Water here, heating there

Visit to a school

When District Elder Wolfgang Oehler visited West Africa, his itinerary included a stop at a school in Sierra Leone. He went there as representative of the builders, the Jorg-Wolff-Foundation, and inspected the operation of the school. The Pre- and Primary School is one of several educational projects being funded by the German-based foundation. The guests were joyfully welcomed by a choir comprised of students and teachers. Five of the best pupils received a scholarship for the 2018/2019 academic year. An additional improvement in the quality of life is the newly constructed well on the school grounds—a real treasure in this part of the world.

Aid for Armenia

Providing winter-proof accommodation in Gyumri (province of Shirak) in the north-western part of Armenia is the declared objective of the New Apostolic aid organisation NAK-karitativ. In 1988 a severe earthquake destroyed many homes in the region, and thousands of people are still suffering as a result and living in extreme poverty. Many people live in containers set up by humanitarian aid organisations, but they offer inadequate protection against the severe cold in winter. Temperatures drop to minus 40 degrees Celsius. NAK-karitativ renovated six containers last year and is now working on getting an additional eight accommodation containers equipped and ready. This will help the people to lead a more dignified life.

In Burkina Faso

Helping women to find work and earn a living is the objective of a project by NAK-karitativ in Burkina Faso’s capital Ouagadougou. There NAK-karitativ supports Attous Yennenga, an organisation that runs a training centre where women are given the opportunity to train in the fields of automotive mechanics, automotive electronics, body repair and painting, the repair of motorcycles, and tailoring. NAK-karitativ’s contribution to the programme is financial. A total of 120 girls, divided into four classes, are training to be seamstresses in a three-year course. NAK-karitativ is financing the three-year course. By buying the sewing machines, NAK-karitativ aims to help the young women in either becoming self-employed after they complete their training or continue with their education. Twenty-five young women are training in automotive body repair and 20 are training in automotive painting.

In December 2018, during the aid organisation’s last visit to the training centre, the apprentices celebrated their graduation. An elaborate fashion show was organised, at which the young women modelled the clothes they had designed and sewn. The event was also attended by representatives of the Ministry of Education, the Chamber of Commerce, and local businesswomen.

District Apostle Schulte visits New Zealand

The congregation in Auckland was delighted to be able to host the first visit of District Apostle Peter Schulte to New Zealand. Peter Schulte, who has been leading the District Apostle Area Western Pacific since October 2018, also invited the members from the Waikato regions in the north of the island to this service. For the congregation this was a historic day. In his sermon, the District Apostle encouraged the congregation not to lose hope. “What makes hope powerful?” he asked. “When we believe that something is attainable,” was his answer. And Jesus Christ makes the goal of our faith attainable.