Nicole Falke is the Director of Communications for Hands of Providence in Albania.
When did you trust Christ?
I grew up in New Jersey in the Catholic faith, so I understood who Jesus is, but did not understand the true Gospel. During my last semester of college, I went to Washington, D.C. for an internship. This experience taught me that this world cannot fulfil me; only Jesus can. Since I had only a couple of weeks left in the internship, I decided to start attending an Evangelical Church when I moved back to New Jersey. Even though I began participating in church then, I did not truly understand the Gospel or what it meant to be a believer until I attended a young adults' Bible study at another church.
What have been the defining moments of your Christian walk?
First, when I moved back to New Jersey, the Evangelical Church I attended was legalistic, and I did not have a proper understanding of the Gospel. When I began attending a young adult Bible study, the pastor taught through Galatians. At this time, I understood the true Gospel and what it meant to be a believer. Before moving to Albania, the church I attended from 2011 to 2023 had excellent biblical teaching, and I am so thankful for its impact on my Christian walk.
What do you hope to gain from participating?
Due to the Forum, several changes have been seen in our ministry. Through Year-Round Mentoring (YRM), I learned how to prepare a Bible study and practised with like-minded women. Last year, in the Organisational Development and Fundraising Network, I learned techniques for organising our donor database and creating specific reports to support our fundraising efforts. I am currently in the Marketing YRM group, and it has helped me to improve the marketing materials that we sent to our donors and prospective donors. Soon, we will start a discipleship program for our staff, adapted from a discipleship book used in the women's leadership YRM group. The European Leadership Forum has given me many tools to improve my ministry work, and it is also amazing to connect with other like-minded ministry leaders.
What is your ministry?
Hands of Providence has two sides, spiritual and social ministries. In the municipality in which we are located, there are 98 villages. As there are no other churches in these villages, our ministry's vision is to plant a church in each. Hands of Providence also has social ministries, including a day centre for children, a residential home for boys, and a food distribution program.
What is your leadership role or what were your past leadership roles?
Although I now work in ministry, I previously worked at an IT company for 16 years. I had several leadership roles throughout my career, including Accounts Receivable Supervisor, Services Accounting Manager, and Manager of Pricing and Contract Analytics. In each of these roles, I managed a group of employees. In August 2023, I moved to Albania, where I am currently the Director of Communications for Hands of Providence.
Why should someone invest in your ministry?
Individuals can be a part of evangelism to Albanians who have never heard the Gospel. They can also help the vulnerable and marginalised through our social ministries: the day care centre, the residential home, and our food distribution program.
