Teaching TCK’s

00:00
Dee Gochanour
The number one reason that people leave the field is because they don’t have adequate education for their children. So I get to provide quality education in the capital of Ethiopia, which is a very important part of ministry. 

00:22
Rich Rudowske
Welcome to the Essentially Translatable podcast brought to you by Lutheran Bible Translators. I’m Rich Rudowske. 

00:27
Emily Wilson
And I’m Emily Wilson. 

00:29
Rich Rudowske
Before we dive into today’s episode, we just wanted to take a second to say, “Thank you!” to Andrew Olson. Andrew Olson has been the producer and editor of the Essentially Translatable Podcast since day one and has done it masterfully. Those of you who listen have no idea what he wades through, all the stuff he deals with and cuts out. It was enough to make a whole episode. One time Andrew served with Lutheran Bible Translators, about a year ago he left to start a partner organization, but continued, because he loved this podcast so much, to edit it, volunteering his time to do that, and the Lord’s blessed that ministry he started. And the time has come for him to be able to pivot to that and give its full time attention. 

01:11
Rich Rudowske
So he will be leaving the show as editor and producer, and we just really want to say thanks, Andrew, for all you’ve done for us, for having the vision for the podcast and the love for it and how you express that to us and worked with us and supported us so much over these years. 

01:27
Emily Wilson
It’s true. All of the edits that, Andrew, you have made time to be able to glean through. We thank our listeners that you have been faithful. Andrew made you more faithful for all of the things that he was able to edit out. And we’re just very thankful for the opportunity to partner together this last year in a volunteer capacity and just God’s blessings, for they need the Bible. Want to encourage our listeners to check out that episode also to learn more about Andrew’s ministry.

So on to our episode content. For this week, we are interviewing Deanna Gochanour. So she is a missionary kid teacher at Bingham Academy in Ethiopia, and she has been there over a year now, and now teaching in a different capacity than from what she started. But it’s just been amazing to hear her experiences. 

02:27
Emily Wilson
She was voted the most well loved teacher last year, I believe that’s correct. 

02:33
Rich Rudowske
Yeah, and her class also was the highest performing academically in the whole school she taught into. So really she’s done a great job. 

02:42
Emily Wilson
So we hope you enjoy this interview with Deanna Gochanour.

So today we’re in the studio with Dee Gochanour during Concordia Mission Institute week here on the campus of St. Paul Lutheran High School. Welcome to the podcast. 

03:01
Dee Gochanour
Hi!

03:03
Emily Wilson
So whenever we start a podcast, we always want to introduce our missionaries and our audience listeners to each other. Can you share a little bit about your background, where you came from, but also what it is that inspired you to pursue missionary service? 

03:17
Dee Gochanour
Yes. So I grew up in small town Wisconsin, born and raised, but then I went to Concordia University in Irvine. 

03:25
Emily Wilson
Quite a difference there, climate wise. 

03:27
Dee Gochanour
A little bit, but that’s what I wanted. 

03:29
Rich Rudowske
That just sounds like wisdom. 

03:32
Dee Gochanour
Yeah. So I majored in elementary education at Irvine. I have a Lutheran teaching background that I got from Irvine, and then I shoved some mission classes in there as well. But I knew sometime in high school that I wanted to pursue career missions. And I went to a Lutheran elementary school from Pre-K through eight. So it was instilled very young, like the great commission, and that you should live your life for someone else and that whatever you’re doing, you should really pursue God in it. So, in high school, I did a lot of courses that I was like, oh, I could really see myself doing this. However, missions would have to be a background, and I didn’t want that. So I knew going out to Irvine that long term missions was the goal and that teaching was the best way to get. 

04:18
Emily Wilson
Wow. So, like, from a young age, you were like, this is instilled in me. I have a heart of passion for being able to reach people with the gospel, and that it was a determining factor, not just the weather, it was a determining factor for where you went to school. That’s awesome. So you’re in Ethiopia now, but you started out in a short term capacity with Ghana. Can you share a little bit about the lead up? Like, maybe even include a little bit of Lutheran Bible Translators? Why? But the lead up to Ghana, how did you end up there? 

04:56
Dee Gochanour
So I knew of LBT from all the Beautiful Feet conferences through the Concordia system, which is a traveling mission conference. And I saw both of you speak at the one in Texas, actually. So I knew what you guys did and that I could be a missionary teacher through LBT in some capacity. And then somebody sent me my senior year. I graduated in August, so it was sometime in July. They sent me this nanny position for a year, and they were, you know, why don’t you just apply, see what happens? And I was like, okay, I guess we’ll just see how far I get in this process. I don’t really know if that’s what I want to do or where I’m at. 

05:32
Dee Gochanour
I thought it’d just be a little gap year situation, but then I didn’t end up backing out, so I was like, oh, I’m going, okay, it’s like time to start fundraising. But it ended up that I didn’t go to Tanzania and the family was relocated. So at that point it became, what do I do? Where do I serve? And so they brought up the idea of Ethiopia, but then they did Ghana at the same time. So Paul and Ali Federwitz, their family was moving to Ethiopia. And so they know we need somebody to homeschool the younger two or the two middle schoolers at the time, and that we need some help closing out our house and just really help transitioning in this situation. 

06:07
Dee Gochanour
They were there for 15 years, so they had just a lot of stuff to go through and the mental process of having to leave their house for a very long time. So I went to Ghana and taught 8th grade and 6th grade. 

06:19
Rich Rudowske
So was that your first time going somewhere outside the United States then? Yeah. Okay. What kind of other stuff had you done? 

06:25
Dee Gochanour
I’ve been to orphanages in Mexico a few times, short term trips to Haiti in high school, but in college I went with Dr. Falugi to West Africa, to Burkina Faso and to northern Togo. So I got to learn a lot about the mission field and just what a presence looks like there without church planting and building random buildings, painting and stuff. It was a lot of career based long term. 

06:51
Rich Rudowske
So what did challenge you when you got to Ghana? You’d already had the experience, but what was like, wow, this is still challenging. 

06:58
Dee Gochanour
I mean, teaching. So I haven’t taught anywhere. And that was kind of my first teaching experience, I guess, outside of education and such. So that was challenging, especially because I’m an elementary teacher. So in California I’m fifth and lower, but I was teaching 6th and 8th, right? 

07:13
Rich Rudowske
Okay. 

07:13
Dee Gochanour
Yeah. So it was hard know kind of teach myself as I was teaching them, where Levi would ask, oh, how do I do this math or know science problem? And I was like, did you look in the book? Because I don’t know either. I have to teach myself. 

07:25
Rich Rudowske
That’s awesome. 

07:26
Dee Gochanour
So a lot of learning on the job in a lot of ways. And you were in a city setting, which was a little bit of a pivot because I think when you were originally thinking, oh yeah, I’m going to be geared up for Tanzania, it was a little more remote. But you did have experience in some of those more remote areas like visiting Michael and Naomi Ursland and being able to see the programs happening out in Ghana. But you did make that shift, you came back to the US just a short little bit and then you made the shift to Ethiopia. So there’s something that, as you were preparing with Ethiopia, that you learned in Ghana, what was like one of the takeaways that you’re like, this helped me so that when I finally made that move to Ethiopia, I felt more prepared. 

08:16
Emily Wilson
Even though the contexts are totally different. What is it that maybe changed in you? 

08:22
Dee Gochanour
I learned how to be alone, if that makes any sense. It’s such a weird statement, but I kind of learned what hobbies to invest in and how to figure out what would help my mental health being in a different place and what activities do I even like. And you can’t do certain things that I grew up with in Wisconsin and then things that I learned to do in California, I couldn’t do all of those in Ghana and I obviously can’t do them in Ethiopia. So kind of learning just at what capacity do I do things outside of my job setting. 

08:54
Rich Rudowske
Yeah, that’s hugely valuable. 

08:55
Emily Wilson
I was going to say that to be able to make that adjustment and to know you’re a fresh grad, to go from like, okay, this is what normal is to me. This is what my cultural background is as a person from Wisconsin, a grad from California, but to be able to move to a totally different space where the availability is not necessarily all there, that’s a bit of an intense shift. 

09:21
Rich Rudowske
Did you grow up with big family, brothers and sisters and stuff like that, and then a lot of friends in school, so this is really that much more. 

09:29
Dee Gochanour
Yes. I’ve always been around just a ton of people and constantly doing a ton of stuff. And I was very active in clubs and sports and church, all of these different groups. And I was the same in California. And then Ghana came and I was like, allie, what do I do? I have so much free time. How do I spend it? But in Ethiopia, there’s such a big expat community that I’m a part of as I live on. So, like, I don’t have to do as many of the alone time things, but I’ve found a decent balance of spending time with those other people and doing my own hobbies in my house. 

10:03
Rich Rudowske
Yeah. 

10:04
Rich Rudowske
So West Africa, Ghana specifically, and then making that shift to Ethiopia, there’s different things culturally and otherwise, to prepare for. Like, the weather in Ghana is very different from the weather in Ethiopia, Addis Ababa specifically, because Ethiopia can be very diverse with its climate. But what is it that you had to do? So you went from, I have to prepare for serving in Ghana. Like, okay, I have some West Africa experience. Now you’ve gained more west African experience, and you’re moving to East Africa. So what were some of those adjustments that you made? What is it that you had to shift? 

10:51
Dee Gochanour
I think a lot of it was more physical stuff, so I had to break out my Wisconsin winter clothes to take them. Like, Addis rains a lot, so it gets very cold there. I took blankets and stuff like that. The clothes, too. Like, culturally, I’m allowed to teach in jeans, versus Ghana was still kind of like skirts. And so, like, I’m allowed to wear jeans and leggings, even to work to teach in. So that’s kind of a shift, actually, that it’s a very western bubble that I live in. In Addis, I think I had to shift more of what I was doing, too. So going from homeschooling to having a classroom was kind of a big shift, too, versus when I was homeschooling. 

11:29
Dee Gochanour
I could really cater things to their interests and to the curriculum they had, versus I had a wide open scope to include whatever I wanted in my classroom. And then I had 15 students that I had to try and cater to, which is, I mean, they’re just completely different settings and totally different age groups. 

11:47
Dee Gochanour
Right? Yeah. 

11:49
Rich Rudowske
The placement is in partnership with Bingham Academy. So tell us a little bit about Bingham Academy and then what your role is, at least as it started, and we’ll kind of talk through. 

11:58
Dee Gochanour
Yes, Bingham Academy is in Addis. It’s kind of in the northern part, so it’s in the very Muslim part of the city. Actually, it’s about 20 minutes away from all of the LCMS, like other LBT people, so I don’t get to see them too often. And our lives are completely different because we’re in very different parts of the city. But it’s a PreK through twelve school. It follows Cambridge curriculum, which focuses a lot more on applying information, versus America is a lot more like fact retention based. So it’s a very rigorous, fast paced curriculum. I taught Kg2, which is equivalent to kindergarten at Bingham. So I went from teaching middle school, home school, to kindergarten. 

12:37
Dee Gochanour
And it’s just, it’s a really fast paced, intense curriculum where at the end of my kindergarten, like school year, the last month or two, they were learning multiplication division. We were doing compound sentences, they were writing, they were reading chapter books. So it was really fun at the end, but it was really difficult at the beginning of how fast I should be pushing these kids. And your reading standard is way too low. I’m going to send four books home with you and you better read every single one. So it was really difficult to adjust to that, too. 

13:06
Emily Wilson
Yeah, but this next year you’re going to be doing something a little different. Can you share a little bit about how your role is changing in Ethiopia? 

13:15
Dee Gochanour
Yes. I will be teaching 8th grade and 10th grade next year. So I’ll be teaching, we call it PSSE, which stands for physical, spiritual, social, health education. It’s essentially Bible. It takes the Christian studies for the most part. But then if the kids, we do a trip where they leave Addis and we take like a week preparation for that. So it’s not just like intense Bible, but it’s also announcements and any other upcoming crazy events and stuff like that. But I’m excited to go into 8th grade and to 10th grade. I have really good relationships with both of those groups of students because I coached them for sports and stuff. So they already respect me and they’ve been asking me to teach them Bible for a while. Actually. They’re just really hungry for the word and they don’t know that I’m teaching them yet. 

14:03
Dee Gochanour
So it’s going to be interesting on the first day as we transition to this new role and relationship too, that these students need to see me as the academic person and the coach and athletic director and stuff too. 

14:16
Rich Rudowske
So some folks listening may wonder, so why would Lutheran Bible translators be putting a teacher into this particular school? What’s some of the ministry connection? How does this support the ministry of Lutheran Bible Translators? 

14:28
Dee Gochanour
That’s a great question. So with the federal, because we’re both in the same organization, I count as their teacher at Bingham. So they get significantly reduced pricing for education for their kids, which is a very important part of ministry. Like the number one reason that people leave the field is because they don’t have adequate education for their children. So I get to provide quality education in the capital of Ethiopia. But Bingham as a whole, we have staff from everywhere with a ton of different mission projects in Ethiopia. Between our entire staff, we support at least 50 mission projects in Ethiopia. I get to help support those. 

15:10
Emily Wilson
I was going to say that I really appreciate you highlighting that fact, that a lot of times when people think about missionary service, it’s very often tied to I am doing this particular facet of translation or scripture engagement. But there are needs of support roles for missionaries to be able to accomplish ministry. Being missionary kid teaching is so huge, like even backing up to your Ghana experience, that Paul and Allie were able to invest in preparing the way for that move from Ghana to Ethiopia after many years serving in country, that’s a huge support. Not only to know that, okay, my kids education is being cared for, but they’re seeing the same person day after day when I don’t necessarily have the energy, the time to be able to invest in their studies. 

16:06
Emily Wilson
So just how the institution of Bingham Academy is having a whole network of people that are providing spiritual, emotional, physical, like an outpouring of, let me care for the needs of these missionary kids so that the missionary work can continue in Ethiopia. So you have had this opportunity and you’ve spent a whole academic year there. How is it that you have seen yourself grow and maybe what is it that has brought you just joy or excitement in your role? 

16:43
Dee Gochanour
I’ve seen myself grow as a classroom teacher, for sure. I came fresh out of university and I went right to Ghana, and then I had that little summer break, and then I went right to Bingham. So I’ve never had a formal student teaching or any real hours teaching in the classroom or anything, so kind of learning how to do that, but also to use my local ta to the best of her advantage and to navigate all the cultural parts of, like, we represented at least seven countries in my 15 students. 

17:14
Emily Wilson
Wow. 

17:15
Dee Gochanour
In kindergarten. So trying to navigate the cultural aspect, being a first year teacher, this really difficult curriculum in the new country, like a local ta that I was interacting with. So I grew in how to plan lessons for those specific things. But also, I’ve always been a very flexible person, but I was able to really use that. And I guess I’ve noticed how much of an asset that is on the mission field, and especially in teaching, too, of my kids are really struggling around. Christmas was a really bad time of homesickness, and I sent out a few messages to parents and they’re like, yeah, of course, this is our first Christmas away. I was like, oh, well, that would have been really good to know in early December, but now here we are. 

17:55
Dee Gochanour
So just being really able to add, tck processing things into my own classroom. So we read a lot of books of where you’re from this country, but where is this? And you feel like you identify with this and this, and you’re struggling with your family, but also with the culture and people touching your hair on the sidewalks as you’re walking. So it was really great to be able to notice that my students were going through those things and then put it in part of my curriculum as well. So, like, the books were reading, the things were writing was based on how to help them process their lives, essentially. And at such a young age, which is something I’m really hoping to take over to my 8th and 10th grade classes for Bible as well, of where does your identity lie? 

18:40
Dee Gochanour
That’s something TCK struggle with so much of. I’ve got a passport country, but I live somewhere else. And so adding those processing activities into the older grades too, I think, is something that’s neglected, especially at our school currently. So I’m excited to kind of try my best to see if we can navigate those parts as well. 

18:59
Rich Rudowske
That is awesome. Yeah. Some of our most popular episodes on this podcast have been the stories of third culture kids and that very dynamic you’re talking about. So what a joy to be able to invest in their lives. 

19:11
Emily Wilson
So in some ways, we’ve already addressed this question, but wanting to give you a chance to name it. So, of the specific challenges of teaching third culture kids, what is it that your unique experiences that have been challenging, but also the unique experiences that have been a great joy for you. 

19:30
Dee Gochanour
So, one thing that I guess stands out, I’ve been a lifelong athlete, so I’ve done a lot of sports and such, and so I got to use that to coach students and I made great relationships with them, and I was able to really dive into their sports skills as well, which then led me to gain those relationships to then pour into their lives beyond just like our volleyball court or something. But something that I’ve always been raised with is you don’t argue with the ref, and so it doesn’t matter the sport, you’re not going to go attack them or anything. But Ethiopia has a very argumentative culture, and so they don’t have any fear in going up to someone. And I guess it’s kind of how you defend something, at least that’s what I was told, is that these kids want to really defend. 

20:12
Dee Gochanour
This is the play that made like, this is the wrong call that the ref made. I’m going to defend it because I’m right and I believe in myself or in our team or something like that. And so kind of getting these kids to understand respect from a different perspective, which is really difficult because you’re in such an international setting where we represent over 30 countries. So trying to say, well, actually, your perspective is not okay right now, and you need to follow mine, but I’ve only been here for a couple of months and I’m the adult here, but you’re doing what’s right in your eyes. But actually, that’s not what we do at Bingham and trying to follow some of those things. 

20:50
Emily Wilson
Tricky. 

20:51
Dee Gochanour
Yeah. And it comes up a lot. Actually, that was just one example. It does come up a lot. Know, you think you are doing what is correct in your host culture, but actually here at Bingham we don’t do. 

21:05
Emily Wilson
Yeah, like, thinking about. This is probably also an example of, like, you think about culturally, internationally, maybe the drinking age is lower. Like, okay, it’s permissible at 16, but you come to the campus of St. Paul Lutheran High School, you are legally as well as the campus having rules that, no, that is not acceptable. This is a dry campus and we have to follow the rules of the nation, which is 21 and over. So having those distinctions and being able to explain those things even though it’s. But it’s here. Yeah, but a particular joy, it’s not all a challenge for third culture kids, but also being able to find those nuggets of joy and things that maybe you didn’t notice before. 

21:56
Dee Gochanour
Yeah. Every culture is so different. And so I feel like in my first two months I learned more about the UK than I did about Ethiopia because we have so many staff from England and such that were just bouncing off nursery rhymes and we’re like, oh, that actually sounds different in the US. Or somebody brought up dancing or line dancing or something, and I was like, oh, we don’t. But it depends on the state or something. So finding or I guess learning that information is really cool and valuable that I get to learn from all these different cultures. And we have a really big Finnish population and so the church that I go to with a couple of other Bingham staff, we have a decent amount of potlucks and such. So getting to try their food. And here’s my biscuits and gravy versus here’s, I don’t even like ham sandwiches for breakfast, kind of thing. But getting to bounce the different cultural aspects off of each other is really fun and it just grows everyone’s mindset, too. 

22:54
Rich Rudowske
So what would you share with somebody who might be thinking about maybe if you opened a new category for them? Supporting a third culture kid. That’s something I never thought I could do before. But what would you say to someone who’s looking to support a third culture kid from your experience here the last year and a half? 

23:09
Dee Gochanour
I would say to support them is to really just let them talk about whatever struggle and joy that they’re going through. So I was very big on letting my kindergartners talk about, this is your passport country. These are the experiences you had there. These are the traditions you had there versus this is where you are now, this is what you’re doing now. This is how your traditions had to change. And there’s plenty of resources out there to really dive deep into how to support TCKs through that process and stuff. But I guess from the teaching in a classroom setting, it was easiest to just let them talk about it. And they got to a point where they’re like, even on the playground they’re like, oh, this type of tree doesn’t exist where I’m from. 

23:51
Dee Gochanour
And I was like, wow, the fact that you know that five is really incredible. But also, you’re right, it doesn’t. Does that make you happy? Does it make you sad? What else can you tell me about where you’re from and how you’re feeling and stuff? 

24:03
Rich Rudowske
That’s really great. Yeah. 

24:04
Emily Wilson
Just being able to ask questions and to listen. Yeah. The presence is huge for third culture kids because things are always changing. People are always coming and going and to be able to just say, I’m going to be sitting here with you and I care about what you think and say, it’s awesome. So you’ve been on a journey. You’ve gone from college grad to going to Ghana to Ethiopia and going back to Ethiopia here very shortly. And there’s probably quite a few people know as they are listening to this podcast, either they themselves or they might know someone who is wrestling with should I consider teaching internationally at a place like Bingham Academy? What would you say to that person who is kind of on the fence considering, is this something that God’s calling me to do? What would you say to them? 

25:01
Dee Gochanour
Yeah, tough one. I mean, I guess definitely pray about it and try to figure out where the call is coming from. So I had to really decipher if it was, do I want to do this just because I really love traveling and intermixing with these cultures, or am I really doing it for the Christian aspect? And sometimes I still catch myself of, oh, I really want to go here and do this, but the ministry is in a different place and the purpose of everything that we’re doing and that why I went into this is the main portion of it. It’s not going to be easy by any means. It never is easy, but I guess no career path is easy. So I guess, I don’t know. I don’t think I’m a great person to ask. 

25:41
Dee Gochanour
I kind of just went down the road and was like, if it happens, it does. 

25:44
Emily Wilson
The Lord is leading. 

25:46
Rich Rudowske
Yeah, well, there’s a huge value in just saying, well, here am I, send me, to quote the often quoted thing. But seriously, that’s a huge part of it, right? It’s just being open and seeing where it may go, too. Yeah. 

25:58
Emily Wilson
Well, how can our listeners be praying for you and your ministry? 

26:02
Dee Gochanour
I guess just pray for Bingham as a whole. I’m switching into secondary now, so kindergarten to eighth and 10th is a big flop that the students can really benefit from the unique experience that they’re getting in our intercultural bubble and such that the students know who it’s all for. 

26:22
Rich Rudowske
Well, thanks for spending some time with us here, taking a little bit of your Concordia Mission Institute summer conference time, and it was really great talking with you. We’ve been talking with Dee Gochanour, missionary teacher in Ethiopia. 

26:34
Emily Wilson
Thanks, Dee. 

26:35
Dee Gochanour
Thank you. 

26:41
Emily Wilson
So during the interview, I just really appreciated not only Dee’s posture of relaxed and this is God calling us into mission and I just let him lead the way, but also her heart for missionary kids and different cultures coming together and having compassion for these kids in different contexts and how it all weaves together. It was a really great interview to be able to hear from her and her heart and how she’s been transformed in this just short period of time that she’s been with Lutheran Bible Translators. 

27:17
Rich Rudowske
Yeah, it just reminded me too of the importance of in this season, when there are still locations that we send expatriate missionaries to work in, there are reasons that they’re there, and that’s the difficulties about the work and the context. And it just reminded me the importance of all the different ways to support the missionary families that are there. As Dee mentioned, educational support for the families is huge. In fact, the biggest reason that missionary families will leave the field context. Yeah, this is just a cool reset for me to think about that. This is really an important aspect of who we are and our ministry as we work together with the church around the world to put God’s Word in their hands. 

27:56
Rich Rudowske
All these details and all these intricate pieces are woven together by the Lord to make that happen and to see one of the many programs that are in Ethiopia that Dee is helping support. We invite you to take a look on our website at lbt.org/programs. 

28:11
Emily Wilson
And if you know someone who really has a calling on their heart to serve in an international setting, we want to encourage you to email recruiter@lbt.org and see if we would be a mutual fit. 

28:26
Rich Rudowske
Thank you for listening to the Essentially Translatable Podcast brought to you by Lutheran Bible Translators. You can find past episodes of the podcast at lbt.org/podcast or subscribe on Audible, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts. Follow Lutheran Bible Translators’ social media channels on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter. Or go to lbt.org to find out how you can get involved in the Bible translation movement and put God’s Word in their hands.

The Essentially Translatable Podcast is edited and produced by Audrey Seider. Executive producer is Emily Wilson. Artwork designed by Caleb Rodewald and Sarah Rudowske. Music written and performed by Rob Veith. I’m Rich Rudowske. So long for now.