John Dekker

John "Tolibaga" Theodorus Johannes Dekker (28 December 1929 – 9 April 2024) was a Dutch-born Christian missionary.

[1] Dekker was born and raised in The Netherlands before moving to Canada in 1952.

[4] They engaged in medical, linguistic, and church work among the Lani people of the Toli Valley in Western New Guinea from 1960 to 1981.

As a result of their ministry, the Christian population among the Lani grew to 13,000.

[3] In 1985, Dekker wrote Torches of Joy which tells the story of his life and ministry to the Dani (Lani).