DIKO Marie’s Story (Niem, Central African Republic)

ELCA World Hunger has released a new video: DIKO Marie’s Story from Niem, Central African Republic (CAR). With a newly constructed spring box, DIKO Marie and her community have access to clean, safe water. They are stronger, healthier and enjoying a better quality of life. This video highlights the work of PASE (French acronym for Water Management Program), a project of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of CAR, supported by the ELCA (Evangelical Lutheran Church in America) and its World Hunger Program. View or download the video and handout at www.elca.org/hunger/video

Joe Troester

Baboua, Central African Republic

Video Credit: Video was produced by Kendal Miller and Mark Wierda at Cultivate Studios [www.cultivatestudios.com].

Joe and Deborah are ELCA missionaries in Baboua, CAR. Joe serves as technical advisor for PASE, which provides safe drinking water and promotes good hygiene and sanitation for villagers. Pastor Deborah teaches at the Theological School in Baboua. Their daughter, Christa, is a sophomore at Rain Forest International School in Yaoundé, Cameroon. 

ELCA Malaria Sunday

April 29 is Malaria Sunday in the ELCA (Evangelical Lutheran Church in America). Offerings will go to fund an anti-malaria campaign in Liberia, one of the world's poorest nations, which is still recovering from a prolonged civil war. To read more, go to http://www.elca.org/Our-Faith-In-Action/Responding-to-the-World/ELCA-Malaria-Campaign.aspx

 

The ELCA is already working here in the Central African Republic to combat malaria. Two rural clinics and a village health program provide malaria education and treatment. The story of little Agrippa (named after King Agrippa in the New Testament book of Acts) is typical. At fourteen months, Agrippa had already suffered numerous bouts of malaria. After several illnesses, many people develop partial immunity to malaria, but the parasite remains in their blood, where it continues to destroy red blood cells. Without enough red blood cells to transport oxygen throughout the body, the victims often die – especially infants and small children, who are more susceptible than adults.

 

In Agrippa's case, the malaria parasite had destroyed over half of his red blood cells and left him vulnerable to possibly fatal anemia. Fortunately, his mother took him to the Emmanuel Health Center, a project of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of the CAR, with sponsorship from the ELCA, Global Health Ministries, Lutheran Partners in Global Mission and other donors. There Agrippa received a life-saving blood transfusion, and treatment to kill the remaining parasites in his blood.

 

Many children here in CAR aren't as lucky. They live in small villages with no medical facilities, and no one to take their photos or to hear their stories. I happen to know about Agrippa because his father and mother are my students at the Lutheran seminary here in Baboua. In a country where thousands of babies and children die needlessly every year, it's nice to know of one baby who will live. Please consider helping with the ELCA Malaria Campaign. Thanks.

 

Deborah Troester

Baboua, Central African Republic

 

Photo: Agrippa: a young malaria survivor at Emmanuel Health Center, Gallo, Central African Republic

 

Joe and Deborah are ELCA (Evangelical Lutheran Church in America) missionaries in Baboua, the Central African Republic. Pastor Deborah teaches at the Theological School in Baboua. Joe serves as technical advisor for PASE, which provides safe drinking water and promotes good hygiene and sanitation to villagers. Their daughter, Christa, attends ninth grade at Rain Forest International School in Yaoundé, Cameroon.

 

 

From the 6th World Water Forum in Marseille, France to the Central African Republic--World Water Day, March 22, 2012

Returning from the 6th World Water Forum in Marseille, France to the Central African Republic allowed me to contrast one of the most developed countries in the world with one of the least developed. (The CAR ranks ninth from the bottom of the list in the U.N.'s Human Development Index.)

 

How do I explain the CAR to people in France? The CAR is a place where everyone is a subsistence farmer in order to eat. Even people with salaried jobs are subsistence farmers because you never know if your salary will actually arrive at the end of the month. How do I explain France to people in the CAR who make less than a dollar a day, which usually has to go for school fees or meager health care?

 

Although the World Water Forum focused on the developing world, there seemed to be little interest in places like the CAR. It would be a slight misrepresentation to say that the conference was all about aid agencies and commercial companies in the developed world selling their assistance and products to the developing world. But that was clearly the focus of many. There were, however, others hidden in the corners that were interested in the poorest of the poor.

 

A major discussion at the Forum was whether water and other services should be provided at cost or at a subsidized price for the poor. The fiscal conservatives argue that subsidizing the price is not sustainable. They are probably correct, but in CAR, my project (PASE) has a difficult time convincing people of the benefits of drinking potable water. If people had to pay for potable water, only the elite in the village would consume it. I have been places where there is not a single latrine in the entire village. It is not a question of money; rather it is the difficulty of changing people's habits and behavior.

 

I don't want to sound depressing. There were many good things about the Forum. I met Kamal Kar, who started the concept of Community Led Total Sanitation (CLTS) or http://www.communityledtotalsanitation.org/  I met a couple of old friends, including Michael Campana who has a blog entitled WaterWired or http://aquadoc.typepad.com/waterwired/  I met a new friend, David Zetland, who has a blog entitled Aguanomics or http://www.aguanomics.com/  I found a great resource in French about water in developing countries http://wikiwater.fr  and I discovered a couple of NGOs that are teaching manual drilling in Africa [EnterpriseWorks/VITA or http://www.enterpriseworks.org/ and and Practica Foundation or http://www.practica.org/  Lastly, I meet a number of people actively involved in fighting cholera, which has appeared in the CAR.

 

On this World Water Day 2012, it's good to remember that at least some people care about providing safe water to the and sanitation to those in places like CAR. If you're reading this blog, you're probably one of them. Thank you, for helping us reach those in greatest need!

 

Joe and Deborah Troester

Baboua, Central African Republic

 

Photo: Sign in Marseille, France announcing the 6th World Water Forum and stating that "140 countries are mobilizing for water solutions."

 

Joe and Deborah are ELCA (Evangelical Lutheran Church in America) missionaries in Baboua, the Central African Republic. Joe serves as technical advisor for PASE, which provides safe drinking water and promotes good hygiene and sanitation to villagers. Pastor Deborah teaches at the Theological School in Baboua. Their daughter, Christa, attends ninth grade at Rain Forest International School in Yaoundé, Cameroon.

 

 

Maternal and Infant Health Care a Priority for Lutherans in the Central African Republic

Today, March 8, 2012 is International Women's Day–a good time to reflect on the needs of maternal and infant health care throughout the world. Maternal health is one of the most pressing issues in developing countries, where millions of women lack basic health care for themselves and their children.

 

Here in the Central African Republic, nearly 25 percent of children under five are acutely or severely malnourished, according to the UN Children's fund. One out of five children born in this country will not live to see their fifth birthday. The CAR has one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the world, with 1,355 deaths per 100,000 live births. Women usually give birth at home in unsanitary conditions, with the help of family members or local birth attendants with little or no formal training. If there are any complications, the mother or child, or both, often die.

 

A bright spot in this sad picture is the Emmanuel Health Center, where a team of health-workers provide pre- and post-natal care, safe deliveries, and pediatric care, including treatment of malnourished infants and children. The Evangelical Lutheran Church of CAR runs two such clinics: Emmanuel Health Center in Gallo in western CAR, and the Maternal and Infant Health Clinic in Bohong in northwestern CAR. The church also sponsors a community health program which sends health workers into villages to give vaccines, and provide pre-natal counseling and follow-up care for newborns and their mothers.

 

If you want to help, contact Rev. Twila Schock, Director for Global Mission Support, The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, 8765 West Higgins Road, Chicago, IL 60631, Telephone: 773.380.2641, FAX: 773.380.2410, Twila.Schock@elca.org.

 

Deborah and Joe Troester

Baboua, Central African Republic

 

Photo: Mother and child at the Emmanuel Health Center in Gallo, CAR. The infant is being treated for severe malnutrition. He is nine months old, but weighs as much as a typical 2 to 3 month old.

 

Joe and Deborah are ELCA (Evangelical Lutheran Church in America) missionaries in Baboua, the Central African Republic. Pastor Deborah teaches at the Theological School in Baboua. Joe serves as technical advisor for PASE, which provides clean drinking water and promotes good hygiene and sanitation to villagers. Their daughter, Christa, attends ninth grade at Rain Forest International School in Yaoundé, Cameroon.

 

International Women’s Day Celebrated in Central African Republic

The Women's Synod of the Lutheran Church (EELRCA) hears about maternal health, malaria prevention, and the rights of women and children

 

The Women for Christ of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of the Central African Republic held their national conference in Carnot, CAR, from February 21–26. Carnot is located in southwestern CAR in the heart of gold and diamond mining country, on the edge of the world's second largest rainforest.

 

Participants heard a presentation on maternal health and the importance of pre-natal care, as well as malaria prevention and treatment from Dr. Christa von Oertzen, German gynecologist and medical director of the Emmanuel Health Center, a Lutheran hospital located in Gallo, CAR. Malaria, the number one cause of death in the CAR, is especially dangerous for children under five years of age and pregnant women. In a symbolic gift from a group of six women visiting from the U.S., mosquito nets were presented to five pregnant women. One of the visitors commented: "If we had realized how great the need is, we would have brought a free net for each delegate!"

 

During another session, the region's district attorney spoke on women's and children's rights, emphasizing that everyone has the right to be free from violence and to receive adequate food. He also explained that women have the right to freedom of movement and association with their friends, and that children have the right to attend school and to be free from exploitation by forced labor or forced marriage. He cited cases of girls as young as thirteen being forced into marriage by their parents in exchange for money or goods.

 

The presentations were well-received by the delegates, who numbered some 250 women from all parts of CAR, along with the six American women who represented the U.S. partners of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of the CAR. Rev. Deborah Troester, Rev. Jackie Griffin, and Ms. Anne Langdji, members of ELCA's West Africa Team, also participated in the conference.

 

Deborah and Joe Troester

Baboua, Central African Republic

 

Photo: Marlene Arneson (Eastern North Dakota) and one of the youngest conference attendees. The other visitors from the States were Diann Bratlie (Eastern North Dakota), Deb Williams (Western North Dakota), Peggy Hahn and Lucia Morales (Texas-Louisiana Gulf Coast), and Naomi Staruch (LPGM).

 

Deborah and Joe are ELCA (Evangelical Lutheran Church in America) missionaries in Baboua, the Central African Republic. Pastor Deborah teaches at the Theological School in Baboua. Joe serves as technical advisor for PASE, which provides clean drinking water and promotes good hygiene and sanitation to villagers. Their daughter, Christa, attends ninth grade at Rain Forest International School in Yaoundé, Cameroon.

 

Internet comes to Baboua, Central African Republic

Thanks to an ELCA grant, we just installed a VSAT system that allows us broadband internet access. This will make a tremendous difference in our work, allowing us access to information and websites that we could not access with our old system. Nowadays many forms can only be filled out on-line. Many resources are only available on-line. Deborah has already found information on the internet that has helped her students at the seminary.

 

Many people think that everyone has broadband, but this is not so. The Central African Republic is on the other side of the digital divide, and that divide has only broadened during our four years in this country. Most Central Africans do not even have electricity or running water, much less access to the internet.

 

The closest places to get similar broadband access are in Garoua Boulaï, Cameroon (an hour to the west) or in Bouar (two hours to the east). But improved internet access makes a tremendous difference in a country where the Post Office is nearly nonfunctional and many villages don't have land-line or cell phone service. Thanks ELCA for your help. And thanks to all of you who contribute to ELCA-Global Mission!

 

Joe and Deborah Troester

Baboua, Central African Republic

 

Please note: With our new satellite system, we have new ELCA e-mail addresses: Joe.Troester@elca.org and Deborah.Troester@elca.org  While our old e-mail addresses still work, you can use our new elca.org addresses for official correspondence.

 

Photo: New VSAT antenna, recently installed in our front yard in Baboua, C. A. R.

 

Joe and Deborah are ELCA (Evangelical Lutheran Church in America) missionaries in Baboua, the Central African Republic. Joe serves as technical advisor for PASE, which provides clean drinking water and promotes good hygiene and sanitation to villagers. Pastor Deborah teaches at the Theological School in Baboua. Their daughter, Christa, attends ninth grade at Rain Forest International School in Yaoundé, Cameroon.

 

The Star-Struck Magi

The 6^th of January, Epiphany, is a day that is sometimes not associated with the Christmas holidays, (unless you are Puerto Rican). I was born and spent my childhood in Puerto Rico where El Día de los Reyes (Three King's Day) is just as important as Christmas. Traditionally, this was the day of gift-giving while Christmas was a religious holiday.

But of course Epiphany is not only celebrated in Puerto Rico. This year my school's annual drama performance was a rendition of "Twelfth Night" by Shakespeare. Twelfth night is another name for Epiphany, as it is the twelfth night after Christmas. This play was first performed on the celebration of Twelfth Night in Elizabethan England, hence the name.

So Epiphany is the day when people celebrate the arrival of the Magi to Bethlehem. It isn't the same as Christmas because they came approximately two years after Jesus' birth, when his star had appeared in the sky. That means that they did not come the same night as the shepherds, and they did not come to a stable (as many nativity scenes would have us believe).

Something one must ask though is what on earth were Magi doing in Bethlehem? Historically, Magi were priests of Zoroastrianism, an ancient Persian religion. They were known for being magicians who had the ability to interpret omens and dreams and offered sacrifices to the stars and planets. They were sort of astrologers because they were said to keep watch from generation to generation for a star that would appear and indicate the arrival of a savior. In any case, they certainly weren't Jewish. So how could the star they followed to their Savior have been the same Messiah that had been promised to the Jews?

A star is, after all, just a ball of burning gas far, far away from the earth. How could it guide people? I don't know much about stars, but I know that if you started to follow one, you would be led in circles as it traveled from east to west and then back again the next day. So how were the Magi able to follow a star all the way to Bethlehem? Moreover, how did it stop and stay right over Joseph and Mary's house?

We know little about the Magi who left their comfortable lives to go to Bethlehem. Savior or not, it's still a pretty crazy thing to do. It's not like there was a paved, six-lane highway from Persia to Judah. Their journey shows that they were truly devoted to God and to this Savior that had come to the world, so much that they were ready to go wherever that star led so that they could worship him.

Jesus Christ came as a baby to be the Savior of all nations and peoples and races on earth. The Magi are a clear representation of this wonderful fact. "There is no difference between Jews and Gentiles; God is the same Lord of all and richly blesses all who call to him." (Romans 10:12)

The God who created a star to guide the Magi all the way to the Savior and made it stop above him, is the same God who calls each and every one of us "go" and to let our going be an act of worship to him.  He is the same God who, long ago, slid off of his mother's lap to touch a huge heavy jeweled box with his tiny hands and looked up as rich kings with long beards and flowing robes knelt before him in worship.

 

Written by Christa Troester

Baboua, Central African Republic

 

Photo: Hand-carved Wise Men from Bouar, Central African Republic, photographed in front of traditional Cameroonian indigo-dyed cotton fabric.

 

Christa Troester attends Ninth Grade at Rain Forest International School in Yaoundé, Cameroon. Her parents, Joe and Deborah are ELCA missionaries in Baboua, the Central African Republic. Joe serves as technical advisor for PASE, which provides clean drinking water and promotes good hygiene and sanitation to villagers. Pastor Deborah teaches at the Theological School in Baboua.