Robert and Linda Moore
Box 879
Burnsville, NC 28714
robert_seaborn_moore@yahoo.com

The Moores ended their term of service in October 2002.

Robert and Linda Moore are mission co-workers with the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) assigned to serve with the National Presbyterian Synod of Guatemala. During their first term of service (1997 to 2001) they assisted in the development of PRESGOV, a national church program which receives delegations and volunteers coming from PC(USA) and other developed countries to work with the Guatemalan people as they struggle to rebuild their lives and communities after 30 years of civil war. Now in their second term of service, the Moores continue to welcome volunteers to Guatemala through the Young Adult Volunteer program and will serve in a consulting relationship with Diaconia, the national service arm of the National Synod. Their work touches on mission, social justice, community formation and nurture, spiritual development and theological education.

"Our task is to know, love, and be with all of the church in Guatemala, and to listen with openness and compassion, while standing with our Guatemalan neighbors in their life," the Moores write. "The nature of our relationship to the Guatemalan Presbyterian Church has taken shape in an orderly and inclusive manner. Through patience and a clear focus on the needs of the larger church, we have now developed strong relationships with all the 16 presbyteries within the Synod. Especially important has been the inclusion of remote Maya-speaking communities and the most marginalized mestizo communities."

Letters from
the Moore Family

• April 2002
• November 2001
• June 2001
• May 2001
• February 2001
• December 2000
• November 2000
• June 2000
• April 2000
• February 2000
• September 1999
• July 1999

Robert and Linda first began working with Latin Americans in 1988, when they moved to western North Carolina and began to encounter many Latin Americans doing farm labor in the community. Bakersville United Methodist Church and Green Mountain Presbyterian Church, where Robert served as lay pastor, sponsored the Latin American community in Tipton Hill, North Carolina.

The Moores both come to their current ministry in Guatemala with both a rich history of community work and knowledge of Latin American history, Latin American service, and Spanish language skills. Both studied pre-Columbian cultures in graduate school with a focus on Mayan studies and have taught Mayan studies at the university level. The Moores spent five years in Quito, Ecuador, with the Peace Corps and Map International, with Robert as the South American regional representative and program director.

For the nine years prior to the Moores’ appointment to Guatemala, Linda taught Spanish at Mitchell High School in Bakersville, North Carolina. She has also taught English, history, art history, psychology, and economics at both the high school and middle school levels.

Robert has been an assistant professor of fine arts, aesthetics, and art history at Western Carolina University, a self-employed farmer, and a self-employed contractor. After returning from Quito, Ecuador, Robert was a self-employed consultant for international health programs, the co-founder and program director of INMED, and a consultant for Children International. From 1991 to 1993 he participated in commissioned lay pastor studies with the PC(USA)’s Presbytery of Western Carolina and served Green Mountain Presbyterian Church in Green Mountain, North Carolina. Also, since 1993 he served as co-pastor for Nueva Esperanza, a multinational congregation, in Tipton Hill, North Carolina. In addition to his work in mission, Robert is completing work in the doctorate of ministry program in spirituality at Columbia Theological Seminary, Decatur, Georgia.

Linda has a bachelor’s degree in history and English from DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana, and a master’s degree in art history from Northern Illinois University in DeKalb, Illinois. She received her teacher certification from Francis Marion College in Florence, South Carolina.

Robert attended Clemson University in Clemson, South Carolina, and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in fine arts from Western Carolina University in Cullowhee, North Carolina. He received a master’s degree in fine arts and art history from East Tennessee State University in Johnson City, Tennessee.

Linda and Robert are the parents of Robert Jr., Don, and Janet. Robert Jr. is finishing his sophomore year at Hanover College in Hanover, Indiana, with a major in anthropology. Don will be entering his freshman year at the University of North Carolina in August 2001. Janet is currently attending the seventh grade at the Inter-American School in Quetzaltenango, Guatemala.

Birthdays:
Robert - August 2
Linda - June 1
Robert - August 9, 1981
Don - March 25, 1983
Janet - July 25, 1988