John went from Australia to Papua New Guinea in 1993 as a language surveyor, while Marjo came from Finland in the same year as a literacy worker. They married in 1994, and began working with the Mussau-Emira people at the end of 1995.

Mussau-Emira is spoken by about 6,000 people living on the St Matthias Islands (New Ireland Province), in Kavieng, the nearest town, as well as in other parts of the country. The Mussau-Emira New Testament was dedicated in May/June 2019. Old Testament translation is continuing, with John working remotely from Finland as advisor to the translators working on Mussau Island and in Kavieng.

They have two adult children, Karoliina and Timo, who are currently in Finland. Karoliina is a nurse, and Timo is a physiotherapist. Both are now married. They spent most of their childhood in Papua New Guinea, and moved back to Finland after finishing high school.