Lynda Hollinger-Janzen’s 47-year journey with Mennonite mission agencies concluded with her retirement from Mennonite Mission Network in October. After 24 years as a writer and decades of global service, her legacy spans continents, roles and a commitment to holistic ministry.

“Mennonite Mission Network has been blessed by Lynda’s passion and energy through her unwavering commitment to follow God’s call and to care for all of God’s creation,” said Marisa Smucker, MMN executive director.

From childhood, Hollinger-Janzen had a passion for mission, but that shifted during her college years as she learned how mission and colonization marched hand in hand, devastating peoples and their cultures.

She fell in love with Haiti during a 1976 Study-Service Term while a student at Goshen College and wanted to return to help pay back a debt she felt her culture owed the Haitian people.

From 1978 to 1981, she served with Mennonite Central Committee in Zaïre (now the Democratic Republic of Congo), as no openings were available in Haiti. In her third year, she traveled to deliver health education lessons.

“Three Zaïrois nurses and I traveled hundreds of miles by bicycle, dug-out canoes and on foot, as there were no roads leading to many of these communities,” she said. “We presented lessons in schools during the day and held clinics in the afternoons and evenings. . . . This is where I learned that I wanted to commit my life to community health.”

Preparing to return to the United States, she realized Jesus was the most treasured part of her life, but she felt she hadn’t shared enough of that part of herself, even though “the people in Zaïre shared everything they had with me,” she said. 

This epiphany led her to pray for a second chance to integrate faith-sharing into her service. She took courses at Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary, where she met Rod Janzen. They married in 1984 and began preparing to serve through Mennonite Board of Missions in 1985. After completing master’s programs in 1986, they went to Benin to serve with African-Initiated Churches, which had been asking for Mennonite accompaniment for more than two decades. 

From 1987 to 2000, she worked at a church-based health clinic, focusing on community health. Her work strengthened ties with local churches, fostering holistic ministry through health care, evangelism and community building.

“African Christians expanded my understanding of who God is and how God works among us,” she said. “My faith deepened through experiencing their trust in Jesus. So much of who I am today comes from sharing life with my African brothers and sisters.”

Returning to the United States in 2000, Hollinger-Janzen shifted roles from mission worker to writer. She compiled prayer resources and covered ministries in Africa and Europe.

A  member of Waterford Mennonite Church in Goshen, Ind., Hollinger-Janzen has balanced her professional life with faith and family alongside her husband, Rod, their three adult children and their spouses and four grandchildren. 

Her journey mirrors the evolution of mission work. She embraced a model of accompaniment, adapting to global needs with humility, cultural sensitivity and a focus on partnership.