About Garrett

​Garrett grew up in North Carolina in a family of 4 to a loving mother and father as well as a younger sister. He lived in North Carolina all of his younger life, and eventually moved to Virginia to pursue education through Liberty University in 2012.

In 2016, Garrett graduated from Liberty with a degree in Graphic Design and began working full time in Liberty’s marketing department shortly after. Two years later, he moved from Virginia to New Jersey, driven largely by the desire to grow his career and make more money. What he did not expect was that this decision would lead him into deeper community and discipleship than he had ever experienced before, shaping his faith through close relationships, accountability, and a shared pursuit of Christ in everyday life.
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In his time in Jersey, Garrett had the privilege of helping plant a local church in Morristown named Revive Church. He served on their leadership team overseeing marketing & design for the church, and got to see first hand what it looked like to build a church from the ground up. Witnessing the churches growth and the impact it has had on the community was a huge part of his time in New Jersey.

Professionally, God had really blessed Garrett’s time in New Jersey. Shortly after arriving in Jersey he was able to join Stryker as a design specialist on their corporate marketing team. While working in med tech, he was able to grow in his career in avenues he had never considered before. The support and growth he received while working there has been foundational to his career, and he is incredibly thankful for the way Stryker has invested in him.

Garrett first began considering cross cultural missions in high school, though at the time it felt distant and unrealistic. During high school and early college, he participated in two short term mission trips to Costa Rica and Ethiopia that deeply shaped his understanding of the global Church and left a lasting imprint on his heart. While those experiences did not immediately redirect his path, they stayed with him as quiet reference points, memories God would later bring back to the surface. Yet even as his career advanced, he sensed a continual and increasing pull from God toward something more, with those early mission experiences frequently resurfacing and stirring questions he could not ignore.

It was during his years in New Jersey that Garrett met Stephen Smith through a small group of friends who started a Bible study called LIFT (Living In Fellowship Together). Though their paths had crossed before, it was in this context that their friendship truly began to form. Through countless board game nights, late night Bible studies, long conversations, and shared life together, their relationship deepened quickly. A pivotal moment came when the group focused on the topic of Christian accountability, exposing a shared need for honest, intentional discipleship. Garrett and Stephen chose to pursue accountability together, meeting regularly and addressing real struggles including lust, finances, family dynamics, friendships, and spiritual discipline. Over the next seven years, that accountability became a defining part of their lives, helping both of them confront areas they had not previously recognized and continually realign their lives with the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

As their brotherhood grew, so did a shared openness to wherever God might lead. Alongside everyday faithfulness, they experienced life together through travel, physical challenges like Spartan Races, helping plant Revive Church in Morristown, and countless discipleship and meaningful moments. Throughout those years, the topic of missions continued to resurface in conversation, no longer as a distant idea but as a growing conviction. In mid 2022, after years of prayer, reflection, and mutual discernment, both Garrett and Stephen committed to pursuing cross cultural missions. Though they initially explored separate paths, God’s providence became clear when they unknowingly applied to the same mission team, marking a decisive transition for Garrett from corporate ambition to obedience driven purpose, and solidifying a shared calling that would shape the next chapter of their lives.

In 2024, Garrett and Stephen joined YWAM Ships Kona and began serving full time aboard the YWAM Liberty, a medical mission ship operating throughout Papua New Guinea. The Liberty sails to isolated coastal villages and islands that are extremely difficult to access, bringing the Gospel alongside practical support through medical care, dental services, eye clinics, and surgical outreaches. The ship partners closely with local churches, community leaders, and translation teams, including supporting Bible translation work such as progress on the book of Luke, so people can engage Scripture in their heart language. Outreach efforts also included Operation Christmas Child distributions and long term relationship building with local communities.
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During this season, Garrett served as the Communications Manager for the ship. His role was to oversee media and storytelling, manage external communication, and work directly with leadership, government partners, and ministry teams to ensure clarity and coordination across all ship operations and outreaches. From documenting medical clinics and translation work to supporting communication between departments and external partners, Garrett helped connect the work happening on the ground with those supporting and leading the mission. From 2024 to 2025, serving aboard the Liberty alongside Stephen was a formative season that strengthened their experience in missions and prepared them for future long term service.

Beginning in 2025 and moving into 2026, Garrett is transitioning from YWAM Ships into a new season of ministry with SIL-PNG. After completing his time with YWAM Ships, Garrett sensed a clear leading to remain in Papua New Guinea long term and began exploring what continued ministry in the country could look like. That search led him to SIL, whose work focuses on Bible translation, Scripture engagement, discipleship, and evangelism across hundreds of language groups throughout PNG. After spending time at their Highlands base meeting teams and leadership, Garrett entered conversations about serving with SIL in a communications capacity.

During that time, SIL leadership identified Garrett’s background in design, marketing, and communications, along with his experience as Communications Manager aboard the YWAM Liberty, as a strong fit for their Chief Communications Officer role. He has since begun the formal transition and application process toward this position and is aiming to begin serving with SIL in Spring 2026. SIL will serve as the receiving organization where Garrett would work on the field, while Tyndale Bible Translators will be his sending organization, providing long term structural and member care support. This transition represents the next step in Garrett’s long term focus on Scripture access and Bible translation.