Then people brought little children to Jesus for him to place his hands on them and pray for them. But the disciples rebuked them. Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” Matthew 19:13-14 (ESV)
Lord willing, I will return to Boma on January 12th to complete my dissertation research exploring Murle leadership practices. I am also excited to see the Boma school, Faith Learning Center, begin the 2015 school year.
Faith Learning Center is the only Boma school for children in operation and we look forward to another great year. Faith Learning Center is a critical component for the development of the Murle community. During the course of my research, I found that the Murle people in general have been marginalized and neglected by both government authorities and non-government organizations leading to extreme poverty and illiteracy. Only 25% of all Murle children have access to education, approximately 92% of all teachers are untrained and schools typically meet under trees in the open air. When you include the fact that the average South Sudanese in rural areas, like Boma, lives on $2.50 per day you can understand the challenge faced by the Murle people to break the cycle of poverty and illiteracy holding them captive.
In the face of this despair, SEA Partners is offering hope through the Boma Project. Faith Learning Center is providing children the opportunity for a Christian education with teachers who are well educated and are committed both to their students and to Jesus Christ. In order to continue improving the future prospects of these children we need your help. Please consider an online gift to help us continue serving our Lord in Boma.
For the past 9 months we’ve had 100-150 students consistently attending classes at FLC. In 2015 we hope to build towards the 275 student enrollment we had prior to the rebel violence that scattered this community in 2013. Achieving this will require your help. We need to repair the walls and roofs of the classrooms and purchase materials to build 60 new desks. $26,000 has been raised toward our year-end goal to finance these improvements, leaving us $12,000 short. If you are led, please help with a year-end gift to help us complete the funding for these projects.
Finally, we hope to increase our agricultural program to not only provide for the needs of our staff and FLC, but also to offer training for the local community. This training will enable farmers to plant and harvest crops for themselves leading to a better quality of life. If you are interested in participating in this project, please donate online and specify “Agriculture” in the comments section
Thank you for your consideration. Please continue to pray for our brothers and sisters in Boma that God would increase their knowledge of Him and that they would grow in His grace.
Donnie Brake
President
PS. There are two more days left to help out in 2014. Please make an online gift to provide support for the children and their families in Boma.