If you have been around our ministry for any time, you probably know Emilio. He has been on staff in some capacity since 2014. Emilio came to camp for the first time when he was seventeen years old. That summer, he was given the “best camper” award, meaning he was the most dedicated, serious, and servant-hearted boy camper of the week. Little did any of us know, this was just the beginning of his story with LIFE Romania.

After the summer camp, he was excited to continue to keep in contact with his counselor and felt called to serve the next summer. So he applied to be a counselor. He was accepted and served as a counselor for the first time in 2013.

Something you should know about Emilio is that he is extremely talented in media. Specifically in photography, videography, and graphic design. It’s a passion he has and one that even at the age of 18, he was looking to serve God with. Therefore in his second year of being a counselor, he took over the media department for Camp MIA, and excelled in this role. So much so, that Iulian asked him to join the staff. Emilio accepted and looked forward to what his new life would look like, moving across the country to serve with LIFE Romania.

But, these plans changed a little before they took root. That same summer that Emilio agreed to work for LIFE Romania, he met a pastor from North Carolina who wanted to support him to go to the Word of Life Bible Institute in Budapest, Hungary. Another one of Emilio’s passions and interests is theology, so this opportunity was very exciting to him. He went for two years, grew in his knowledge and faith, and returned to Romania equipped to serve and lead even better. During his time at the Bible Institute, he continued to work for LIFE Romania remotely and traveled to the camps to work during the summers.

Emilio served full-time until 2018 when he decided to continue his education by going to college to study film. During his time in school, he continued to work for LIFE Romania part-time and serving during the summer camps. Once he graduated, he returned to us and has been working full-time since June 2020.

His education in both theology and cinematography has equipped him to be such an asset to our ministry. Emilio loves to create and do things with excellence. He is a kind of renaissance man around the office and is always willing to help other staff members in various areas.

Even though he enjoys creating videos the most, he continues to stretch himself by learning and growing in new areas that are big needs of our ministry. Such as website design, app development, social media, sound for our events, discipling youth, and even the “non-glamorous” tasks like fixing our printer! He is a gift to us and we are thankful that God has placed him here with us.

As our ministry grows we want to give you the opportunity to support us financially by choosing to adopt a staff member. You can give a one-time gift toward the staff salaries or commit to giving a certain amount monthly. Any gift you choose is a blessing to us as we seek to provide for our staff members and continue to bring more team members to serve within our growing ministry.