St. Andrews Parish members serves in Zambia

Members of St. Andrews Parish United Methodist Church, Charleston, recently returned from a three-week mission to Zambia. They served in that nation July 7-27.

When the Rev. Brent Dehlbom was appointed to St. Andrews Parish two years ago, the church was just coming out of COVID and had not been able to be the missional church it had previously been. People were anxious to get back to work in missions.

Dehlbom said they began by partnering with Holy City Missions to help feed the homeless and hungry in their area. They also started helping to unload the food truck and pack food bags for the food bank at New Francis Brown UMC and became involved in collecting clothing and toys for Epworth Children’s Home.

Having some local mission work under their belt, Dehlbom said they next began considering a broader mission.

He was familiar with Cathy and Rick Hatcher’s work in Zambia with the New Life Center and a mission project called the Ed Project, which supports preschools in the teaching of English for the children of Zambia.  In Zambia, children must complete an English exam to go on to seventh grade. 

“Our little one-room UMC churches are helping to curb the poverty cycle by providing early childhood learning,” Dehlbom explained. “More of those underserved children will be able to pass the test and move on with their education. My congregation contains many teachers, so this seemed like a great fit.”

About a year and a half ago, the church began fundraising for its Zambia 2024 mission. They had to raise $40,000 for seven members to go, plus Cathy and Rick Hatcher. 

St. Andrews Parish conducted yard sales, a fall festival and a car show, plus did odd jobs and begged relatives for money.

“We made our goal with a few months to spare,” he said.

One of the group had to drop out for cancer treatment, but six people made the trip.

Becky Shedd, Kristin Cole, Hope Treadway, Debra Yadon, Cindy Curtis and Dehlbom left July 7. They conducted two Bible camps, trained teachers, built PETs (Personal Energy Transportation devices), and were astounded when 85 kids made the commitment to follow Christ and share his love with the world. 

On the last days of their mission, they had the opportunity to go on a one-day safari and then see Victoria Falls.

As Dehlbom noted, it was a rewarding mission in so many ways—not the least of which is that St. Andrews Parish UMC now clearly sees itself as a missional church once again.