Joint effort helps launch Hispanic churches in Gibson Co.
Luis Bruneau, far right, leads a Bible study at The Church at Sugar Creek in Humboldt. The Bible study is part of the outreach effort to Hispanic believers in the area.
HUMBOLDT — It took longer than originally intended but a joint effort to plant Hispanic churches in Gibson County by The Church at Sugar Creek in Humboldt, Gibson Baptist Association and Tennessee Baptist Mission Board is now underway with the help of a missionary couple from Panama.
The three entities began the process in 2021 but it stalled, said Mike Kemper, who joined the association as director of missions a year later.
The three partners tried again after Kemper arrived. “The demographics continued to indicate many Hispanics coming to live and work in Gibson County,” he recalled.
“Our churches wanted to have an outreach, but the language difference was a barrier. We continued to search for a native Spanish speaker to lead,” Kemper said.
They discovered a potential leader in Memphis and engaged in conversations with him for about three months, but he eventually withdrew his name from consideration, the DOM said.
“We were all very surprised and frustrated,” Kemper acknowledged. “However, GBA, The Church at Sugar Creek and TBMB knew that the Lord was leading us in this direction,” he maintained.
As prayers continued for the new ministry, Kemper communicated with Luis Bruneau, a longtime friend who was living in Panama. Kemper asked him to pray that the association would find a church planter who spoke Spanish who could lead the ministry to plant a church in both Humboldt and Trenton.
Kemper said that to his surprise, Bruneau wanted to know more about the position. “I hadn’t expected that he would have interest and be willing to move from Panama.”
Kemper and his wife, Kathy, had met Bruneau and his wife, Jessynet, while they were serving as International Mission Board missionaries in Buenos Aires where Bruneau was studying at the seminary. “We began a special friendship with Luis, Jessynet and their daughter Pamela. We spent a lot of time together and they felt like family to us,” Kemper recalled.
“We began talking, praying and planning with Luis and Jessynet. The Lord impressed us all that this was indeed the way He was leading,” Kemper said.
Panama missionaries Luis and Jessynet Bruneau have relocated to Gibson County to help plant Hispanic churches in the area.
The Panama couple visited Gibson County in January of 2023 and met with leaders of the three partner groups. Everyone felt God was calling this couple to Tennessee, he said.
The Church at Sugar Creek, William Burton and TBMB, and GBA all were unified, “believing that if God was leading us in this way, He would make it possible,” Kemper said.
The decision was made that The Church at Sugar Creek, led by pastor Greg McFadden, would be the “official sponsor” and give day to day supervision for Bruneau and lead out with legal requirements to get a work visa allowing them to live and work in the United States, Kemper said.
“One of the partners had to take the lead and as we believe, ‘churches plant churches.’ However, the association is an active partner in the efforts as well as TBMB,” the DOM stressed. All three partners are contributing to the support and compensation package for the couple, he added.
Working through an immigration attorney, The Church at Sugar Creek initiated the process and “after time and monies paid, document after document sent and all the hoops had been accomplished, we finally received the visas,” Kemper related.
In March of last year, the association and the church unanimously adopted the recommendation to bring the Bruneaus to Gibson County. An ordination service was held for Bruneau on March 24, Kemper said.
The couple was commissioned as missionaries by their home church — Crossroads Bible Church in Panama City, Panama.
The church also provided some financial support during the transition and donated funds to assist in purchasing a car for the couple once they moved to Gibson County, Kemper said.
The couple transitioned to Tennessee in the fall with Luis arriving in October and his wife, a month later.
In their February newsletter to members of Gibson Baptist Association, the Bruneaus provided an update of their ministry.
“In December and January, we connected with new Hispanics, strengthened friendships, and began a pastoral accompaniment,” Bruneau wrote.
In addition, they began a Sunday Bible study and a Wednesday Bible study at The Church at Sugar Creek with an average of 12 people in attendance, he reported.
“They are learning more about Jesus and His Word. Some are believers who were looking for a Church in Spanish, while others are new and are in the process of discipleship,” Bruneau wrote.
He reported that they will start a Bible study group in March in Trenton “where there is a significant Hispanic population.”
Plans are underway for an initial event that will invite local Hispanics to a dinner in which the new ministry will be presented.
Bruneau thanked Gibson County Baptists for their prayers and support in their newsletter. “God is faithful, and we are blessed to have friends like you. B&R — Wilkey served as editor of the Baptist and Reflector for 26 years prior to retiring at the end of 2024. He is continuing to contribute to the B&R as a freelance writer.
