Dave and Karen have been members of Wycliffe since 1988. They did language and translation work in Côte d'Ivoire, West Africa until a civil war broke out in 2002, resulting in their return to the US. There, they took up different roles with Wycliffe while their children went through school.

In March 2016, Dave and Karen relocated to Yaoundé, Cameroon, where Karen was based as a counselor until 2026. She continues this counseling role for staff in Africa now from Vancouver, Washington USA where they have relocated.

In this role, alongside a small team, Karen provides care to mission staff and their families, and also trains people to bring the principles of trauma healing to suffering communities around the world. She is also involved in leadership training of Africans and other staff taking new leadership roles in various countries where Bible translation efforts are underway.

Dave is currently serving as the Coordinator for the Lessons from Scripture project, an approach that helps churches minister to children through Scriptures in their heart languages, especially in places where Scriptures in those languages have recently been translated.