Congo Vision Trip Update

Things seem to be coming together for the Congo Vision Trip this July. Posted below is a brief description of what's going on with our sister churches in the Ubangi province and what the vision trip is about.

The Acronyms – What are they?

1. CECU – This the Evangelical Free Church of Congo, officially transliterated as the Evangelical Community of Christ in the Ubangi. More about this later.

Over the years of fighting in Congo, plus disease, especially AIDS, large numbers of women have become widows, and large numbers of children have been orphaned. In keeping with the dozens of passages in Scripture enjoining us to care for the needs of widows and orphans and the needy around us, the CECU has had a heart to do something for them and has developed two specific programs:

2. PEASIT – The program for training and help for those affected by AIDS. Interestingly the “T” on the end of PEASIT comes from the Lingala word “Let’s take care of ourselves”, recognizing the importance that each person must be involved in this process, not just getting help from outside.

-- A big part of this program has been a broad educational program throughout the Ubangi (the Free Church serves this area which is roughly the size of Indiana) which has been highly effective. Arlington Heights EFC was a major player in helping get this started.

-- A second big part is the orphan sponsorship program, Global FingerPrints. It’s taken awhile to get all the pieces together with the web connections and getting kids enrolled, but things are moving forward very well now with 250 children already sponsored and more to be added in the near future. Generally speaking these are children who are younger and have some family roots, even if parents are gone. So GF is helping to cover educational costs, health costs, nutritional programs, clothing and other things to help these extended families continue to care for the children in their homes, rather than the orphanage approach.

3. CEVO – This is a major initiative the church is taking which began with the women’s ministry in the CECU and is now fully a program of the church leadership as well. CEVO is the French acronym for the “Training Center for Widows and Orphans”, an initiative of the Free Church of Congo (CECU). This is for the many widows in the church, widows who need training in various skills such as sewing, caring for gardens, animals, and various other job skills. It is also for older orphans, those who have not gotten far in the educational system but need training for skills to survive in life. This will include various kinds of job training, both in farming and animal husbandry, and in various other job skills like carpentry, metal work, etc. Special emphasis will be placed on teen girls who are more vulnerable and need training for life.

God has given the church a large piece of land very near the church offices, roughly 60 acres in size on which to develop the CEVO project. Already several buildings are going up and some of the land is being planted with gardens in order to maintain clear ownership of the property.

Purposes of our trip: Here is a broad statement, but each church needs to develop its own purpose as well:

We want to help churches and individuals to understand the realities of AIDS and war which have resulted in thousands of widows and orphans in Congo; to see the needs, to learn from the church leadership about their vision, to understand the realities of life and projects in this context, and to offer wisdom and consultation on possible solutions to issues we face. And ultimately we pray that the participants will go home to their churches, highly motivated to partner with the CECU and the EFCA International Mission to partner with us to help those in so much need in Congo.

[Taken from an update letter by Tom Cairns, Chief Medical Officer, ReachGlobal (EFCA International Missions)]

How you can help

1) Pray for the Lord to clearly guide and to provide for this trip.

2) Give. We need funds to pay for the trip. You can give a gift to Cornerstone designated Congo Vision Trip. Or you can buy a raffle ticket. We are raffling an iPod Nano at $5/ticket to help raise funds (better yet, sell some tickets to your friends). Or you can donate something nice for a yard sale April 28. Or you can help with a "Congo Carwash". Email the church office if you need more information or if you have other ideas (office@pullmancornerstone.org or phone 509-334-9191).