Young Adults

Abdul Conteh (left) and Foday Kamara work for an artisanal diamond miner in Kono, Sierra Leone. Moving large piles of dirt from one location to the next is backbreaking work that pays $2 a day. Artisanal miners are independent and not associated with the large mining companies in the area. Photo by Kathy L. Gilbert, UM News.

Diamond mining often robs children of education

In the diamond-rich Kono District in Sierra Leone, young people are often lured into mining rather than going to school. One United Methodist girl says her generation is changing that story.

Mission and Ministry

Winnet Mandikisi, 19, works at a sewing machine at Home of Hope, the orphanage at Nyadire United Methodist Mission in Mutoko, Zimbabwe. Mandikisi, a college student, has been leading efforts to teach fellow orphans how to make masks to fight against COVID-19. Photo by Chenayi Kumuterera, UM News.

Zimbabwe orphan pays it forward during pandemic

Design student teaches children at church’s Home of Hope orphanage how to make masks to fight against COVID-19.

Social Concerns

Perpetual Makadzange talks to her three children, (from left) 6-year-old Tizzelyn, 7-year-old Tanatswa and 12-year-old Tsepang, at their home in Zimunya, Zimbabwe. The United Methodist schools that the children attend remain closed to stop the spread of the coronavirus. Photo by Kudzai Chingwe, UM News .

Pandemic leads more girls to early marriages

United Methodist schools in Zimbabwe see more early marriages, other risky behavior as schools remain closed amid COVID-19.

Evangelism

Everlyne Kukah Esther, an Africa University student from Kenya, hands over food to Charity Chikukwa, a beneficiary of the Feed a Family program in Gimboki, Zimbabwe. The Rev. Joseph Charinge (red shirt) and AU student Fiston Okito from Congo look on. Esther and her classmates started the campaign to help vulnerable families struggling during the coronavirus pandemic. Photo by Chenayi Kumuterera, UM News.

AU students skip meals to feed struggling families

A group of international students at the United Methodist university has started a Feed a Family campaign to donate food and money to communities in need during the COVID-19 pandemic.

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