Women in Congo

"When you set out on your journey to Ithaca, pray that the road is long, full of adventure, full of knowledge." So begins Homer as he chronicles the travels of Odysseus in The Odyssey. We aren't going to Ithaca, but we are going to Congo. Yes, it's happening! And it will indeed be full of adventure and full of knowledge.

Last Summer: Congolese refugees in Phoenix, AZ
As many of you already know, we used the scholarship money that came with the Rech Award to fund a research trip out to Phoenix, AZ in August 2012. We spent about a week with a community of Congolese refugees and were able to interview 11 women on the topic of religious coping and trauma. So much more can be said about the impact of this trip on each of us. For the sake of brevity, let us just say that despite leaving us emotionally and physically drained, our experience touched us deeply and was a precious gift of trust and the beginnings of some beautiful relationships. All of us were humbled by the stories of the women we met and the courage it took for them to speak to us.

Next step Congo:
We also came away from our time in Phoenix with an invitation to speak at a conference this summer (2013) in Kinshasa, the capital city of the Democratic Republic of Congo. We are privileged to share our experiences, educate about trauma and recovery, and listen to the stories of 1,000 women who are leaders in their community, striving to promote hope and resilience in the midst of ongoing instability, violence, and evil. The theme of our conference presentation is Isaiah 43:19 - "See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland." Our desire is to focus on the strength of the women - as Christians, mothers, sisters, and daughters - to change the culture from the ground up.

Finally the time has come! After three years of working and praying towards this, we are finally traveling to Congo. We will spend about 8 days in Kinshasa as speakers at the conference and then another week (two weeks for Melissa and Alison) in the eastern part of the country where much of the sexual assault and violence is currently taking place. We will spend time with the organization HEAL Africa which has been instrumental in providing care to women who have been assaulted (http://www.healafrica.org/).

So that's our story! We're excited to eat and drink nothing but cassava root, goat, boiled plantains, and REAL chai - and praying we don't succumb to malaria or amoebic dysentery! Thank you for continuing to be part of this African adventure with us. Pray for us, please.

You have all been so encouraging of us. If you want to contribute monetarily to this leg of our journey, we would be happy to take you with us in that way. We bless all of you.

Budget breakdown (per person):
$2,400 round trip ticket from Chicago to Kinshasa
$810 one way ticket from Kinshasa to Kigali (a safer way to access eastern DRC)
$200 vaccinations/malaria medicine
$155 for visas

Plus travel costs for Pastor Guy, the Congolese man from Phoenix who is accompanying us as our "bodyguard" and translator!