Meet Bishop John Danbinta . . .  A short autobiography 
Bishop John Danbinta is the visionary who brought his dream of Grace International School  to a small group of supporters. He knows the value of an education. It is his vision to bring a new school with a full curriculum to the children of Gusau, no matter what their background, faith, or economic status.

Read his remarkable story . . . in his own words!

Birth and Conversion to Christ
I was born on October 11, 1958. My family members were animists¹ and they did not have a western education. They were farmers and did not send me to primary or secondary schools let alone University.

I was the first convert to Christianity in my family. I was converted through songs that I heard some Christians singing when they were naming a baby.  I became interested by the way they sang even though I did not know the meaning or the importance of their songs.

Christians taught me how to read
I wanted them to teach me how to sing. They started teaching me but it was difficult because I did not know how to read or write. So, they told me that if I were really serious about wanting to sing, I should then learn to read and write. I begged them to teach me. A church member volunteered to teach me and after three months I learned how to read and write in the Hausa language. I was able to sing immediately! But I still wanted more, so I started going to church so I could sing there.

Persecuted
When my father heard that I started going to church, he hated me and chased me out of his house for three days. After some time he accepted me back to the family but not without me being persecuted and discriminated against. To cut it short, before my father died, he too and his mum and all his family converted to Christianity. We now have three Pastors and one Bishop in my family.

I sent myself to school
My father did not send me to school, but I sent myself when I was 22 years old. I was already married and my first daughter had just been born. So I went to primary school at the age of 22, to learn how to speak and write in the English language as I had already learned Hausa.

After I spent three months in the primary school, my father withdrew me. He said I was very obedient and hard-working and he wanted me to come back and work on the farm.

Theological College and ordination
I was able to attend St. Francis of Assisi Theological College Wusasa, Zaria, and sat for their exams to be trained as church worker. I passed and was admitted from 1982-1985. I was trained as a Catechist and was posted to work in Kano diocese at St. Peter's Anglican Church. I went to the same school again in 1988 and graduated in 1991, with my degree in theology. The Rt. Reverend Josiah Idowu Fearon ordained me. I then went to Jos, to the ECWA² Theological Seminary where I got my first degree in Missions and Evangelism. During 1999-2000, I was sent to London where I spent the year doing door to door Evangelism in Plaistow, London.

Elected Bishop and post-graduate study in Hartford Connecticut
I came back to Nigeria to continue with my church work. I went to Cape Town, South Africa to study for an Honors degree in Pauline Studies in 2004. On March 10, 2005, I was elected Bishop of Gusau. In September 2006, I went to the United States, where I got my postgraduate and Masters degrees in Christian-Muslim Relations. That is where I met the Dewberrys, the Ghostlaws, the Whites, and the Chagnons of the AEP board, as well as the Rev. Canon Tom Furrer and his wife, Maryjane.

Education for the poor
Coupled with my upbringing and poor background in education, I feel the need to bring education to those who have also been born into poor families. I looked around me here and I discovered that there are children who are in a worse situation than I was then. That is why the Grace International School is so important to me. I hope that you will join me in supporting this important project. During this season of blessings and generosity, I pray that you will join me in support of education to the marginalized populations with prayers and donations to sustain this effort.

Peace and blessings,
Bishop John 

¹ Animism (from Latin anima, soul, life) is a religious belief that souls or spirits exist not only in humans, but also in animals, plants, geographic features or other entities.
² ECWA Evangelical Church of West Africa, founded in 1954 by the Sudan Interior Mission (SIM), when the SIM-related churches (initially in Nigeria) came together to form an indigenous body. ECWA is one of the largest Church denominations in Nigeria.