Danielle Hardcastle arrived in Zagreb in March 2021, knowing she would be here for a year. The plan had been a short three-month volunteer trip, but COVID-19 had shut the door on that. Instead of a brief visit, she stepped into something much bigger – four and a half years of living, learning, and serving in a place she never planned to call home.
Danielle was 20 years old, fresh out of Iowa, from a Nazarene pastor’s family where missions had always been part of the conversation. Stories of far-off places had filled her childhood, planting a seed that would grow into a call she couldn’t ignore. When she changed her college major, she wasn’t sure what the future held, only that it involved serving.
Croatia became the unexpected classroom. The local Nazarene church in Zagreb was a sanctuary for refugees from Syria, Afghanistan, Gaza, Iran, Congo, Burundi, and more when she joined. Languages and cultures folded into one another, and Danielle was learning along the way. Croatian became a shared thread, learned among laughter and tears, especially with the Ukrainian children she served.
Danielle learned to listen beyond words. “When we assume we know what people need, that’s when things fall apart,” she says. The work was about asking questions, understanding stories, and building trust where differences could have divided.
Her role shifted from youth ministry to compassionate care. The local church gave her space to explore, to stretch, to fail, and to grow. Danielle grew too, learning about faith amid uncertainty, about herself in moments of conflict, and about how to hold space for others when everything felt foreign.
Now, at 24, she is packing up for Kenya. Her next assignment will be launching sports ministries with Nazarene Youth International, using basketball, football, and more to reach communities. Her passion for sports was once set aside to follow God’s call. Now sports will be her bridge to connect and serve. “It’s something I’ve always loved,” she says. “Now I get to use it to serve and share God’s love.”
Danielle’s education traveled with her, from Grand Canyon University to European Nazarene College in Croatia, and now to peace and conflict studies at African Nazarene University. Each step is adding layers to her understanding of mission and ministry.
“I’ve grown up here,” Danielle reflects. “I came with no experience in long-term missions, and I’m leaving with so much I can take anywhere.”