Our Volunteers in Mission Team had an opportunity on Wednesday morning, July 29, to visit one of the best things we've ever done as United Methodists--Africa University, located just a few kilometers from Mutare. By this time, our team had been unofficially expanded by another person. Victor Masunda, who was our driver during the week, had become much more than that. He had become an active participant in our work, and we were pleased to include him in our activities--including our visit to Africa University.
Africa University was officially opened in 1992. However, it is understood to be an expression of a dream first given expression nearly a century earlier. In 1898, Bishop Joseph Crane Hartzell, after a time of prayer on Mt. Chiremba, envisioned hundreds of African young people running, with books in hand, into the valley where Africa University is now located. This mountain stands just beyond Old Mutare Mission, and it is readily visible from Africa University.
The center piece of the Africa University campus is the chapel, which was built in 1996 and funded by the Kwang Lim Methodist Church of Seoul, Korea. This is where worship was held on Wednesday morning. One of the blessings of the service was an energetic, faith-filled song by a group of pastors, singing in Shona. The preacher of the morning was the Rev. Robert Slade of the Baltimore-Washington Conference who spoke on the theme of "Press on." Our Volunteers in Mission team was introduced as part of the morning's devotions. After worship, we were given a tour of the campus. As part of the tour, we learned about some of the challenges experienced there in 2008. Africa University managed to stay open and functional under the most dire circumstances. This was at a time when virtually every other institution of higher education in the country shut down.
One of the things that I particularly appreciated seeing on the tour was the recently completed Alfred L. Norris Health Centre. It was made possible through the generosity of the North Texas Conference. I was also glad that we could see the agricultural portion of the Africa University campus--at least from a distance.
We made our way back to the main portion of the campus, had our noon meal in the AU dining hall, and prepared for our afternoon at Old Mutare Mission. As we left the Africa University campus, it was good to know that we had at least had the chance to visit "one of the best things we've ever done!"
