May 7, 2009

Dear Friends,

Greetings in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ! It has been some time since I’ve written but I have not been quiet during this time of silence; I have been on home assignment. Since October of 2008, I have been busy traveling throughout the United States telling Presbyterians what it’s like to be a PC(USA) mission co-worker and telling the story of the Presbyterian Church in Cameroon’s work to bring health, healing, and wholeness to the people of Cameroon. I want to thank those who invited me to visit and everyone for the generosity, prayers, and commitment to the work in Cameroon. I am sorry if I wasn’t able to see all of you, but I hope we continue to stay in touch and make it a priority to get together the next time I am on home assignment.

Shirley Hill (center) with a village leader and the nurse in charge at the Presbyterian Church in Cameroon (PCC) health facility in the village of Weh. We helped get electricity for this health unit.

I serve as a health consultant for the Presbyterian Church in Cameroon, particularly in the area of HIV/AIDS. I work with church leadership (i.e., pastors, presbyteries, heads of medical institutions, and heads of departments) doing capacity-building, training, and program development.

One in 20 persons is living with HIV in Cameroon. In some areas, that number more than triples among women between the ages of 25 and 29. In Cameroon, women of childbearing years have the highest risk for HIV/AIDS.

The Presbyterian Church in Cameroon (PCC) is trying to reduce the prevalence rate of HIV through its many programs and services. For example, through their health facilities, the church runs a successful program to prevent transmission of HIV from pregnant women to their infants. In congregations, pastors include messages about HIV/AIDS in sermons every month.

Synod office during a strategic planning meeting with the PCC and Mission 21.

If the church can successfully work through its congregations, health facilities, schools, and church-owned businesses to deliver messages of health promotion and disease prevention, treatment and management of HIV/AIDS, and compassionate quality healthcare, it can literally save lives and have a positive impact on the health of hundreds of thousands of people. My job is to work alongside the PCC as we strive to faithfully live out our common calling to follow in the footsteps of Jesus.

Through your generous support, we have been able to

• train pastors and lay leaders
• send HIV/AIDS coordinators for advanced training in program development and management
• train technicians to repair medical equipment
• help build a new patient ward
• put electricity in a health facility
• provide surgical instruments to hospitals, vehicles for health work, school fees for orphaned or vulnerable children, medical and dental services.

Some months after attending a pastor’s workshop, Emmanuel approached me with the story of a troubling incident that occurred two years earlier. He had been called to the bedside of a very sick person. He supposed the person was requesting prayer but to his surprise when the woman saw him, she clutched his hand to her chest, cried out, “Oh, Pastor” and died. He was unable to understand the meaning of what had occurred, and the incident frightened him. I told him that his presence with the woman at her hour of death was a great gift because he represented the presence of God so that she did not die alone. His face flooded with relief for he feared that perhaps some evil would befall him because the woman died holding his hand.

This incident brought to light the need for chaplaincy training and the value of having long-term mission personnel in the country of service. My conversation with Emmanuel could not have occurred without your support. Your mission dollars helped this pastor and can help many more in the future. So, thank you for caring about what God is doing through the church in Cameroon and for sharing the resources God has given you.

The importance of long-term mission presence will be highlighted in two major events this year. This fall, forty mission personnel will be visiting hundreds of congregations across the United States to tell how God is at work around the world. The event is called World Mission Challenge, a reprise of a similar event in 2007. It’ll be held September 25–October 18, 2009. Learn more at the Mission Challenge Web site or call Ellen Dozier at 888-728-7228, x5916.

World Mission Challenge will conclude with World Mission Celebration, a large gathering for Presbyterians who care deeply about mission. The event will be held October 22–24 in downtown Cincinnati, Ohio, at the Hyatt Regency Hotel and the adjoining Duke Energy Center. Learn more at the Mission Celebration Web site or call Lis Valle at 888-728-7228 x5279.

So far, World Mission Challenge 09 (WMC) has 132 presbyteries signed up to participate. If you would like to participate or see a list of the participating presbyteries and the mission speakers, see the mission challenge Web page.

May God continue to bless you as you reach out to bless others.

Peace in Christ,

The 2009 Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p. 30