The 2012 FPM Christmas Letter
Mining Camp
Around our house, we've been having some fun with the Mayan end of the world controversy. We have a brass Mayan calendar (and yes, we know the difference between Mayan and Aztec) hanging on our stairwell wall. It came into Teri's family from a trip they took to visit her Uncle Paul's family in Mexico City in the 60's. It has hung there on the wall for years simply as a piece of art, our never thinking that it might have been a constant reminder that time is running out. Kinda spooky. In a comical sort of way.
Having reflected more deeply about the Mayan calendar controversy than it deserves, tis' the season when time is running out on this family. Despite the fact that God is trying to get our attention this Advent to center our thoughts on the Babe in the Manger, we're hustling to wrap up 2012 and get to 2013.
2012 has been a great year for Friendly Planet. It seems way more than a year ago that a small team left Tenke on new Zambikes. That tour was different from previous ones in that we went around the circuit backwards, so that districts that had received leftover energy at the end of the tour in years past, received fresh attention. We spent a lot more time on the Congo River, getting immersed in the fishing culture and getting up close and personal with the cholera epidemic. The team got as far into the war zone as Manono, a town totally destroyed in the war. A highlight for me was discovering a mining camp in the forest, something that could only be found by riding a bicycle through a thick forest on a footpath known only to locals. Sitting quietly in a village outside of Manono, I finally received the last piece of the puzzle needed to understand the problem and a possible way forward. Three years of deep listening and theological reflection, finally rewarded with a moment of clarity.
Annual conference sessions in July in Kalemi and Malemba were true celebrations of progress. FPM team members, as well as others in other programs, made a visible representation of next generation leaders taking charge. If there is any message we want people to hear, it is this: While the needs are overwhelming, and most efforts to help are responding directly to the needs, our approach is to develop the leadership base, those leaders then themselves addressing the needs. In some cases, we have had a direct hand in developing these leaders. In other cases, the leaders have come on their own or from other programs, and we want to make certain that their skills are not lost in a brain drain, pulling them out of the community, or in a lack of appreciation in the communities they serve.
The Indiana, our boat on the Congo River, has been active in relief efforts. FPM nurse Mary Kabamba has been visiting villages in response to outbreaks of cholera, and relief supplies and transportation are being provided to districts invaded by the Mai-Mai militia. Work continues on the second building of the nursing school. FPM team members all over North Katanga and Tanganyika are active. The work has made the transition from being about our visits to being about the ongoing progress done by local team members.
Back at home in Plainfield in September, the 2nd annual Fondo d'Congo was a huge success. (A fondo is a large non-competitive community bicycle ride.) Sponsored by the Plainfield United Methodist Church, this event is becoming our anchor fund raiser. Our hope is that some day we can host Congolese riders at this event. Also, the dream is to franchise the Fondo. Any churches or bicycle clubs out there interested in holding a fondo?
In governance, the 2012 Board of Directors has elected Joseph Mulongo and Muyombo Mande as directors for 2013, making our board more Congolese, less American. Taylor Denyer has been elected President of the Board, passing our board to the next generation. FPM has applied for, and soon will be, a registered NGO in the DRC, the Congolese equivalent of a 501c3. I'm thrilled to hand over the top leadership of FPM to Taylor and Mulongo and Mande, so that I can now devote my time to riding and writing.
The 2013 calendar is full. I'm headed back in a couple weeks for a three month tour of the districts. This trip will include feeding back to the districts what we have learned about them. The "sermon" has been boiled down to two assumptions and four rules, which can be presented in 12 minutes or expanded to a week's seminar. One of the ways that I am particularly pleased with this presentation is that it can be presented in a church in America or a village in the Congo. There is no telling one group one thing and the other group a different thing. The goal has been to find a body of teaching that links the two communities, those who want to help and those who need the help. We're finally on the same page.
The other feature of this tour is that it will intentionally include youth and young adult riders, boys and girls. The young adults will be leading youth worship rallies in the districts we visit. Included in the worship will be locally created dramas, a key tool of FPM community development, encouraging the youth to struggle out loud with their concerns.
Also, we will be trying to get to districts that have been shut off by recent violence. We will take care not to create dangerous situations for ourselves or others by our presence, but we want to let these districts know that they are not forgotten.
A group of Scouts from Indiana are planning a camporee in Tenke for this summer. This project is an attempt to address the issue of youth being recruited as soldiers for rebel militias. The Church, through the scouting program, is offering an alternative.
Annual conferences in July are going to be big for FPM. The North Katanga Conference is meeting in Mulongo. This will give the Bishop the opportunity to dedicate the nursing school and two rebuilt churches. Also, Taylor will be ordained as an elder in the North Katanga Conference.
The Tanganyika Conference will receive their first bicycle distribution since 1995. This is huge as this previously ignored and isolated conference takes its own bold steps at restoration from the war.
I'm leaving a lot of things out. There is so much to report and there is so much going on that I don't know about. Thank you, thank you for a great 2012, and let's get this 2013 started!
Thank You, big time, for all the financial support that so many have given for the work. While our goal is to leverage local resources and discover self sufficiency for all our projects, it takes your help to get things started. Of course, if you have need to give more before the end of the tax year, please . . . We can use the boost going into a big year.
Merry Christmas and Happy new Year to all,
Bob and Teri, Taylor and Stuart, Joseph and Mary, and the whole Friendly Planet team
Having reflected more deeply about the Mayan calendar controversy than it deserves, tis' the season when time is running out on this family. Despite the fact that God is trying to get our attention this Advent to center our thoughts on the Babe in the Manger, we're hustling to wrap up 2012 and get to 2013.
2012 has been a great year for Friendly Planet. It seems way more than a year ago that a small team left Tenke on new Zambikes. That tour was different from previous ones in that we went around the circuit backwards, so that districts that had received leftover energy at the end of the tour in years past, received fresh attention. We spent a lot more time on the Congo River, getting immersed in the fishing culture and getting up close and personal with the cholera epidemic. The team got as far into the war zone as Manono, a town totally destroyed in the war. A highlight for me was discovering a mining camp in the forest, something that could only be found by riding a bicycle through a thick forest on a footpath known only to locals. Sitting quietly in a village outside of Manono, I finally received the last piece of the puzzle needed to understand the problem and a possible way forward. Three years of deep listening and theological reflection, finally rewarded with a moment of clarity.
Annual conference sessions in July in Kalemi and Malemba were true celebrations of progress. FPM team members, as well as others in other programs, made a visible representation of next generation leaders taking charge. If there is any message we want people to hear, it is this: While the needs are overwhelming, and most efforts to help are responding directly to the needs, our approach is to develop the leadership base, those leaders then themselves addressing the needs. In some cases, we have had a direct hand in developing these leaders. In other cases, the leaders have come on their own or from other programs, and we want to make certain that their skills are not lost in a brain drain, pulling them out of the community, or in a lack of appreciation in the communities they serve.
The Indiana, our boat on the Congo River, has been active in relief efforts. FPM nurse Mary Kabamba has been visiting villages in response to outbreaks of cholera, and relief supplies and transportation are being provided to districts invaded by the Mai-Mai militia. Work continues on the second building of the nursing school. FPM team members all over North Katanga and Tanganyika are active. The work has made the transition from being about our visits to being about the ongoing progress done by local team members.
Back at home in Plainfield in September, the 2nd annual Fondo d'Congo was a huge success. (A fondo is a large non-competitive community bicycle ride.) Sponsored by the Plainfield United Methodist Church, this event is becoming our anchor fund raiser. Our hope is that some day we can host Congolese riders at this event. Also, the dream is to franchise the Fondo. Any churches or bicycle clubs out there interested in holding a fondo?
In governance, the 2012 Board of Directors has elected Joseph Mulongo and Muyombo Mande as directors for 2013, making our board more Congolese, less American. Taylor Denyer has been elected President of the Board, passing our board to the next generation. FPM has applied for, and soon will be, a registered NGO in the DRC, the Congolese equivalent of a 501c3. I'm thrilled to hand over the top leadership of FPM to Taylor and Mulongo and Mande, so that I can now devote my time to riding and writing.
The 2013 calendar is full. I'm headed back in a couple weeks for a three month tour of the districts. This trip will include feeding back to the districts what we have learned about them. The "sermon" has been boiled down to two assumptions and four rules, which can be presented in 12 minutes or expanded to a week's seminar. One of the ways that I am particularly pleased with this presentation is that it can be presented in a church in America or a village in the Congo. There is no telling one group one thing and the other group a different thing. The goal has been to find a body of teaching that links the two communities, those who want to help and those who need the help. We're finally on the same page.
The other feature of this tour is that it will intentionally include youth and young adult riders, boys and girls. The young adults will be leading youth worship rallies in the districts we visit. Included in the worship will be locally created dramas, a key tool of FPM community development, encouraging the youth to struggle out loud with their concerns.
Also, we will be trying to get to districts that have been shut off by recent violence. We will take care not to create dangerous situations for ourselves or others by our presence, but we want to let these districts know that they are not forgotten.
A group of Scouts from Indiana are planning a camporee in Tenke for this summer. This project is an attempt to address the issue of youth being recruited as soldiers for rebel militias. The Church, through the scouting program, is offering an alternative.
Annual conferences in July are going to be big for FPM. The North Katanga Conference is meeting in Mulongo. This will give the Bishop the opportunity to dedicate the nursing school and two rebuilt churches. Also, Taylor will be ordained as an elder in the North Katanga Conference.
The Tanganyika Conference will receive their first bicycle distribution since 1995. This is huge as this previously ignored and isolated conference takes its own bold steps at restoration from the war.
I'm leaving a lot of things out. There is so much to report and there is so much going on that I don't know about. Thank you, thank you for a great 2012, and let's get this 2013 started!
Thank You, big time, for all the financial support that so many have given for the work. While our goal is to leverage local resources and discover self sufficiency for all our projects, it takes your help to get things started. Of course, if you have need to give more before the end of the tax year, please . . . We can use the boost going into a big year.
Merry Christmas and Happy new Year to all,
Bob and Teri, Taylor and Stuart, Joseph and Mary, and the whole Friendly Planet team