Mission Offering in MayMission Offering in MayMission Offerings in May will support the educational ministries of our companion synod, the Evangelical Lutheran Church of the Central African Republic: village schools, young women’s scholarship programs for middle and high school, and Women’s Center training programs.
Just $20 will keep one child in school for a year.
In 2008, the Village Education Project (VEP) has 89 classes in 20 schools. The church started schools in villages without government schools. Classes are open to boys and girls of all faiths. Some villages have now graduated students after the six years of elementary school. Those who pass the state exams are then eligible to attend high school. While villages and parents must provide thatched-roof classrooms, a home and garden for the teacher, and small fees, in a country struggling to survive, schools will not be able to continue without outside support. Ian Graue, ELCA missionary advisor to the VEP, says that he has heard words of gratitude expressed countless times in many different ways by young people who would otherwise not have had a chance at basic education. Just $20 will keep one child in school for a year.
Ian Graue also states: “Women and girls are really the 'powerhouses' of village life and are the important 'backbones' to the well being and success of all families. They need access to formal education if future families are to be strengthened! Real change and development comes through the women.” This is why both the VEP and the young women’s scholarship program are so important. Recipients are sent to a Catholic, vocational “middle school” at Maigaro. Selected students who pass the state exams are then sent to high school in Bangui, the capital. The training programs at the newly dedicated Women’s Center will also empower women through literacy and skills training, such as sewing, basic health and economic skills, and more.
Your offerings will help the Lutheran Church of CAR to improve the lives of many through its educational ministries.