HOUGHTON — Wayne D. Lewis Jr., president of Houghton University, presented Paul and Cristina Todeschini Eckhoff with the Alumni Christian Service Award, celebrating their lifetime of service and leadership in medical missions, during the Class of 1975’s Golden Highlanders 50th Reunion on May 10.

The award recognizes the Eckhoffs’ lifetime of extraordinary and selfless service as they have worked to advance the Kingdom of God in regions of the world where it is often difficult to share the Gospel.

Drs. Paul and Cristina Eckhoff have served in some of the world’s most disadvantaged countries. Through the organization Crossworld, they provided medical care and training for eighteen years at Beraca Medical Center in northern Haiti. Paul, a family medical practitioner, and Cristina, a pediatrician, then led a team of missionaries in Central Asia not only continuing medical training but also supporting microfinancing efforts, sanitation projects and other development projects. After a decade in Central Asia, the couple joined a leadership team with Crossworld overseeing fieldworkers serving throughout West Africa and Southeast Asia, as well as ministering to Muslim immigrant populations in Europe and North America.

Paul now serves on Crossworld’s board and continues to support individuals pursuing vocational careers as a means of ministry. Cristina volunteers at a crisis pregnancy center, providing spiritual counseling to individuals at a challenging point in their lives.

Houghton University’s Alumni Christian Service Award is presented to those who have held to the ideals of the Christian faith and who have made a significant impact for the Lord through self-sacrifice to the Church, their communities, and/or their professions.