Jan Foulk

     Hi! Welcome to my site.  Let me share a bit about myself.

     Bob, my husband, is a retired United Methodist Minister.  We have been married for 53+ years.  We have four grown children—--three girls and a boy.  All the girls are married, which has resulted in six fantastic grandchildren: —Miriya, Alex, Jocelyn, Jacob, Natalie and Drake.

     In addition to being a pastor's wife and raising our children, I have had a variety of careers.  My early college education was in home economics and art and has led to some interesting experiences.

Interspersed with family obligations, I was a dietitian, an art teacher, a special education teacher,  a therapeutic nursery school teacher, and  a home economics teacher .  At age 40, I got a Master's degree in counseling and was a school counselor for 14 years.  At that point, I felt a call to ministry and spent 11 years as a United Methodist Minister (No, my husband and I did not serve the same churches.  Since we are both first born and tend to want to be in control, we knew that would not be a good idea!!!)

     In July, 2010, Bob and I both retired and moved to St. Peters, Missouri, a suburb of St. Louis.  Now I can freely pursue my hobbies.

     For as long as I can remember, I have been an artist.  Even though I don’t remember it, mom loved to tell the story about a kindergarten experience of mine.  It seems that on a paper I was to turn in, I drew a box with two lines across the center.  When the teacher asked me what it was, I indignantly responded, "It's a dress!  Can't you tell?" Thus goes the story...…

     Even as a child, I loved making things with my hands.  Remember the play clay that came in a stick form?  There were  four colors in a pack.  I remember spending hours and hours in the kitchen or on the front porch making all kinds of things from that clay.  But my favorite was making my own dolls and fashioning clothes for them to wear.  And blending colors was so-o-o much fun! Mind you, this is when I was only  five or six years old!

     When I was introduced to paper dolls, using the commercial ones just didn't suit me.  So I would make my own and using paper and crayons, then water colors, I designed a plethora of clothes for them to wear.  But they needed somewhere to live, so I also made a cardboard house and furniture for them.

     In Junior High School, I was introduced to the wonders of the sewing machine.  I sat down at that machine and it was LOVE AT FIRST STITCH!!!!  And as the saying goes, "the rest is history…..."  In high school, I was the only girl who designed and made her senior prom dress--a bright red & white concoction.  Also, since I loved art which was not in the school curriculum, my parents paid for mail-order art lessons.  In college, I continued to pursue my loves with a major in home economics and a minor in art.  My junior year, I designed and made my wedding gown.

     Since then I have made countless outfits for myself, my husband, my children, and now my grandchildren.  My biggest challenge was making my daughter's wedding gown while staying at a camp ground in Colorado!

    Now that I am retired, my interest in art has been reawakened.  I have been privileged to discover an excellent teacher in a local St. Louis artist.  He has led me and challenged me to hone my skills.

    I have been blessed with so many abilities, and God has led me to use them in several mission projects here at home and in Liberia, Africa. In January of 2010, I went to Liberia with a church group.  I found that the women were often single and needed ways to be self-supporting.  The Lord whispered in my mind, “sewing." So, I purchased sewing machines.  God said, “That's good, but there's more."  And the women started talking about me teaching them.

     I returned to Liberia in January, 2011.  While there, I was able to purchase machines, scissors, needles, thread, and fabric for several women and youth mission sites.  I was also able to do some teaching.

In addition, I took watercolor supplies to teach painting.

     I returned  again in 2013 taking 120 pair of scissors with me. I purchased more machines and supplies  and did some teaching.  I took my watercolor paints with me and did several paintings while there.  The most fun painting was entertaining some village children the day our vehicle broke down and waited 3 hours for our vehicle to be repaired.

   In 2014, I had a stroke from which I have recovered, but have not yet been able to travel to Liberia and may never, because of the inadequate level of medical care.  However, the mission continues.  We have started giving each young woman that graduates from the sewing program, a brand new treadle sewing machine to take home with them.  In this way, they are able to begin supporting themselves and their families in an honorable manner.

  This lengthy introduction now brings me to the reason for setting up this website.  If you would like to make a donation to this mission project, I am always receptive.  In addition, by purchasing something, you are supporting this mission, because all the proceeds from my art work (not just the profit) help to support this mission.

Grace and peace,
In Christ'’s love,    

              Jan