June 2007

Mboi Andre (dark suit, left), the current president of the Fellowship of Grace Brethren churches in the CAR, was one of the participants in the seminar, as his schedule allowed. Here he chats with instructors Jules Ouba (center) and Greg Burgess (with red folder) before a session begins. Andre leads a fellowship of more than […]

Almost immediately, our schedule had to be adjusted because of the death of a prominent and popular pastor of a church about 20 kilometers from Bangui, southwest on the road to M’baike. Because of his prominence in the Fellowship, many of our seminar attenders needed to participate, so we were invited to go along, even

The service was so colorful as the various groups (OTN, ladies; Lumieres, girls; Flambeau, boys), all in uniform, marched in formation and sang/clapped as they surrounded the casket and shared in the service.

The widow sat by the casket during the entire ceremony and, one-by-one, ladies from the church took turns sitting with her to bring comfort and to share her grief.

Dr. Pierre Yougouda, who for many years served as president of the union of Grace Brethren churches in the CAR until his recent retirement from that position, was one of the many speakers at the funeral.

The funeral service ended–as many in America do–with a fellowship meal in the church facility afterward. Gozo (manioc paste) and an antelope meat dish were the main feature. After the funeral, food, and fellowship we returned to Bangui to begin the teaching/seminar schedule in earnest.

The Masterworks Festival kicks off later this week in Winona Lake, Ind. The month-long classical performing arts training program for young people is sponsored by the Christian Performing Artists Association. Throughout the next few weeks, students and faculty will perform throughout Winona Lake on a regular basis. First on the schedule are two concerts that

Two members of the Grace Community Church, the Grace Brethren church in Seal Beach, Calif., serve on the City of Long Beach (Calif.) Parks and Recreation Commission. Harry Saltzgaver, left, and Drew Satariano, right, serve as president and vice president respectively. The department recently was ranked number one in the nation, becoming the National Parks

From this morning’s report on Operation Barbabas (OB) orientation in Lititz, Pa…. What a crazy looking bunch of students we have! Clowns abounded in the halls of Grace Church in Lititz, PA, early this morning, fully adorned in their best/worst renditions of a three ring circus. (At right, Cody I. and Jake S. transform into

Our trip now half over, we said good-bye to our friends in the Cameroon and boarded a five-seat Cessna operated by SIL for the four-hour flight to Bangui, Central African Republic. We had some anxious moments, trying to make the weight limit–we had to leave a few things in Cameroon from our luggage, but we