Executive General Secretary:    Pr. Jan Lek  IJsvogelstraat 9 4273 CT Hank The Netherlands Phone: +31 162 402 713 E-mail:

Dear Friends, During the last general gathering of the Seventh Day Baptist World Federation 2008, I was elected General Secretary. I would like to thank the delegates who voted for me. I will do my very best not to disappoint their confidence in me. My name is Jan Lek, I was born on June 2nd in 1950 in the Netherlands. I have been married for 37 years to my wife Ruth and together we raised our three sons Dave, Vincent, and Rufus. Because I have a full-time job (38 hrs a week) as an employee in a shopping center for building and construction materials, being General Secretary for the World Federation will be a substantial task for me. In addition to that I also am elder and treasurer of the SDB church in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.  So, I guess my leisure time will be history. A lot of you already know that together with my wife Ruth, we bring help to the poorest regions of Eastern Europe. That is Poland, Czech Republic, Ukraine, Romania, and Moldavia. For over 27 years we have done so with dedication and commitment. During these days some borders can be passed driving 55 miles per hour, but there have been times when passing a border, for example from eastern Germany to Poland, meant a twelve- to sixteen-hour stay at the border-crossing, watching the customs officials go through all of our cargo as quick as a snail. We support our brethren with goods as well as money, and we also receive support from abroad on a regular basis. From my employer every year I get five weeks of paid vacation; it is in this valuable time that we have to act and go abroad to support the ones in need. This fits the objective of the World Federation, which is to stay in contact and, if possible, to obtain additional new contacts worldwide. [Editor’s Note: In the early 1980s some of the Lek’s earliest travel to Eastern Europe was supported by Seventh Day Baptists around the world as one of the Federation’s cooperative projects. The Polish Conference became a member of the Federation later in that decade.] I do realize your expectations from me as a General Secretary of the World Federation, I hope God will give me the strength to do this job to everyone’s satisfaction. We will all pray for the officers including all vice presidents, that they carry out their responsibilities with devotion in honor and glory to His name. At work for my employer, I handle materials which are needed for building a complete house. A lot of tools are needed for that, as well as good materials and skilled personnel.  With all my heart I hope that together we may build God’ house and that we will be the tools in His hands. May God bless you all.   Pr. Jan Lek, General Secretary. Back to Board