Darko was raised in a Christian home and was saved at an early age. In high school, the Lord called Darko to full-time ministry, so he went on to attend International Evangelical Theological Seminary in Osijek, Croatia. The Lord has blessed Darko and Gorana with four children: two girls and two boys. In addition, Darko and Gorana are fostering four children.
In 1999 Darko and Gorana were part of a church planting team in Slavonski Brod. With a population of 70,000, Brod was the largest Croatian town at that time without any evangelical church. For over two decades of faithful service, they are thankful for a small but dedicated growing body of believers who love the Lord and are being transformed into Christlikeness. Recently, with the help of many Fellowship members who have been a part of the summer and winter programs that their church runs, they have seen some strong and encouraging growth in the youth of their community.
Both Darko and Gorana were refugees during the Yugoslav Wars in the early 90’s and from that they became very aware of the needs for those without a safe and stable home environment. That is one of the reasons that they have worked so hard to see their vision for the House of Hope come to fruition. The House of Hope will be a community resource for foster families, single parents, and children in need. As foster parents themselves, they have firsthand experiences of how challenging it can be to care for vulnerable children and they desire that this house will be more than just a structure but a beacon of light for those in challenging home situations to find hope, help and healing.
Plans for 2026:
That the House of Hope would be fully completed—floors, tiles, bathrooms, doors, heating, and furnishings—ready to be used for Kingdom purposes.
Dream:
That the House of Hope will be filled with young people who were once fatherless and lost, now finding new life, purpose, and belonging in the love of their Heavenly Father. We long to see true disciples of Jesus growing in faith, guided by mentors who equip and serve them with Christ’s love. Our dream is for the House of Hope to be a place of redemption, restoration, and discipleship—a light to the community of Slavonski Brod. We pray that our church will grow strong in love, faith, and number, becoming a lighthouse for the region and inspiring new Bible-believing churches to be planted so that every person might hear the good news of the Gospel.
