Life Pacific University is proud to announce that Dr. Cliff Hanes and Rev. Mari Hanes are the recipients of the 2025 Lifetime of Service Award. This prestigious honor celebrates decades of ministry leadership, pioneering faith, and global impact in service to Christ and His Church. Through pastoral ministry, writing, global missions, and raising up leaders, Cliff and Mari have shaped generations. The award will be presented at the 2025 Alumni and Friends Luncheon on May 28, 2025, in Denver, Colorado. 

“Dr. Cliff and Rev. Mari Hanes embody a legacy of faith, leadership, and unwavering commitment to God’s calling,” shares LPU President Dr. Angie Richey ’97. “Their impact on the Foursquare Church, global missions, and the countless lives they’ve touched is immeasurable. We are honored to recognize their lifetime of service, celebrating their devotion to raising up leaders and spreading the Gospel worldwide. Their story is an inspiration to us all.” 

“Cliff has had a remarkable career as an ordained minister in the Foursquare Church and has been a mentor and inspiration to an entire generation of Foursquare ministers,” says Rev. Kenneth Hart ’76. “And I can think of no one who is more respected in this Foursquare family.” 

2023 Lifetime of Service Award recipient Dr. Doretha O’Quinn ’73 also commends Mari Hanes’ many extraordinary contributions, which include the co-founding of an orphanage in Uganda years ago that has grown into one of the country’s largest and most respected schools. Dr. O’Quinn recalls that long before these acts of service across the nation and globe, “Mari and I were classmates at LIFE, both pursuing our love for missions and our desire to serve.” 

A Lifetime Rooted in Calling 

Cliff and Mari upon Graduation from LIFE

For both Cliff and Mari, the call to ministry was planted early and ran deep. Cliff Hanes was raised in the Vancouver Foursquare Church and accepted Christ as a young child. His passion for ministry was sparked at Camp Crestview, where he was deeply influenced by missionaries and District Youth Director Roy Hicks Jr. ’66. Roy would later invite Cliff to travel with him to Montana to share his testimony—an experience that confirmed Cliff’s calling to attend Life Bible College and enter ministry. Though gifted in both athletics and academics, Cliff felt God calling him to something higher. 

Mari Hanes was born Mari Dunagan in Grants Pass, Oregon, in 1951. At thirteen, her life changed when a woman from the local Foursquare church—having found Mari’s name on an old Vacation Bible School list—offered to sponsor her to attend Camp Crestview. That first worship service in the chapel was a moment Mari would never forget. The Lord’s presence marked her life, and she would return each summer for the next five years, eventually serving on the Teen Crew. 

Back home, Mari dove into her church’s youth group, traveling choir, and summer mission teams to Mexico. But it was a unique discipleship opportunity that laid a strong foundation: Mary Phillips ’54, the pastor’s wife, invited Mari to join a Bible memory team. The team memorized dozens of verses from John and Luke and went on to win the 1978 National Championship at the Foursquare Convention in Chicago. 

Despite being offered a full scholarship to Syracuse University, Mari knew God was calling her to Life Bible College in Los Angeles. While there, she worked in the Dean of Students office under Pastor Jack Hayford 56’,  and later with Professor Dr. Dorothy Jean Furlong ’45, whose wisdom and faith further shaped Mari’s calling. It was during this season at LIFE that Mari reconnected with Cliff—the young man she had first met years earlier at Camp Crestview. Their friendship quickly deepened. They were married in 1972 by Pastor Roy Hicks Jr., and both graduated shortly after—Mari in 1974, Cliff in 1975, each with high honors. 

Ministry in Tandem 

Immediately following graduation, Cliff and Mari began their pastoral ministry at The Church On The Way in Van Nuys, California, serving under Pastor Jack Hayford. In 1977, they joined Rev. Ron Mehl’s staff at Beaverton Foursquare Church in Oregon. Cliff served as a teaching pastor, and Mari led as Director of Christian Education. Their first child, Sara Lace, was born during this season. 

On Cliff’s 25th birthday, he received a phone call from Supervisor Dr. Roy Hicks Sr. ’44, appointing him as Senior Pastor of Olympia Foursquare Church, then a small congregation of 35 people. Over the next five years, the church experienced explosive growth, reaching 1,500 in attendance across three services. During this fruitful time, their second child, Benjamin, was born. 

In 1982, Cliff and Mari felt a clear direction to answer a call to pastor in Bend, Oregon. At that time, Bend was a small mill town deep in recession, and the town was flooded by members of a cult of the Bagwan Sri RejNeesh. In the next few years, the congregation—now Westside Church—grew from 150 to over 1,000. Land was purchased for a new sanctuary, and Samuel, Cliff and Mari’s third child, was born. 

Throughout these years, Mari pastored faithfully alongside Cliff, teaching and discipling leaders. Most notably, her passion in every location where they served was the establishing of strong women’s ministries. Mari often reflects on the early days of ministry with a smile—remembering times when one of their babies would be napping in a basket under her desk while she mentored and led. 

Writing, Advocacy, and Adoption Ministry 

Beyond the pulpit, Mari also embraced a powerful writing ministry. She served as Managing Editor of Virtue Magazine for two years and authored numerous books, including: 

• Three titles with Tyndale House 

• One with Harvest House 

• One with Bantam Doubleday in New York 

• Two children’s books with Questar/Multnomah (Pocahontas: True Princess and Two Mighty Rivers: The Son of Pocahontas) 

Her first book, The Child Within, was a devotional for expectant mothers and was distributed in doctors’ offices and Christian hospitals. It opened an unexpected door—young women facing unplanned pregnancies began reaching out to her. This led Mari to accept a role with WACAP (Washington Agency for Children and Parents) as a social worker, helping place nearly 80 babies in Christian homes over 18 years.  

Expanding Global Reach 

When Dr. Rolf K. McPherson appointed Cliff as Northwest District Supervisor, Cliff and Mari took on leadership of eight states, including Alaska and Hawaii. Cliff made church planting a top priority. Over the next eight years, 204 new churches were planted, bringing the district total to 369 churches. For his leadership, Cliff received an honorary Doctor of Divinity from ICFG.  Following the 1991 adoption of their daughter, Nora Grace, from Bulgaria, Cliff and Mari felt God stirring again, and renewed their application to the Foursquare Missions department in 1996. This time, Rev. Jim Tolle ’80 appointed them to serve in Northern Europe. 

Later, ICFG President Dr. Paul Risser ’59 invited Cliff to return to Los Angeles to serve as Vice President of ICFG. He also served as interim Eastern District Supervisor, and on September 11, 2001, Cliff and Mari were ministering in New York when the attacks occurred. In response, Cliff helped establish the Foursquare Relief Fund and served as its founding chairman. Cliff also became the denomination’s first Military Chaplain Endorser, helping to streamline the process for chaplains to serve. Under Dr. Jack Hayford’s presidency, Cliff was appointed Vice President of Global Operations. 

Legacy in Uganda and Life in Retirement 

In 2009, Cliff and Mari returned to local church ministry as co-pastors of East Bay Fellowship in Danville, California, where they expanded the church’s missions footprint. But Mari’s most meaningful post-retirement work has been with Otino Waa Children’s Village in northern Uganda, a ministry founded 19 years ago to care for orphans and former child soldiers. Mari served on the founding board and as U.S. Director of Operations for four years. Today, the school serves over 350 residential students and 200 day students from surrounding villages. Cliff and Mari also raised funds for a medical center, where 97 babies were safely delivered in the past year alone. 

 A Legacy That Lasts 

Now retired, Cliff and Mari continue to pour into ministry through mentoring, global partnerships, and prayerful support of the churches and leaders they’ve invested in for decades. They cherish time with their seven grandchildren and rejoice in the continued fruit of their life’s calling. 

Reflecting on his own journey, Cliff is quick to credit his mentors—Pastor Jack Hayford, Rev. Ron Mehl ’66, Rev. Roy Hicks Jr., Dr. Paul Hackett, Dr. Ralph Hammond, Dr. Guy Duffield ’66, Dr. Sam Middlebrook ’88, and Dr. Don Pickerill ’52 —for shaping his leadership. “I am thrilled to see the quality of professors and mentors who are shaping the lives of new generations of students at Life Pacific,” Cliff shares. Their story is a legacy of love, leadership, and lifelong obedience—a model of faithful service that will inspire generations to come. 

Join Us in Celebration 

Life Pacific University is honored to celebrate Dr. Cliff Hanes and Rev. Mari Hanes for their extraordinary legacy of faith, service, and Kingdom impact. Please join us in recognizing these outstanding honorees at the 2025 Alumni and Friends Luncheon on May 28, 2025, in Denver, Colorado. 

🔗 For more information or to RSVP, visit: lifepacific.edu/events/lpu-alumni-friends-luncheon