Congo Mission at All Saints supports Congolese communities in need
By Elizabeth Landry
Staff writer
The central African country of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has been ravaged and war-torn for over three decades. Deadly rebel groups, such as the Allied Democratic Forces and Movement 23, often target Christian churches, leaving behind a trail of destruction. Specifically tumultuous in the Eastern region of the DRC, some have called the conflicts a “silent genocide.” Since 1996, an estimated six million people in the region have been killed as a result of the unrest.
It is the Congolese people in this Eastern region — in cities such as Bukavu and Uvira located in the South Kivu Province — that All Saints Church in Syracuse has supported through its Congo Mission for 10 years, building the capacity of the people in these regions, as well as those who have been displaced and are now residing in refugee camps. The Congolese in these areas continue to suffer through poverty, malnutrition, and lack of education, all of which have resulted from many years of civil unrest and political instability (which often centers on the area’s rich mineral deposits), as well as natural disasters like devastating volcanic eruptions and floods.
In the past few months, violent rebel groups have descended from the north into the South Kivu Province, taking over Bukavu and stopping just north of Uvira — leading to increased food and medicine shortages and intensifying the lack of security and safety for the people in these regions.
The Sun had a chance to speak with two prominent supporters of the Congolese community at All Saints, which is comprised of many Congolese refugees who fled to the United States for a better life: Dale Avers and Papy Seruka. Avers and Seruka, a Congolese native and refugee who has been in the United States for 17 years, traveled to the DRC in January. Seruka explained how All Saints has played an important role in helping Congolese refugees form a close-knit community in their new country.
“The Congolese started coming to All Saints almost 10 years ago now. … There were so many refugees and they were going to different churches. Then, as Congolese, we came together to decide, why not just go to one church and have some community? Then, more families jumped on board to do that. Since then, we have seen so many refugees start coming to the U.S., and now, any refugees that come to Syracuse go to All Saints — All Saints is an anchor for the Congolese,” said Seruka, who Avers describes as “the president of the Congolese community in Syracuse.”
From left, Maneno Magera Emmanuel and Aimee Bora (little Dale’s parents), Dale Avers, and Papy Seruka in Uvira, South Kivu Provence, DRC with little Dale on her baptism day. Photos courtesy of Dale Avers
As the number of Congolese refugees has grown within the All Saints community, the outreach Congo Mission at the church has grown as well. The Mission supports a few different organizations and efforts in the region: Kesho Congo, a nutritional biscuit program that was founded by Dr. Adolphe Nyakasane in 2015 to help prevent chronic malnutrition of children under the age of 5; SOHUCO, a women’s empowerment program that helps educate women so they can start small businesses; and CEJDU ASBL, a non-profit leadership program founded by Seruka that aims to educate and empower young people and vulnerable communities.
When she was in the Congo earlier this year, Avers witnessed firsthand the devastating effects of poverty and malnourishment experienced by the people there, which have been exacerbated by the U.S. government’s pause on foreign aid programs. Even now, about six months after the pause took effect, the pause is still in place and the future of these programs remains unclear.
“I was their witness, making porridge from a bag of meal over an open fire for 75 little children, and the bag of meal is from USAID. And that was the only meal they were going to get that day. … These children waited so patiently for this one cup of porridge,” Avers said.
She also shared the story of how she came to be the godmother and namesake of little Dale, a 5-year-old Congolese girl she visited in January for her birthday and her baptism. They first met when Avers traveled to the DRC five years ago. On the day Avers arrived, little Dale was born to the wife of Maneno, the founder of SOHUCO, and as is customary to name children after an important person, the little girl was named after Avers.
“I was the first white person that had been there since the conflicts had been going on for almost 30 years. They really felt alone, and so when I got there, it was like, ‘the world hasn’t forgotten us now.’ It changed me a lot,” Avers shared.
Now, Avers is supporting little Dale’s education: “That’s my commitment to her,” Avers said. “The cost of education is so little compared to the US.”
Alongside the extra hurdles caused by the current lack of funding and support for foreign aid programs, the Congolese people are also tremendously affected by the current pause on refugee services that have helped so many Congolese find new hope and new lives in the U.S. There are currently over 300 Congolese families attending All Saints Church, with which Catholic Charities has been involved through the refugee resettlement program. Unfortunately, in the last group of refugees who were ready to come to the U.S. before the pause on refugee resettlement was instated, several were from the war-torn region of the DRC.
In light of these recent challenges, however, Avers’ and Seruka’s drive to continue helping the Congolese people has not dwindled. Seruka explained how his own experience of food insecurity helps keep his and his organization’s efforts moving forward.
“I cannot let people go through what I did. I used to go to school without getting anything, without eating in the morning. You only eat once a day, [in the] afternoon. But [after] some time, I came to realize that if someone gets just a little thing of porridge, just in the morning, it will make a difference,” Seruka said.
Despite their struggles for nutritious food, education, healthcare, safety, and so much more that we often take for granted each day, Avers explained how her view of the Congolese people is still one of inspiring generosity.
“They are, without exception, the most loving, giving, warm, fun people. You know, they have nothing. [Yet], they are so generous from their nothing. Where we give from our excess, they give from everything they have.”
To support the Congo Mission at All Saints Church, visit allsaintssyracuse.org and click the donate button, then choose Congo Mission. To support Kesho Congo directly, visit keshocongo.org. To support SOHUCO directly, visit sohucco.org. All Saints Church is located at 1340 Lancaster Ave., Syracuse, NY 13210. For questions or for more information, contact Dale Avers at 315-415-8436 or [email protected].
Editor Tami S. Scott contributed to this story.
