Author: SuZan Klassen

Nehemiah Project

The Nehemiah Project
Restoration and Renewal

by Brad Graber

Some of you will rebuild the deserted ruins of your cities.
Then you will be known as a rebuilder of walls
and a restorer of homes. ~Isaiah 58:12 (NLT)

Hope for Congo is making preparations to embark on a long-term venture: The Nehemiah Project. We have spent ten years in prayer, conversation, and evaluation to arrive at this point.

The Nehemiah Project’s purpose is to rebuild communities in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Eight strategic locations have been selected:
• Ndjoko Punda
• Mukedi
• Kandala
• Nyanga
• Kamyala
• Kalonda
• Banga
• Mutena

These eight villages share 100 years of history through the ongoing work of Africa Inter-Mennonite Mission (AIMM), formerly known as the Congo Inland Mission.

Our initiative will begin with two villages: Ndjoko Punda and Mukedi. These two will serve as a model for all the others. The process will involve the church, community leaders, and faith-based organizations.

Each location will have a designated team member to serve in the rebuilding efforts. Team members will be chosen based on character, giftedness, and passion.

However, it will obviously take more than one carefully chosen person to accomplish this huge task. Hope for Congo is seeking sister churches and individuals in North America willing to adopt a community in DRC.

Financial support, prayer support, and relationship building are all necessary aspects of such an adoption. It would also be wonderful if churches and individuals could share life together with their chosen sister villages as much as time, distance, and technology allow.

Areas of focus will be determined on the basis of individual community needs. These could include:
• Evangelism
• Health
• Safe Drinking Water
• Micro Banking
• Education
• Leadership Training

Hope for Congo will share more about The Nehemiah Project as this effort moves forward. Please feel free to contact us if you are interested in partnering with us.

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Prayer Requests
• Please continue to pray for peace in Congo. The unrest caused by the political turmoil is stretching relationships and rekindling ancient tribal issues even among Christians.
• Pray for wisdom regarding all ministry efforts.
• Pray that God would impress the hearts of those He wants to be involved in ministry to Congo
– through prayer
– through finances
– through short term mission trips

© 2017 Hope4Congo

Summer Posting Schedule

This is Hope4Congo’s last post for May.

As in the past, Hope4Congo will return to our summer posting schedule for 2017. We will post twice per month in June, July, and August unless there is a pressing need to post more frequently.

Look for posts on Thursdays: June 8th & 22nd, July 6th & 20th, and August 10th & 24th. Until the next post, please consider the prayer requests below as ongoing concerns.

Prayer Requests:
• Please continue to pray for peace in Congo. The unrest caused by the political turmoil is stretching relationships and rekindling ancient tribal issues even among Christians.
• Pray for wisdom regarding all ministry efforts.
• Pray that God would impress the hearts of those He wants to be involved in ministry to Congo
– through prayer
– through finances
– through short term mission trips

Please join us June 8th for our post on the Nehemiah Project.

© 2017 Hope4Congo

Transport-to-Market-Bicycles

by Brad Graber

Imported bikes are ill-suited for the rugged road conditions which exist in Congo. Transporting hundreds of pounds to market on a bicycle are common everyday scenes in the rural areas of Congo. Chuck Regier and Harlan Bartel’s dream is to design and locally fabricate a bicycle using bamboo as the primary raw material which is readily available in Congo.

Through their process of research they were fortunate to meet and connect with Craig Calfee, a well-known bicycle builder with experience developing bamboo bicycles elsewhere in Africa. Together they have tested a prototype and built several additional bikes to demonstrate fabrication techniques. This is all being done in a rural village area of Khoma close to where Chuck lived as a “missionary kid” 40 some odd years ago.

It’s been said that collaboration is the new frontier in missions. Hope for Congo is collaborative at its core. In turn Chuck and Harlan have collaborated with Craig Calfee and existing organizations in Congo-Hope International Development Agency and Africa Inter-Mennonite Mission to achieve their goals.

The end goal is to develop a self-sustaining cottage industry business model using local resources for the manufacture, assembly and distribution of durable bicycles that can be used for the transport of goods to and from the market place.

A nucleus of interested and vested Congolese are committed to furthering this project and realize its full potential and economic contribution to both rural communities and the overall larger economy.

Next Steps include the following:
• Develop a supply chain for components that cannot be produced locally.
• Develop a reliable mode of transporting components to the rural area.
• Develop sales, marketing and maintenance program.
• Raise $50,000 to begin the manufacturing and assembly process.

You can help make this dream a reality. With your financial tributions we can provide another layer of hope for our Congolese brothers and sisters.

Or you can send your tax-deductible U.S. donations payable to:
Africa Inter-Mennonite Mission (AIMM)
P.O. Box 744 Goshen, IN 46527-0744

Designate your donation to:
Hope 4 Congo and indicate “Congo Bike Project”

Send your Canadian Dollar Donations to:
Africa Inter-Mennonite Mission (AIMM)
440 Main Street
Steinbach, MB R5G 1Z5

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Thank you, Brad.
For More on partnerships with AIMM see website:
http://www.aimmintl.org/transforming-partnerships.html
Next week we will introduce a new long term venture, “The Nehemiah Project.”

PRAYER REQUESTS:
• Pray that the Ebola virus will be contained and those infected are healed
• Please continue to pray for the political situation in Congo.

© 2017 Hope4Congo

Kicking for Christ

Youth Soccer Evangelism Camps
by Brad Graber

An exciting movement involves soccer as a way to communicate The Gospel and connect with young people in the Congo. This idea started during the Centennial celebration of AIMM, held at Tshikapa in 2012 when Robert Irundu met Dwight Short. Together they introduced the evangelistic soccer clinics.

Since that time Robert has taken this idea to many areas of Congo with incredible success. He continues to provide leadership for future projects. You can view a video of this work at:
https://vimeo.com/175415244

Eight Successful Soccer Camps Held Since 2012:
• Tshikapa (at the 2012 celebration of AIMM)
• Mukedi
• Nyanga
• Mbuji Mayi
• Ilego
• Gungu
• Kahemba
• Ndjoko Punda

Hope for Congo’s goal:
Raise additional money for “Kicking for Christ” to reach more young people
$4,000 can reach as many as 4,000 youth for Christ

Opportunities for your involvement in these Soccer Camps:
• Say YES to help Robert financially with one of the venues this coming year
• Say YES to possibly take a team of young adults to the Congo to help with this ministry

It is only through your generous donations that Hope for Congo can continue to come along side those in Congo who wish to reach the next generation for Christ.

Your donations are tax-deductible. With your help we can be more strategic in our gospel outreach among the youth and follow up more effectively with discipleship efforts.

Make your checks payable to: Africa Inter-Mennonite Mission or AIMM
Designate your donation to: Hope 4 Congo and indicate “Kicking for Christ”
Monies sent to our general fund will be applied where needed.

Send your U.S. Dollar Donations to:
Africa Inter-Mennonite Mission (AIMM)
P.O. Box 744
Goshen, IN 46527-0744

Send your Canadian Dollar Donations to:
Africa Inter-Mennonite Mission (AIMM)
440 Main Street
Steinbach, MB R5G 1Z5

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Thank you, Brad. Next week we will share an exciting strategic initiative to impact eight regional communities in Congo’s West Kasai province.

This is an effort to bring together several faith-based organizations in a collaborative effort of community development and evangelism bringing hope to the next generation.

Prayer Requests: Please pray about how you can be involved in the soccer ministry to Congo’s youth. Please continue to pray for an end to the political upheaval in the Congo.

© 2017 Hope4Congo

Safe Drinking Water

Safe Drinking Water
by Brad Graber

How would you like to spend 3 – 5 hours of your day collecting water for your family’s use?

Several studies show that women who live in rural areas of Africa spend a quarter of their time just fetching water. Plus the water they collect is not always safe to drink.

Hope for Congo has collaborated with Fred Suter and his Congo Water Project to assist communities with access to nearby potable water so that women and children do not need to spend so much time and energy fetching water for daily use.

Fred worked closely with Hope for Congo at Ndjoko Punda to install a ram pump at a spring located down a hillside deep in the forest. With the pump installed and underground pipe laid, this provides water to a nearby hospital and the village. Not only is the water more accessible, it’s also safe to drink.

The ram pump has operated non-stop for three years. This spring Fred will make a trip to Ndjoko Punda to check on the operation and condition of the installation. We hope to improve the delivery system and the volume of water produced.

Fred has also trained a small group of young, strong Congolese to use a hand-auger kit to drill water wells (plus install a hand pump) to provide potable water in other Congolese villages. This local team also designs and constructs gutter systems for roof water collection.

Hope for Congo purchased the first hand-auger drilling kit. We would like to purchase additional kits and equipment. This would provide additional communities with access to safe water.

Hope for Congo’s Goals include:
• Raise sufficient funds to develop an ongoing well drilling program
• Develop and improve water collection systems
• Develop a routine maintenance program for the wells
• Develop community financial support for the water systems

It is only through your generous donations that Hope for Congo can continue to walk alongside our brothers and sisters in Congo and bring hope to their lives.

Safe drinking water is a critical health issue.

Your donations are tax-deductible.

Make your checks payable to: Africa Inter-Mennonite Mission or AIMM
Designate your donation to: Hope 4 Congo and please indicate which project you wish to support. Monies sent to our general fund will be applied where needed.

Send your U.S. dollar Donations to:
Africa Inter-Mennonite Mission or AIMM
P.O. Box 744
Goshen, IN 46527-0744

Send your Canadian Dollar Donations to:
Africa Inter-Mennonite Mission or AIMM
440 Main Street
Steinbach, MB R5G 1Z5

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Thank you, Brad. Next week we will share the opportunities that exist through evangelistic youth soccer camps. Until then, please pray.

Pray Requests:
• Please pray about your involvement in Hope for Congo’s ministry.
• Please pray that a great awakening and revival would stir throughout Congo.
• Please continue to pray for peace in Congo.

© 2017 Hope4Congo

 

 

Education Project

Education Project
by Brad Graber

A good education in Congo is hard to come by. If you live in the cities the cost of an education may be your main challenge. If you live in the rural areas access to a school within close proximity may present an added challenge. Buildings, resources, and supplies are wholly inadequate and do not contribute to a quality education.

The challenges are many but not insurmountable. The basic infrastructure exists, but we need to improve it and build upon it.

School buildings and/or classrooms, educational resources, and scholarships are some of the needs that must be met in order for a quality education to be realized for all grade levels (primary, secondary, and postsecondary). Hope for Congo’s goal is to build schools and classrooms that enhance the education process and experience.

Happy School Children

Hope for Congo’s Goals & Accomplishments for Education thus far:
• Average cost to build a classroom: $12,000
• Hope for Congo has contributed to 10 Scholarships
• Scholarships of $100 – $2,500 are needed
To make education an affordable reality
For those who desire and have the capacity to learn
(Individual scholarships vary dependant upon education costs)
• Necessary tools and resources that allow them to apply their education
• Hope for Congo supplied four carpentry trade schools with tools
Cost to provide basic carpentry tools: $5,000
• Hope for Congo purchased sewing machines for women
Manual sewing machines: $150 each
(Shipping is an additional cost that varies upon location)
• Other technical trades need to be added to this list
• Classroom/Building needs include:
Computers, blackboards, writing supplies, textbooks, desks, etc.
Safe drinking water and toilets

It is only through your generous donations that Hope for Congo can continue to walk alongside our brothers and sisters in Congo. A good education opens up a whole new world and allows dreams never even dared before – to become reality. That is hope.

Please consider how you can help us give them hope.
Your donations are tax-deductible.

Make your checks payable to:
Africa Inter-Mennonite Mission or AIMM

Designate your donation to:
Hope 4 Congo and indicate which project you wish to support.
Monies sent to our general fund will be applied where needed.

Send your U.S. Dollar Donations to:
Africa Inter-Mennonite Mission (AIMM)
P.O. Box 744
Goshen, IN 46527-0744

Send your Canadian Dollar Donations to:
Africa Inter-Mennonite Mission (AIMM)
440 Main Street
Steinbach, MB R5G 1Z5

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Next week Brad will share about the opportunities that exist to help with safe drinking water.

Prayer Requests: Your continued prayers for Congo are crucial in the current political situation.

© 2017 Hope4Congo