The passion for Godlink was ignited long before the idea for a nonprofit was formed.

In September 2014, Deejay and Bre’Ana Whiting took their first trip to Zambia with an incredible team of people who had been many times before. Among the group was Debbie Maxey along with her husband, Ronny Maxey. On this trip, they were able to experience the Zambian people, food, homeland wonders, and culture. The purpose of the trip was to provide school supplies to the local under-resourced village schools, train the village teachers and equip the local pastoral leaders. Although there was no initial plan to start a nonprofit, it was on that trip that Deejay, Bre’Ana, Ronny, and Debbie’s hearts began to stir for something more.

Sunday came and the team had an opportunity to visit a local Zambian church. The entire service was Spirit-filled and beautifully woven with Zambian culture from the traditional clothing to the beautiful harmonies of the choir. After church, the team was able to connect with the pastors of this church as well as the local members. Deejay really connected with one young Pastor in particular named, Godrick. They seemed to have kindred spirits though they came from two totally different backgrounds and continents. They exchanged contact to make an effort to keep up with each other.

The trip came to an end and the American team packed up their things, said their goodbyes, and made the long trip home. However, everything the team had experienced was still on their hearts and minds.

When they came home, Deejay was able to connect with Godrick through Facebook where they continued building a relationship. He learned more about what Godrick was trying to do in the area they had just visited. It wasn’t long after, that Deejay and Bre’Ana felt a desire to send support to Godrick. They committed to sending a small seed monthly and continued to do so for 4 years. Unknowingly at the time, Debbie and Ronny had done the same with another local Pastor.

In 2018, toward the end of the year, Deejay and Bre’Ana had a desire to give away money to people or organizations that would benefit from it as well as raise awareness for a cause. Both are involved in music, so they called on their musical friends to help put on a Christmas concert and invited the community out. All of the money raised from that event was divided and given to 3 different causes. Godrick was one of the recipients, receiving a little over $1000. What seemed like a small seed produced more fruit than they could even imagine. With that small donation, school uniforms and shoes were purchased for over 100 students allowing them to go to school with what they needed. It was mind blowing to think that such a small seed made such a big impact. Continuing to use music as a tool, Deejay and Bre’Ana decided to take all of their proceeds from others streaming their music and give it to Godrick. This eventually produced a feeding program for the village schools over the last several years.

In 2021, Deejay and Debbie had an opportunity to take another trip to Zambia with another friend, Beth Thacker, where they were able to visit the schools and the villages that had been impacted by their giving over the last few years. To experience the culture and see the children again really ignited a fire in all of their hearts. What sealed the deal was being able to meet the people who were directly impacted. Once they returned from the trip, it became crystal clear that they were being called to do a work in Zambia. Thus, the birth of Godlink.