Kyle & Nettie Embry
Kyle and Nettie Embry are the founders of EMBolden Ministries, a mission born from a deep calling to serve and a faith that led them far beyond their rural roots in Hanover, Illinois.
Raised in the close-knit farming communities, both Kyle and Nettie were shaped by values of hard work, perseverance, generosity, and neighbor helping neighbor. Those early lessons on their family farms would later become foundational in their missionary service overseas.
In 2013, while celebrating their tenth wedding anniversary on a short-term mission trip, their lives were permanently changed. What began as a time of service became a clear calling to full-time missions. After years of prayer and preparation, in 2025 they took a bold step of faith — packing a few cherished belongings into storage, saying goodbye to their young adult children, and relocating full-time to Ika Mission Station in Kogi State, Nigeria.
Established in 1952, Ika Mission Station serves as a vital hub of hope in a rural and underserved region. The mission includes a Bible translation office serving five local tribes, a free Bible school for adult students, a hospital providing essential medical care, and a motherless baby program that supplies life-saving formula and healthcare to infants whose mothers have passed away.
Kyle’s agricultural background and mechanical aptitude uniquely equip him for the physical and technical demands of mission life. He maintains and repairs equipment, restores and remodels buildings, assists with agricultural sustainability projects, and supports infrastructure improvements that keep the mission functioning effectively.
Nettie helps Kyle with various hands-on projects and combines administrative precision with relational warmth. She assists with record-keeping for the motherless baby program, ensuring that vulnerable infants and orphans receive consistent care. Beyond her administrative responsibilities, she and Kyle regularly open their home to build relationships within the community — sharing meals, conversation, encouragement, and faith.
Though their ministry serves in Nigeria, their hearts remain deeply connected to the tri-state region of Illinois, Wisconsin, and Iowa. EMBolden Ministries reflects the very values that shaped them: faithfulness, compassion, integrity, and practical service.
Through hands-on work and heartfelt relationships, Kyle and Nettie are committed to spreading the gospel, strengthening communities, supporting families, and extending the hope of Jesus where it is needed most.
Looking ahead, Kyle and Nettie prayerfully anticipate expanding the impact by welcoming short-term teams to serve alongside them at Ika Mission Station. They envision churches, families, and individuals from their home region and beyond joining in hands-on projects, medical outreach, children’s ministry, agricultural initiatives, and encouragement for long-term staff. By creating opportunities for others to experience mission life firsthand, they hope to multiply the work being done, strengthen the global body of Christ, and inspire many more to answer God’s call to serve — whether across the ocean or in their own communities.