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PASTORS Gary & Harriet Ham BioGRAPHY

Gary & Harriet Ham

Gary Ham was saved in 1969 and recommitted his heart to Jesus in 1973.  He graduated from the University of Virginia in 1973.  It was at the University of Virginia where Gary met Harriet, and in 1974 after Harriet’s graduation they were married. 

 

Gary served in the U.S. Army from 1973 to 1977, primarily in West Germany where also their first two sons were born.   After four years of military duty, Gary attended Elim Bible Institute (EBI), in Lima, New York, beginning in 1977 and graduating in 1980.  While attending Bible School their third son was born.   

 

Harriet received credits in Biblical studies through Liberty University and Elim Bible Institute, and both Harriet and Gary were ordained ministers with Elim Fellowship in Lima, New York.

 

Gary and Harriet served in various ministry capacities in the Tidewater, Virginia area where they were located after graduating from EBI.  They helped to pioneer a new church in Franklin, 

Virginia, directed the missions program in their local church, New Life, for over twelve years in Hampton, Virginia, and served as missionaries in Nigeria, West Africa for two years.

 

In 1989, after returning from Nigeria, and locating once again in Hampton, Virginia, Pastors Gary, and Harriet pioneered and directed a Christian community development organization, called Operation Breakingthrough, from 1989 until 2002. With over twenty-five local churches actively involved in Operation Breakingthrough, transforming low-income communities, and taking the gospel of Christ to hundreds of families, Operation Breakingthrough was recognized by President George Bush as one of America’s “Thousand Points of Light” in 1999.  

 

During this time, Pastor Gary also did some traveling throughout the U.S. serving as a city transformation consultant and a prayer summit facilitator for International Renewal Ministries, which was based in Portland Oregon.  In 2002, Gary answered the call to serve as the Director of International Ministries for Elim Fellowship.  Gary and Harriet moved to Lima, NY, where Gary served as Director of International Ministries for Elim Fellowship until 2008. 

 

Currently, Pastors Gary & Harriet Ham are involved in the following ministries:   

 

  • In 2010, Pastors Gary and Harriet became the co-founders and Executive Director of the 11th Hour Christian Initiatives (11HCI), a non-profit organization committed to developing local community outreach ministries and global missions mobilization. 11HCI has been training and sending short term mission teams to serve in various countries.  Pastors Gary and Harriet have personally served and ministered the gospel in over 30 countries. 

  • Pastor Gary serves as a member of the Council of Elders for Elim Fellowship, which is based in Lima, New York. 

  • Pastor Gary also serves as a member of the Board of Directors of PAZ International, which is a church-planting and disciple-making movement based in Santarem, Brazil.

  • Pastor Harriet has been involved in ministry for several years from Christian education to overseas missions. She has a passion for Christian education that continues to motivate her to encourage young and old to value learning which ultimately leads to the destiny that God has designed for their lives. Harriet believes that Christians should be lifelong learners called to serve and glorify the name of the Lord. This vision has given her many opportunities to travel on missions trips around the world to teach the word of God and influence people for kingdom purposes. Her experience as a teacher in the body of Christ spans over twenty-five years.

  • Both Pastors Gary and Harriet serve as Missions Pastors at Faith Church, which is the local church that the Hams are members of based in Rochester, NY.

  • Pastor Gary has also authored the book, It’s the 11th Hour.

 

Pastors Gary and Harriet have three adult sons, three daughters-in-law, and nine grandchildren.

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