LONG-DISTANCE BOND


Second-year students fill a computer science class at Kamina Methodist University in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Information technology is one of the school’s most popular fields of study.


Dallas church helps startup African university


BY JOAN G. LA BARR Special Contributor


When Methodist movement founder John


Wesley instructed his preachers to use all their time in the work of God, he must have had some- one like the Rev. “Guy” Mande Muyombo in mind. Mr. Muyombo is director of the startup Kamina Methodist University in the North Katanga area of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and a doctoral candidate at Saint Paul School of Theology in Kansas City. With master’s degrees from both United


Methodist-related Africa University in Zimbabwe and Saint Paul, Mr. Muyombo’s charge is to build his fledging university into a strong institution that will train emerging Congolese leaders in their own land. He is especially intent on empow- ering and educating women, with his own wife, Blandine, a fellow graduate of Africa University, as a shining example. Identifying former child soldiers in the Kamina area and guiding them to- wards reintegrating into the community through university programs are also key goals. The Cox Chapel congregation of Highland


Park United Methodist Church in Dallas has helped fulfill the vision with a $10,000 gift to roof a dormitory that will house 50 men and 50 women students. A safe place to live is particu- larly important for the women who must still confront strong cultural barriers in their aspira- tions for higher education. Cox Chapel mission committee member Bill


Overthier became interested in Kamina Univer- sity when Mr. Muyombo spoke to Highland Park Sunday school classes last February. With the support of Cox Chapel pastor, the Rev. Jeff Hall, the group voted to fund the roof project as part


of their “Vision for Christ” charge to be a catalyst for outreach efforts that have the potential to grow and thrive with some significant seed funds.


Special friendship The relationship between Highland Park and


Mr. Muyombo dates back to the days when he was studying for his first master’s degree at the Institute of Peace Leadership and Governance at Africa University. The multi-talented young man was also serving as student director of the Africa University Choir, which toured the Texas area prior to the 2008 General Conference in Fort Worth. Highland Park UMC members Lisa and Mac


Tichenor were hosts for some of the choir mem- bers, including Mr. Muyombo. As Mrs. Tichenor talked with him, they discovered a deep common bond. Both were mourning beloved children. The Tichenors’ 19-year-old son, Willie, had lost his battle with cancer, and one of the Muyombos’ in- fant twin daughters had died of malaria. The families kept up communication as the


Muyombo family and their surviving daughter moved to Kansas for his theological studies. While at Saint Paul the couple had another daughter, Christelle, who turns 2 in November. When Mr. Muyombo returned to his native


Congo, Bishop Ntambo Nkulu Ntanda of the North Katanga Conference handed him the huge challenge of becoming director of the small Methodist school in a remote area that had been devastated by civil wars dating back decades. Many of the region’s children had been captured by rebels and forced to become child soldiers. Many of the women had been raped and brutal- ized in unimaginable ways. Almost no family had


4 B | NOVEMBER 11, 2011 | UNITED MET HODI S T REPORTER


escaped unscathed. In the midst of the brokenness, the United


Methodist Church continued to grow and reach out. The church built an orphanage and devel- oped numerous social programs. Then in 2006 Kamina Methodist University was started with an enrollment of 144 students, only 15 of whom were female. The school began as a satellite of the Methodist University of Katanga, known as Mu- lungwishi. The university has now grown to more than


400 students, including 88 women, with schools of information management, theology, psychol- ogy and education and more curriculum offer- ings in the planning stages. Its mission statement is “learning in peace and stability for the trans- formation of the community.”


Educating women Mr. Muyombo has special thanks for the Gen-


eral Board of Global Ministries and the United Methodist Women who supported 39 women students with scholarships. The first class of theology, psychology and ed-


ucation graduated last year. The first class in computer science graduated Oct. 15, along with the second class in the other three disciplines. University leaders are looking forward to


opening the new dormitory. “The roofed dorm is a salvation for many students who are struggling to find a place to stay because many come from remote areas and villages outside Kamina and in the whole of North Katanga. This is going to help the female students especially and give them a safe space to live,” Mr. Muyombo says. The completion of the dorm, indeed any


building at the university, is cause for celebra- tion. The rural setting has limited road access to


cities where materials can be purchased, com- pounding the difficulty of all building efforts.


‘Drum of Peace’ Amid the successes, struggles continue. In the


last academic year many of the students, espe- cially women, were unable to pay all their tuition and other fees. University leaders decided to let them write their exams in spite of this fact. Cur- rent needs include more scholarships, class- rooms, chairs and desks, plus computers. Tuition and fees for one student are $400 annually. Mr. Muyombo is also still working to get


funding for a comprehensive child soldier reinte- gration program. He calls this program “Drum of Peace.” He envisions two month-long sessions annually, each one involving 100 former child soldiers. During this time, the young people would be


hosted and fed at the university’s Kamisamba Training Center. Total cost for one session is esti- mated at $27,500, with all funds processed through the North Katanga Conference accounts. “It has become imperative to attend to the


former child soldiers as part of several peace building programs that can ensure peace and stability in Kamina in particular and the DR Congo in particular,” he says. Anyone wishing more information on the


university and ways to help is invited to contact the director at guymande20022000@yahoo.fr or Lisa Tichenor at lwtichenor@gmail.com. More information is also available on the Kamina Methodist University website at www.kami- namethodistuniversity.blogspot.com.


The Rev. La Barr is the former director of communications for the North Texas Conference.


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