IWU-Marion Alumni Profile, Spring 2021

Written by Rachel Ashley ‘11

Tiffany Janofski knew a missionary career was in her future as a teenager, though she resisted the call a bit in college. But studying psychology and business administration at IWU actually positioned her well for the missionary work she would do in Albania a few years later.

After college, Tiffany worked as a bank teller and later for a small business run by a member of her church. His family was excited about her aspirations and felt called to help support missionaries. They even allowed her to take weeks off at a time to engage in missions overseas, which she said was an “incredible gift.”

After several trips to South Asia, she applied with World Gospel Mission (WGM) and was accepted as a missionary disciple, the first step toward becoming a career missionary. Tiffany was fully funded and moved out of her house in March 2018, but an unexpected visa issue stopped everything.

“I sensed God asking me to allow that door to South Asia to close and to step into the open door of Albania,” she said.

Tiffany started as a volunteer serving limited hours at VT Albania, but today she is the full-time director. VT Albania is a small foundation that currently serves around 10 adults with disabilities by offering educational opportunities, physiotherapy, and more. Their current students range in age from 18 to 42.

“These adults have never had the opportunity to attend school or live normal lives in ways we often take for granted,” Tiffany explained. “Isolation is the reality for most of our students. They are hidden away, kept at home, because it makes other people in society uncomfortable to see them out.”

Last year, the foundation felt the painful impact of the global pandemic, but Tiffany says it has been an unexpected saving grace, giving them space to ramp up fundraising and plan for the future. Quarantine and isolation also helped the VT Albania team gain a better understanding of the people they serve who experience isolation and separation from the rest of society on a daily basis.

Tiffany is currently preparing to return to Albania to serve for another three years. She’s grateful for sponsors who make this work possible, some of whom are in the IWU community. She’s looking forward to seeing how God will continue to provide miraculously, just as he has done in every step of her journey. She’s learned to take every step in faith—though she knows sometimes you feel the path beneath your feet before seeing it.

To learn more about VT Albania, visit vtalbania.org.

Degree

BS, Psychology and Business Administration ‘13

Current Location

Albania