Join an OCMC construction team that will help build a permanent church for the Turkana people of Lokichar in Kenya. Teams will be serving from June 17th to July 1st and from June 24th to July 11th.
Since 2007, the Orthodox Christian Mission Center (OCMC), with the blessing of His Eminence Makarios Archbishop of Kenya, has been helping to establish the Church among the Turkana tribe. In 2010, Turkana Orthodox priests led OCMC Executive Director Fr. Martin Ritsi and a team of men and women from the United States to evangelize the people of this harsh northern region of Kenya. These priests translated as Fr. Martin and members of the team shared the good news of the Gospel. In subsequent years, more teams of Orthodox Christians visited and scores of people from numerous villages have been baptized into the Orthodox Faith.
In 2013, funds were offered to build the Church of St. Nicholas for a new community in the remote village of Lokichar. The people there have been worshiping under a tree which provides shade from the intense desert sun. When completed this will be the third permanent church in Turkana that the faithful of North America have sponsored through the OCMC.
OCMC has also sent additional mission teams to help build these churches. Two teams will be traveling to Lokichar this summer to assist with the construction of St. Nicholas. The first team will serve from June 17th to July 1st and the second from June 24th to July 11th.
This is a profound opportunity for the Orthodox Christians in the United States to further plant the seeds of the Faith and build bridges of fellowship among the Turkana of Northern Kenya. OCMC is urgently seeking volunteers for these teams. Two additional volunteers are needed for each team.
Please prayerfully consider serving on one or both of these teams this summer. For more information or to volunteer online visit http://www.ocmc.org/about/view_team.aspx?TeamId=136. You can also contact Andrew Lekos or Pres. Renee Ritsi by e-mail at teams@ocmc.org or by phone at 1-877-463-6784 ext. 141 to join one of these teams that are vital to the continued Orthodox mission efforts in the region.