray for us and for the kids we minister to as we work to help them form a biblical worldview where they each can find their unique place in God’s plan to redeem our world.
By:
Tonya & Jared Wright - Nilubon Srisai
August 01 2019, 6:16 pm | Comments 0
Caught Doing Right
I think the apostle Paul had it right when he encouraged the believers in Philippi to focus on whatever is good and admirable (Philippians 4:8), and I personally believe this applies to people, too.
By:
Jared Wright
July 01 2019, 1:08 pm | Comments 0