Tim Foster

Dear Friends,

Although school is in summer session, Director Shukuru brought a few of his students to a work co-op at a nearby Methodist church in Baraka, DR Congo. With the help of a couple of interpreters, the deaf students were able to sit in on several classes for tailoring and computer training. We would love to add similar vocational classes to our formal curriculum. It’s a critical aspect of preparing our deaf students for self-reliance and integration with the local economy. Since we don’t have electricity at our school, we wouldn’t be able to provide any computer classes, but most sewing machines in the area are manual pedal-operated machines, so that would definitely be an option. Pray with us that this dream will come to fruition.

We usually have our Congo Bible Camp in August each year, but the presence of the militia group, M23, is making it very difficult for regional travel, and nearly impossible for Westerners to travel into the region. We had to cancel our 2025 camp, much to the dismay of those that would have attended. This year, two of our directors in the area are looking to see if they can put together a small Bible camp with participants coming in from just the Kivu region. Given the rise in Ebola and the increase of civil unrest due to M23, we’ll not be bringing in participants from more than 50 miles or so. It’ll be much smaller than usual, but better than nothing. Pray that directors Pilio and Nanza can put one together in time before school starts back up in the fall, and continue praying for civil tranquility in the region.

Director Yves has traveled from Chad to Benin to meet up with Victor Vodonou, an old friend of my father’s from the 70s and 80s. Victor is putting on a long-term training conference at his mission facility in Cotonou, Benin, and has invited Yves and a couple of American missionaries to teach some advanced doctrinal classes. I think the last time I was in Benin was back in 1976, and I was a child, so I barely remember the place. It’s exciting to see the flourishing ministry that Victor is operating in Benin, and the team he’s put together for his conference. Although I won’t be able to attend, I’m looking forward to hearing more about it and how God is using them to impact the deaf in Benin.

Truly, your prayers are coveted.

Tim Foster
Director

Dear Friends,

In Chad, Director Yves reports a surprise gift from a Swiss audio clinic in town – seven laptops! The laptops are used, but in excellent condition. Yves’ plan is to use them to set up a computer lab, and with the help of his son who recently graduated from university in Nigeria, offer a 3-month computer training course for our deaf students. His next step is to raise about $1,500 to convert one of the rooms in their new multi-purpose building into a useable new computer lab. Praise the Lord with us for this generous gift and excellent opportunity!

Another challenge is looming closer: over the past number of years, Yves’ team has been slowly upgrading various buildings on their compound. They started the school almost 20 years ago with mud-brick buildings, and as time and funds allowed, those buildings have been replaced with solid concrete construction. The next building to get upgraded is the administrative building. The plans for the new building include the administrative offices, children’s dorm, and cafeteria. In September, after the rainy season, they’ll demolish the aging mud-brick building and begin rebuilding it as a concrete structure. Pray with us that the Lord will provide funds and materials to allow it to be completed quickly.

In the eastern DR Congo, life is still in upheaval, and the city of Baraka is a long way from being stable. Director Nanza reports that while regional political conflict has subsided in the wake of the M23 faction winning control over the region, gangs are still taking advantage of the local lack of police presence, and street violence is a daily occurrence. We’re following his advice to postpone our Congo Bible Camp yet again. Pray that peace will ensue in the region, and that crime will subside.

About 5 hours south of our Baraka school is our Uvira school, and we thank God that M23 isn’t controlling the area. Director Pililo reports that construction of our new school has picked up now that school is out of session. Latrine pits have been completed and next phase is the flooring, doors, windows, and roof. The pressure is on to make a grand opening by the end of 2026!

Truly, your prayers are coveted.

Tim Foster
Director

Dear Friends,

In Baraka (DR Congo), student enrollment continues to grow.

Director Shukuru is very active in leading his staff in outreach efforts to bring in more deaf students from the city of Baraka and the surrounding Fizi territory. It’s so exciting to see so many deaf children getting an education for the first time in their lives, and eventually learning of Jesus Christ and the Gospel of salvation. One of the challenges we continue to face is the lack of furniture in our new school. The facility we finished building a few years ago is much larger than the rented facility we had previously, and the old furniture only goes so far. Thus our classrooms have limited seating, and many students have to share furniture or sit on the floor. But they’re happy to be there, and happy to learn. Shukuru has made a number of attempts to do fund raising with local NGOs in order to buy more furniture, but the response continues to be lackluster. Pray that we will be able to raise funds to purchase more desks and chairs for the students.

In Chad, Director Yves has an interesting opportunity to collaborate with Victor Vodounou, the founder of Live Ear Ministries in Cotonou, Benin. (Back in the 1970s, Victor was a student at our school for the deaf in Benin.) We’re thankful that he continues to labor for the Lord among the deaf in Benin.

Victor has reached out to Yves and asked for assistance in putting on a Bible camp for the deaf in July, as well as a 3-week Bible institute in August. Time is precious, so I don’t know to what extent they’ll be able to collaborate. I’ve seen the preliminary agenda for the Bible institute, and I’m quite excited to see what God has in store. So far, their offerings include classes like NT Survey, Anthropology, Hamartiology, Soteriology. Seeing that kind of zeal makes me wish I could go, but unfortunately, I have commitments in Zambia that will conflict. Pray that Yves will be able to free up some time to help with Victor and Live Ear Ministries.

Truly, your prayers are coveted.

Tim Foster

Director

Dear Friends,

Although the M23 militia group still occupies the Congolese cities of Goma and Bukavu, they’ve withdrawn from the city of Uvira. Director Pililo reports that things in the city are getting back to normal, and we’re very thankful for that. The peace has allowed us to resume construction on our school in Uvira, and the timing couldn’t be better: the landlord has almost doubled the rent for our school last month. Lord willing, the new building will be ready before the end of the year. We’re looking forward to having our own permanent space for both school and church activities. Pray with us that we won’t run into any obstructions or delays, and that we’ll be able to finish the school soon.

I’m still in the process of working through several good candidates for sponsorship to the Central Africa Baptist University. One of my hopefuls will not be able to enter the program, but I’ve still got my eyes on 3 others that I’m working on. Pray that these men will be able to work through the qualification process and enroll in time for the 2027 program.

Truly, your prayers are coveted.

Tim Foster
Director

Dear Friends,

Chad: Easter Camp and Facility Improvements

Director Yves reports that this year’s Easter camp in N’Djamena was a great success. Continuing from last year’s study in James 1, the primary Bible teaching this year focused on James 2. In addition, advanced doctrine classes were held on discipleship, the Trinity, and the sovereignty of God. Many attendees noted that they were unfamiliar with the extent of the biblical teachings on God’s sovereignty, making it a profound new learning experience. We pray they will faithfully share these teachings in their home churches, proclaiming the riches of God’s grace and glory.

We are also deeply grateful to Mission Project Fellowship for their generous donation of 200 new chairs for our multi-purpose building. They arrived just in time for the camp and were a wonderful blessing for all who attended.

Congo: Navigating Regional Challenges

The Kivu region remains under the political control of the M23 militia group, and the national government currently lacks the power to intervene. While daily life is slowly normalizing, travel remains severely restricted: M23 is requiring visas for entry, while the national government is not issuing visas for foreigners to travel to the region.

As a result, we must cancel our annual Congo Bible Camp for the second consecutive year. While we received invitations from deaf churches in the Northeast to host the event there, the move would pose significant obstacles for our core group of pastors and evangelists, who would struggle to travel through M23-controlled territory. For now, we believe the best path forward is to wait for more peaceful times.

Uvira: Resuming School Construction

Further south in Uvira, there is encouraging news: After M23’s withdrawal from the area, conditions are continuing to stabilize. We are now working to restart our school construction project. Please join us in prayer that we can make up for lost time and that construction costs remain within a reasonable budget.

Truly, your prayers are coveted.

Tim Foster
Director

Dear Friends,

Celebrate with Us!

February 24 marks the 70th anniversary of Christian Mission for the Deaf. Truly, the Lord has been gracious to us, and it is a privilege to continue serving Him through this unique ministry to the deaf in Africa.

We currently have several pressing needs at our school in Chad, located on the edge of the Sahara Desert. The water pump that was installed about 15 years ago has been deteriorating for some time and needed replacement. We thank God that we were able to rebuild it last month and maintain this precious resource.

Another need relates to our new multi-purpose building, which serves both the deaf church and the school. Until recently, we had been making do with aging furniture from our previous building, much of which was in poor condition. We are thrilled that Mission Project Fellowship has stepped in to help meet this need. They have raised more than $4,000 to purchase chairs for the building. Praise God for that!

Director Pililo reports that the border between Uvira (DR Congo) and Burundi has reopened now that the militia group M23 has withdrawn from Uvira. For the many weeks that the border was closed, desperate Congolese attempted dangerous crossings into Burundi, often lashing together plastic jerrycans or air-filled trash bags to float across the river that separates the two countries. According to a report by the BBC, more than 20 people are known to have drowned during these attempts.

One of our former students, Debaba Esimba, has recently started a school for the deaf in the small town of Luvungi, near the Burundi border. In order to maintain connections with family, friends, and students, he has made the river crossing several times. He sent me several photos and videos of people attempting the crossing. We are thankful that he has been able to travel in relative safety. We are also grateful that conditions in Uvira and the surrounding region are beginning to stabilize now that M23 has withdrawn from that region. However, the situation farther north in Bukavu and Goma remains very unstable, as M23 still maintains a presence there.

Truly, your prayers are coveted.

Tim Foster
Director

M23, a Congolese militia group in the eastern province of Kivu, has relaxed their hold in the region. They’ve withdrawn from the city of Uvira, where we have a school for the deaf. A few months ago, we were concerned that they would continue southward and take over the city of Baraka, where we have another school. Thankfully, this never happened. As they withdraw and move back northward, we’re hopeful that official government and police will return to the region and that life will go back to normal. Pray for our Brothers and Sisters in Bukavu and Goma, two major cities in the Kivu province. M23 has not relaxed their grip on those cities, and life there is still very difficult.

We’re grateful that Mission Projects Fellowship has agreed to help us with a special fund-raising project in Chad. Our new multi-purpose building is in dire need of new furniture, and MPF is helping to raise $4,270 towards the cost of 200 new chairs for the sanctuary. We’re excited to see this project reach maturity. Pray with us that this endeavor will be successful and the chairs will be received and put in service soon.

In Baraka, we’re also in need of new furniture for our classrooms. Despite rising costs of construction during Covid, we were able to complete the construction of the six new classrooms and administrative office. Unfortunately, that left no money for furniture. Enrollment has doubled since we’ve moved from our previous location, and our staff and students have had to make do with the meager furnishings from our old building. Students have to squeeze tightly on benches, or sit on the floor during class. We were hoping that a local Norwegian NGO would help sponsor this project, but that has yet to materialize. Pray that this need will met soon.

Indeed, your prayers are coveted.

Tim Foster
Director

Dear Friends,

I’ve just returned from two weeks in Kitwe, Zambia. What an awesome time! Although we have many Congolese pastors and evangelists who are grateful for the theological training we provide, sometimes I feel some of the advanced training that we offer could use better local long-term structure and support. But providing this kind of structure is a challenge, and any attempt to do so has been complicated by the recent surge of civil strife in the eastern Congo. Quite out of the blue, God answered our prayers in September by introducing us to Central African Baptist University (CABU), in Kitwe, Zambia. They have an amazing passion for reaching the deaf with the Gospel! Not only do they have several deaf students enrolled (and full-time interpreters on staff), they also offer a 2-year Deaf Ministries program for their hearing students. I’ve never heard of such a thing in Africa! We don’t run into anything remotely like CABU in the countries where we minister to the deaf; it seemed almost too good to be true. What an exciting reminder that God’s plans are better than my own!

Not only is CABU an excellent accredited institution, but their doctrinal standards are impeccable, and their vision for evangelism and church planting humbled me. I attended their EQUIP conference in the first week of December (featuring speakers like Conrad Mwebe, Tim Challies, HB Charles, and more), and in the 2nd week, I taught a block class to the students in the Deaf Ministries program. I had about 35 students in the “Foundations of Deaf Ministries” class, and it was a fun mix of lecture and hands-on practical application. We explored methods of communicating complex doctrinal material to deaf audiences with limited vocabulary- which is typical for many deaf believers and pastors alike.

CABU also has a Theological Seminary by Extension (TSE) program, bringing theology classes to remote churches across Central and South Africa. The material they’ve developed for this program looks like it will be a good fit with several programs that we’ve been developing for our deaf ministers.

I’m excited at the prospects that lay ahead of us as we continue to forge a deeper relationship with CABU, and start preparing some of our deaf leaders to enroll!

Truly, your prayers are coveted.

Tim Foster
Director

Dear Friends,

The militia group, M23, continues to expand their control over the Kivu province in the DR Congo. And with their spread, violence follows. Their most recent expansion pressed southward from Bukavu, and took over the city of Livungi. Surely they’re going to contiue southward towards Uvira. We have a school in Uvira, so pray with us that things will settle down soon.

One of our deaf graduates from our school in Uvira, Fazili Esimba, has established his own school for the deaf in Livungi several years ago. He has about 20 students. With M23 headed his direction, he had to shut down his school and quickly evacuate his students to safe smaller towns in the outlying region. The carnage in the wake of M23 is grim. In one of the videos Fazili sent me, about 30 people could be seen lying in the street and gutters, chopped down by either bullets or machetes. Sadly, most of the murdered people in the video were women and children. Pray for Fazili and his students that they will be able to quickly relocate everyone to safety, and will be able to escape harm.

Shindano Andre, the assistant director at our school in Uvira, is finally headed home after having been poisoned and kidnapped by gangs in September. His brother was able to raise the funds necessary to get him released after several weeks, and he has been in the hospital ever since his release. Now that his health is stabilized, he is heading back to Uvira, but with M23 headed their way, we’re going to be in for a rough ride for quite some time.

In Bukavu, food is scarce, but our staff has been able to find food and supplies by networking with other Christians nearby. Peace can’t come soon enough.

Truly, your prayers are coveted.

Tim Foster
Director