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Kumar & Kathryn Aryal

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Our Ministry

We are Kumar and Kathryn Aryal, field workers with ACTION, serving at Himalayan Hope Foundation in Nepal. Kumar is from Nepal, and Kathryn is from the Philippines. We were married in 2023 and have three sons: Kevin, Kyle, and Kurt. After serving at the International Graduate School of Leadership (IGSL) in the Philippines as full-time faculty for almost a decade, we sensed God’s calling for us to serve in Nepal. So, in April 2021, we moved to Nepal in the middle of the global pandemic (Covid-19), believing that God has called us to do a special work for such a time as this. Our vision is to create a society where Nepalis, particularly poor and marginalized people, can experience economic, psychological, social, and spiritual wellbeing. 

Our mission is to train leaders and work with them to serve the poor and marginalized people in a holistic manner.

In April 2021, we relocated our ministry in Nepal after serving at International Graduate School of Leadership (IGSL) for almost a decade. We have pioneered a ministry called Himalayan Hope Foundation https://www.himalayanhope.org. Our desire is to equip Nepali leaders in doing holistic ministry and, at the same time, engage in holistic ministry activities among the poor and unreached people groups. This holistic ministry that we have pioneered in Nepal is based on the Holistic Development Framework that Kumar has created for his PhD dissertation. We are very excited to see this being implemented on the field and being able to help people experience shalom (peace, wellbeing, wholeness) as a result of their economic, psychological, social, and spiritual development. 

Our current ministry under Himalayan Hope Foundation primarily focuses on Leadership Development and Community Development. Our Leadership Development initiative involves a PhD program for key leaders in Nepal, a Diploma Program for lay leaders, and leadership training and mentoring of emerging leaders. Our Community Development initiative involves scholarship for orphans and children in desperate need, livelihood training for widows and single mothers, financial assistance to disable individuals/families, medical clinics, eye camps, school projects, disaster relief, etc. in poor and marginalized communities.

Our Story

Kumar was born and brought up in Nepal in a Hindu religious background. In 1992, his father met a Christian family during one of his work-related appointments. That family shared the Gospel with his father, and it was the first time his father heard about the name of Jesus. After hearing about Jesus and listening to their testimony, his father accepted Jesus right then and there. Kumar heard about Jesus Christ from his father when he was 10 years old. He started going to church and Sunday School and later accepted Christ as his personal Lord and Savior at the age of 12. He attended Campus Crusade’s one-month ‘New Life Training’ in 2001, which God used for his spiritual growth and preparation for God’s work. Later that year, he sensed God’s calling for him to serve God, so he went to Nepal Ebenezer Bible College to be equipped for ministry. Upon his graduation in 2004, he went to Malaysia as a missionary. His ministry in Malaysia gave him a clear confirmation of God’s calling for him to be in cross-cultural ministry. After his ministry in Malaysia, he went back to Nepal and did youth ministry and pastoral training. In 2009, he went to IGSL to further equip himself. In 2012, after his three-year Master of Divinity (M.Div.) program, he joined IGSL as a resident faculty. In 2014, Kumar started his PhD in International Development at William Carey International University and graduated in 2018. He was invited to join the executive leadership team of International Graduate School of Leadership in 2016 and served as the Director of Life Mentoring for 4 years.

Kats was born and brought up in the Philippines in a Catholic religious background. By God’s sovereignty, her parents enrolled her in a Christian Chinese school. She heard about Jesus many times in classrooms and Bible studies where she learned what it means to have a personal relationship with Jesus. It was in her freshmen year of high school, while attending one of the chapel services, that she dedicated her life to Jesus Christ. She was the first Christian in her clan, both from her father's and mother's side. Sharing the Gospel has always been the foremost burden in her heart, and she intentionally witnessed to her parents who, by God's saving mercies, eventually became believers and got baptized. She has also shared the Gospel with her relatives and friends and discipled some of them. On numerous occasions, she has shared the Gospel with taxi drivers and street kids. She always feels a deep burden for the lost and prays for them to come to know Christ. In 2006, she entered IGSL to deepen her understanding of God and be trained for His work. In 2009, after her three-year Master of Divinity (M.Div.) program, she joined IGSL as an adjunct faculty while she continued serving at Christian Agape Fellowship. Kathryn joined full-time faculty of IGSL in 2014 and continued teaching in the Educational Studies Department until 2020.