The Mzuzu United Methodist Church has a temporary building on a plot of ground next to the parsonage. The congregation was less than ten people four years ago. It has grown but many families in the church care for foster children due to the HIV/Aids pandemic. Some of the children are orphans and many have lost one parent. Some of the children are HIV positive. The church members said, “What can we do to help?” They did not just observe the problem. They acted.
Saturday morning we attended the monthly session provided by Mzuzu United Methodist Church specifically for these children and their families. About sixty children along with mothers, grandparents, and a few leaders almost filled the church. We arrived at 10:30 a.m. but the children had been there for over two hours. Hannah, one of the church members, has taken on this group as her special ministry. She has high energy and is an effective leader.
As we came near the church we could hear the children singing. And my, can they sing! They were clean and most had on decent clothes. They had sparkling eyes and bright smiles. We were asked to speak to them and we each briefly tried to say a few words of encouragement to the children and to the caregivers.
At the close of the formal program the children were presented with colored pencils, some books, and stickers. Then it was announced that Charlie had brought three soccer balls for them. Cheers erupted! It was orderly pandemonium and a sight to behold. The group was dismissed to go outside and try out the new balls. The boys were in one area. The girls were in another area and the adults were playing excitedly in a third area.
Next on the program was an indoor picnic. They marched out row by row to wash their hands in a bucket. Sue helped the pastor’s wife and two of the mothers make the peanut butter sandwiches. Then each child and the adults were given a banana, a sandwich, and a cup of orange drink.
We learned that blankets have been given to several families to keep children warm in the very chilly winter mornings in Mzuzu. The temperature often drops to near 40° in unheated houses. Many of the children have no blanket and they still need more blankets. Every couple of months the families of the children are given large bags of maize provided by the congregation. We watched as women carried off their 50 kg. bags on their heads. We were told about the eight high school children who were receiving “hope scholarships” from the church so they could complete their secondary education.
This is a church with fewer than 100 members. The pastor’s salary is around $150 per month. Most of the families are on subsistence income from gardening or other menial jobs. Even so, the church is in mission reaching out to the less fortunate. We are impressed.
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