Condolences to the family of Dr. Chris Palacas
Medical Ambassadors International expresses our condolences to the family of Dr. Chris Palacas, a faithful servant of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Chris served as a missionary in Uganda, hand in hand with his devoted wife Jane. They have been a glorious example to so many, demonstrating what it means to be fully committed to the service of the Lord. His desire was to serve the people of Uganda until death and the good Lord graciously honored this desire. Chris peacefully entered the presence of his Savior on December 23, 2022 in Uganda.
Dr. Chris Palacas and his wife Jane
Chris Goerge Palacas was born June 1, 1934 in Massachusetts, USA. He was inducted in the Armed Forces and the night before leaving for boot camp, in 1957, he surrendered his life to Jesus. Chris was a graduate of Harvard College and of Boston University School of Medicine. Following a residency in Internal Medicine, he joined the staff of Wayne State School of Medicine as a professor in the Dept. of Hematology; he also had an in-hospital Emergency Room practice at Sinai Hospital of Detroit, Michigan.
Chris married the love of his life, Jane, in 1964 and they became partners in ministry. They had a strong desire to work under the Church of Uganda and eventually found themselves working directly for the Archbishop. Chris felt led to attend seminary and became an ordained priest in the Church of Uganda and eventually a Canon.
In 1992 they became involved with MAI and served as consultants and Area Coordinators in East Africa since then. Their signature ministry became Community Health Evangelism, or CHE for short, which is a ministry of training, discipleship, and community uplift, conceived by MAI and practiced in 75 nations of the world.
Their missionary vision focused on preventive and promotive medicine rather than curative. They had the belief that 80% of the morbidity and mortality in developing nations could be prevented by teaching principles that allow people to prevent disease and enjoy more healthy lives. They wanted to intervene upstream in the flow of causality of disease. Even more importantly, they wanted to integrate the medical and the spiritual by pointing to a personal relationship with Jesus as the foundation of a restored life.
For most of three decades now, Chris and Jane have birthed CHE programs in dioceses all over Uganda in which they train local volunteers to identify community problems and enact their own solutions. About half of the program is devoted to physical problems in which they offer practical training in sanitation, improved nutrition, improved crop production, safe childbirth, child health, combating infectious viruses and whatever other issues are identified. The other half of their efforts focus on personalizing the Gospel message to encourage a true born-again experience, practical discipleship, and a servant mentality.
In addition to launching new CHE programs, Chris visited and encouraged established ones, and especially ministered to situations of personal need. Over the years, he raised up several trusted and precious coordinators who themselves launch and oversee CHE programs. Through the grace of God, CHE has produced numerous heroes of the faith in the Church of Uganda!
On December 26, 2022, Chris was buried at the Cathedral of Busoga Diocese – an area in which Chris and Jane had served on a particular assignment from the Archbishop.
If you seek to send support to Jane, use the usual personal support account for the Palacases (S134) specify “bereavement gift” on the check memo line or in the comments/instructions section of an online contribution. CLICK HERE
Please continue to pray for Jane Palacas as she continues the ministry they started together.
