by Rev. Christopher Nichols
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Spotlight on Ministry |
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MADISON (06/01/2009) -- My son Jamie and I just returned from a visit to southern Africa, including a week in Zimbabwe. We were hosted by the Rev. Edward Matuvhunye, President of the United Church of Christ in Zimbabwe, In a rural area on the southeastern border near Mozambique, we visited Mt. Selinda, a United Church of Christ facility consisting of a hospital, orphanage, high school, primary school, nursing school, and church.
The friendship between the people at Mt. Selinda and the First Congregational Church of Madison goes back many years. Members of our church, Marion and Allen Koerner, served as volunteers there in the 1970’s. The church sponsored the building of the hospital’s maternity wing in the 1990s. Between 2007 and 2008, First Church raised most of the funds required to purchase a new ambulance. The keys to the new Toyota LandCruiser were presented to the hospital on November 30, 2008, in a ceremony sponsored by the United Church of Christ in Zimbabwe.
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| Rev. Chris Nichols and Rev. Edward Matuyhunye (center left and right) stand next to the new ambulance at Mt. Selinda with hospital staff. |
Jamie and I spent a day in March touring the area in that ambulance. We brought another donation from Madison — $11,500, including a $500 gift from the Madison Rotary Club — which will allow the hospital to repair its old ambulance and a small Mazda pickup for everyday use. At the moment, the new ambulance is the only functioning vehicle on the Mt. Selinda “campus.”
Before and after our journey, we were often asked whether it was safe to travel there. Notwithstanding the US State Department travel advisories, which seem to discourage travel almost anywhere, we never felt at risk. It’s easy to confuse Zimbabwe with other very troubled African countries, but Zimbabwe is not at war. The peaceful, hospitable people of Zimbabwe are beset by a troubled government.
The life of the average person is most affected by the collapsed economy. In April 2009, Zimbabwe abandoned the national currency after years of hyperinflation brought the Zimbabwe dollar equal to 1 Trillion US dollars. Since then, virtually everything is bought and sold with US and South African currency. Imagine if, in a relatively short period of time, all your financial assets were worthless, with no hope of recovery. It has been a difficult transition as every business from supermarkets to roadside vendors tries to make sales in a currency most people don’t have. This is why our donations to Mt. Selinda have been so helpful – and crucial.
While in Zimbabwe, we were thanked many times daily for the ambulance: “You have saved many lives.” Rev. Matuvhunye will be visiting Madison in June prior to attending Synod; he wants to personally thank our church for this significant gift.
God is definitely at work and truly, Christ is risen.
The Rev. Christopher Nichols is Pastor of the First Congregational Church UCC in Madison. Visit www.ctucc.org/spotlight/ for more stories about special ministries in the local church.
