Pastor Hanfere Aligaz is the Senior Pastor and one of the 5 original founding members of International Ethiopian Evangelical Church. While in Ethiopia, Pastor Hanfere worked for Ethiopian Airlines as a pilot and run a private family business. His life changed when God clearly spoke to him to go to America and start a church. Trusting and obeying the word of God, Pastor Hanfere left for America with his wife Yetenayet Haile and 4 children in 1982. Pastor Hanfere has served as a teacher, evangelist, and a pastor in the Ethiopian Evangelical church for the past 25 years. He travels extensively to other Ethiopia and other African countries to preach the gospel and hold healing crusades. He and his wife now have 4 grandchildren and currently reside in Fairfax, Virginia.