Sharon Chai Flath-Vignali joined ITA in April of 2018 as the China Project Coordinator.

Sharon was born in Taipei on March 5, 1953. Her parents came to faith through the work of China Inland Mission and served as the lay leader of their local church. Sharon was called to serve her people at the age of fourteen on one of the evangelism conferences in her home church. She graduated from National Taiwan Normal University with a B.Ed. (1975), came to the States for her higher education, earned two M.S. (1981 in Biomechanics, 1986 in Computer Science), PhD in Social/Sport Psychology (2005) from Oregon State University. She married Dr. Arnold W. Flath and together they served Chinese and Japanese Churches doing church planting and elder training in Japan (1986-92). After her husband passed away, she joined OMF (1992-93) in Hong Kong wishing to fulfill their desire to serve Chinese people.

She returned to Oregon State and resumed her PhD program in 1995. Her research focused on cross cultural comparative studies, studying sedentary lifestyle differences between American and Chinese college students. After completion her dissertation and worked as researcher and professional faculty member at Oregon State for a few years, she sensed God leading her to resume her first calling. She joined Wycliffe Bible Translators and went through the pre-field training in Social Linguistics/ Language Program Management (2009). In 2010 she entered the field and served the largest minority people group their language development program in China for eight years.

In the Spring of 2012 she attended the Leadership Matters Course (LMC) in Cambodia. After this experience, Sharon became convinced that the LMC can be used of God to change China! In 2018, she returned home to Oregon, left Wycliffe and joined ITA so that she could focus on leadership training. Now, she serves as ITA’s China Project Coordinator, which allows her to pursue the vision God has given her.  With the help of ITA leaders and coaches, she feels very blessed to learn and serve China Projects among the world leaders.

In November 2017 Sharon married Gerald F. Vignali and they live and serve happily together in Oregon. 

Sharon is passionate about leadership training, mentoring and coaching. LMC makes leaders on mission more effective and fruitful in their families and ministries; she believes it could develop Chinese leaders around the world as well.

Loves: animals, mountains, trees, music

Hobbies: traveling, reading, gardening, hiking, cooking, hosting family events, listening to Bible in One Year

Contact Sharon HERE.