The Sparsh Global Board

Stacey and her husband, Rob, have been married for 40 years. While she has a BS in Dental Hygiene, she has spent the majority of her adult life in education - volunteering in schools, homeschooling 15 years, starting an inner city school ministry, and teaching preschool as well as preschool Sunday school. She and Rob have 4 children and 8 grandchildren. They live in Kansas City, Missouri.

She writes:

The one thing I would want you to know about me is that I love Jesus more than anything and want to glorify Him in all I do. Ten years ago, our Mission Pastor asked Rob and me to join him and 3 other men in traveling to Pune,India to see what needs our church might be able to assist. While there, I fell in love with the people of India, but was saddened by the extreme poverty they endured. Coming back home, I started Food For His Glory ministry to assist the tutoring program in the slum. I never in a million years thought that my life would revolve around the work we do in India, but the Father has taken this unequipped vessel and used it for His Glory and my good! I am humbled and honored to get to encourage and help my brothers and sisters in Pune and particularly the Ramtekdi slum!  

Rob and his wife, Stacey, have been married for 40 years. Rob is an attorney with the Kansas City, Missouri, law firm of Shook Hardy & Bacon, where he practices in government enforcement and corporate compliance. Rob and Stacey have four children, two of whom are married, and eight grandchildren.

Rob first encountered India in 2012 as a part of a fact-finding missions team that traveled to Pune, Maharashtra, India. Rob is not reluctant to let others know that he counted the hours until the plane arrived to return him to the United States – he didn’t think that India was going to be a part of his long-term plans. Ten years, and seven trips later, Rob now knows that God had other plans.  

Rob writes:

I now count my trip to India each year as the highlight of my year. We’ve formed some strong relationships in Pune, and I count myself fortunate to have so many brothers and sisters in the faith who work tirelessly for the children, and for the children’s families. I’m glad that God was in charge of my long-term plans, and not me, because I would have missed so many blessings. As an attorney, I’m trained to be cynical, and to look for the angles that people work for their own benefit. There is absolutely none of that in Timothy Hirwale, or any of our ministry partners at SPARSH. They are committed totally to seeing God’s kingdom furthered in Pune.  

Robert is a CPA in the state of Virginia. He currently provides outsourced accounting for nonprofits. Additionally, he has worked for CPA firms, large nonprofits and multi-national professional service firms providing a variety of accounting related services. He currently lives in Washington D.C. area.

Robert first traveled to India in February 2014 as part of a mission’s team. The team primarily stayed in Pune, Maharashtra, India working with Sparsh. Robert believed that the work Sparsh was doing very important and has desired to be of help any way he could ever since. Since that first trip, he has traveled to India to visit Sparsh more than half a dozen times, including leading mission teams.

Robert writes:

My first trip to Pune was extremely impactful. I observed that the work that Timothy and Joyce were doing were the embodiment of the commandment to “love thy neighbor” just as Jesus had described in the parable of the good Samaritan. The way they cared for women and children of diverse backgrounds who were coming from distressing situations was very inspiring. Most importantly they used the opportunity to share the gospel. Their work has inspired me in my own life here in Washington D.C and they will always remain close to my heart. I cherish each opportunity that I get to travel there.

Donna calls Kansas home, having grown up in Lawrence and now living in a suburb of Kansas City. She graduated from the University of Kansas with an undergraduate degree in journalism in the 1980s and a master’s degree in business administration in the 1990s. Donna has worked most of her career in information technology management and finance, more than a quarter of a century of which has been at the National Association of Insurance Commissioners. She currently serves as Assistant Director of Strategic Business Initiatives, evaluating pricing models, revenue plans, and budget proposals for the organization. Donna married Brad Powers more than 30 years ago and they have one son, Ben, attending the University of Kansas. Her hobbies include reading, scrapbooking, shopping, traveling exciting places with her husband, and singing with the choir and praise team at her church. She has participated in several trips to India and loves to worship the One True God with Christians there.

Donna writes:

Serving in India has truly changed my life. It has taught me what a mighty and powerful God we serve. It has reminded me how He has called each of us to serve Him faithfully and to plant seeds of hope, faith, and encouragement, then trust Him for the rest. I am grateful for the opportunity to be a part of the SPARSH Global ministry. 

Madeleine is the daughter of Rob and Stacey McCully. She attended Union University in Jackson, TN, where she received a Bachelors of Arts in Music and minor in Psychology.  Currently she lives in Kansas City with her dog, Brannon, and works at Dolce Bakery.  She has sponsored and continues to sponsor multiple children through Sparsh Global.

Madeleine writes:

I remember when my parents went on their very first trip to Pune, India in 2012 and I knew as soon as they got home that that was where their hearts were. For years, I heard the names of the people they had met while on their various trips and all of the work that was being done, and in 2019, I was able to join the team as the photographer and see firsthand why my parents loved it so much. I’ll never forget the first day we visited the slum for VBS and the excitement and pure joy on the faces of the children as they ran to meet us at our bus (and continued to do so everyday with increasing numbers). While I thought the 2019 trip would be the only one I would take, I’m glad that my plans aren’t always God's plans and that I have the opportunity to go back again and again, as well as share some of that excitement and joy with others through our social media, newsletters, and website.