Dr. Julie Kyle

Who I Am

Julie grew up in the suburbs of Philadelphia and attended Bucknell University, graduating with a BA in math and French in 1990.  A semester in France was Julie's first taste of a foreign culture and language, opening her eyes to life outside the US and giving her compassion for people who find themselves living far away from their home country.  Her journey to veterinary school had its twists and turns, and she graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 1999.  Since then she has been in mixed and large animal practices in upstate New York and Vermont.  Her favorite animals are cows and cats. 

After vet school, Julie discovered CVM at continuing education meetings, and signed up to be a volunteer in 2007. She made her first trip to Haiti, and since then has served with CVM in Uganda and India.  She has also been to Romania with her local church.  While Julie was privileged to grow up in a Christian home, she believes God brought her to Vermont for her church there, so that she would be discipled and grow in her faith.  While long-term missions has been on Julie's heart for a long time, it wasn't until recently that God orchestrated a way for her to say yes to serving at ECHO in Fort Myers, Florida.

My Partner

ECHO is an agricultural ministry with far-reaching impact around the world, helping small-scale farmers improve their lives through better crops.  They have demonstration farms at their home base in Fort Myers, Florida, and in Chiang Mai, Thailand, along with training centers in Tanzania and Burkina Faso in Africa, with more to come!  Small-scale farmers are helped through on-site trainings, conferences, new planting techniques, as well as an on-line forum.  Seed preservation and distribution are ways to help farmers grow nutritious plants and trees to feed their families and livestock. ECHO also demonstrates farming technology appropriate for each region, making use of local resources and materials. These technologies improve crop yields and ease the physical burden of farming. 

My Work

ECHO recognizes that farmers worldwide integrate their crops with their livestock.  For farmers in developing nations, often their animals are equivalent to a savings account.  A goat may be sold to pay for school fees, for example.  In order to better address the livestock needs of farmers, ECHO created a new position, Livestock Technical Advisor, to oversee and ramp up their animal impact.  Julie is excited to pioneer this new role, working directly with the livestock on a daily basis, training the interns and staff on animal care, and establishing protocols.  She is exploring cost-effective ways to provide regular protein in the diets of children in impoverished families, and enjoys being a liaison between CVM and ECHO as this partnership develops. 

Julie counts it a privilege to serve at ECHO, and she is pleased that God has opened up this opportunity to serve farmers around the world.  She is learning much in this new role, and she trusts that God has given her skills and equipped her in such a way that, by his grace, she will be a blessing to those at ECHO and their partners around the world.