The Beginning of Koinonia Education Center
2020
By Kelly Mehee Shin
Koinonia Education Center’s first ministry space in a basement room in Exarcheia, Athens, in January 2020.
A SMALL BASEMENT, A NEW BEGINNING
In January 2020, we rented a small basement room on Eresou Street
in the Exarcheia neighborhood of Athens. It was a simple and modest space,
but it became the first home of Koinonia Education Center.
During our first year in Greece, we had met Persian-speaking believers
who desired to study Scripture and prepare for ministry but faced limited
opportunities for theological education, mentoring, and practical support.
We believed God was asking us to create a place where they could learn, grow,
and be equipped to serve others.
We did not begin with a large institution or abundant resources. We began
with a room, a few tables and computers, prayer, and a willingness
to walk alongside the people God brought to us. From that small basement,
a new ministry of education, discipleship, and leadership development began
to take shape.
INVESTING IN FUTURE LEADERS
Through a Korean pastor serving in Athens, we were introduced to
English-speaking university graduates from the refugee community who had
a desire to study theology and serve others. Four emerging leaders began
pursuing Master of Divinity studies online through Grace Mission University
in the United States.
Koinonia Education Center provided a place where they could attend
online classes, study, complete assignments, and receive help with the practical
challenges of continuing their education. We also supported them
through tuition assistance, mentoring, and other forms of care as they
adjusted to life as refugees.
We believed that theological education should be joined with discipleship
and ministry experience. Our goal was not simply to help students earn
degrees, but to walk with them as they developed biblical understanding,
spiritual character, and a heart to serve their own communities.
EDUCATION IN A TIME OF UNCERTAINTY
Only a short time after Koinonia Education Center began, COVID-19 spread
across Europe. Lockdowns and uncertainty disrupted daily life throughout
Greece. For refugees who were already facing unstable housing,
financial hardship, language barriers, and unresolved asylum cases,
the pandemic brought even greater isolation and anxiety.
Because the students were pursuing their degree programs online, access
to computers, reliable internet, and a quiet place to study was essential.
We did what we could to help them remain connected to their courses
while also offering encouragement, prayer, mentoring, and practical
support during a difficult season.
This experience taught us that education could never be separated from
relationship and care. Koinonia Education Center was becoming more than
a classroom. It was a community where people could continue learning,
find support, and prepare for the future even in the midst of uncertainty.
BUILDING A FOUNDATION FOR THE FUTURE
During 2020, Koinonia Education Center was established as
a California nonprofit religious corporation.
This provided an organizational foundation for the emerging ministry
and strengthened our ability to support education, discipleship,
and leadership development over the long term.
At the time, our focus was simple: remain faithful to the few people God had
placed before us. We could not yet see the educational programs,
churches, Home Churches, and ministry leaders that would emerge
in the years ahead. We only knew that each student
and each relationship mattered.
Koinonia Education Center would later grow beyond its original form
and become Koinonia Ministry. Yet the purpose established in that
first basement remained the same—to walk alongside people,
equip them through God’s Word, and help develop leaders
who could serve their communities and participate in God’s mission.
REFLECTION
Looking back at that first basement room, we remember how small
and ordinary everything seemed. There were no large classrooms,
established programs, or abundant resources—only a few people
gathered around tables with laptops, Bibles, and a desire to follow God.
We learned that ministry does not begin when every resource is available
or every plan is complete. It begins when we offer God what we have
and faithfully care for the people He places before us.
The first students were not simply participants in an educational program.
They were brothers, friends, disciples, and emerging leaders whose lives
carried stories of displacement, perseverance, faith, and calling.
Walking with them taught us that developing leaders requires patience,
relationship, prayer, and long-term commitment.
That small basement did not look like the beginning of a ministry
that would continue to grow and serve many others.
But God often chooses small beginnings to reveal His faithfulness.
Koinonia Education Center began with little, yet from the beginning,
it belonged to Him.