Mariejan Goss, Founder/ Director
My Testimony
I grew up in a Christian home. My parents were immigrants from the Netherlands. (Therefore the spelling of my name,
Mariejan, is actually pronounced, Mary Ann).
I accepted the Lord at 4 years of age at my mother's knee. As I grew up I believed in God but He was not my
priority. It took a very difficult time in my life when my "back was against the wall and my life was out of my
control" that God did a real work in my life. In September of 1992, I made a commitment from my heart and asked
God to be Lord of my life. What a freedom and joy I received at that time. I will never forget that transformation.
As I totally submitted my heart to Christ, a desire grew within me to go into full time ministry. From 1996-2007 I
served in full-time ministry in various roles. Through my local church at the time, I was Secretary for Adult
Ministries, Adult Sunday School leadership roles and led Women Bible Studies.
In 1999 I co-founded a local, faith based cancer support ministry called Ribbon of Hope where we offered emotional
and Spiritual support to people with a cancer diagnosis. There I oversaw the volunteer program, lay counseled,
taught and gave discipleship, led support groups, taught and gave grief support, researched community and outreach
services to meet the needs of our patients and their families. As the Lord led me away from that ministry in 2007,
He, along with many friends, begin prodding me to start a new and expanded ministry called Hope for Life. During my
years of reaching out to cancer patients, my eyes were opened to the fact that there were so many other people
hurting and suffering beyond the disease of cancer.
In 2007, I was trained in grief support through Griefshare.
Besides, Hope for Life, I do have a full-time job as a Family Support Worker for a non-profit organization called,
Community Action of Northeast Indiana. Hope for Life is my passion and my ministry on the side in which I volunteer
most of my extra time along with all of my other faithful and gracious volunteers.
In 1980 I married my wonderful and supportive husband, Todd Goss. We met in High School at Elkhart Christian Academy
in 1977. We have lived in Elkhart our entire lives and have 3 children. Our oldest son, Eric and his wife, Lindsay
live near Mesa, AZ. Justin and his wife, Trisha, live in Elkhart. Our only daughter, Andrea, lives in Lafayette.
God is good!
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