What a privilege many of us have had to be friends with Leo Salgado over the past few years. And now it’s our privilege to wish him well and support him with our prayers as he moves on. Leo moved to Geneva, NY in 2021 from Louisiana where he studied and got a Masters degree in Entomology from Louisiana State University. Leo’s specific area of interest is integrated pest management (IPM) in agricultural crops. He did classwork at Cornell before moving to Geneva, NY in 2023 to do field work there. He’s leaped from defending his PhD dissertation in early July to interviewing for and accepting an offer in late July/August to be an assistant professor in IPM in vegetables at the University of Arizona at Yuma. He’ll be loading up his car and driving to Yuma, AZ in early October, hopefully with his brother from Honduras who hopes to come and assist him with his move.
Leo has jumped into ministry at Bethel Grove in many ways. He and his girlfriend, Kensy Dinora, also from Honduras and who also studied at the same school in Honduras, Louisiana, and New York, visited BG, and they soon joined a small group led by Steve Lantz. After half a year they became leaders with a Spanish speaking small group which occasionally mixed with Steve’s group. In both of these groups, Leo commented on how helpful it was to discuss the ideas and Scriptures from Pastor Matt’s sermons and then share perspectives on how these can be worked out and applied in daily life. Kensy and Leo have been part of the fellowship and outreach committee and also translators for Spanish speaking folks who attend BG and have served with the local missions committee to serve the body and local community. In just a few short years, Leo and Kensy have become dear friends with many of us as we’ve learned and grown side by side.
As Leo described the timing and factors involved in the hiring process for his new position, he strongly sees God’s sovereign and good hand. He’s very grateful for His mercy and leading. Leo will have responsibilities in extension, research, and teaching IPM, all of which interest him, but especially extension work. Leo desires to make an impact in a community and help growers address common problems. Leo asks for prayer that he’d adjust to and grow in his job as a professor, that he’d find a church to be part of, and that Kensy would be able to join him and find a position there as she graduates with her PhD in a year or so.
We wish you all the best, Leo, and we thank God for letting us learn and grow from you and with you these past few years.