Bishop Gabriel Yemba Unda washes his hands during the Kivu Annual Conference in Goma, Congo. Unda invited conference speakers to observe five minutes of prayer for those affected by the region’s Ebola outbreak, which began last August. Photo by Philippe Kituka Lolanga, UM News.
By Philippe Kituka Lolonga
June 25, 2019 | BENI, Congo (UM News)
… Aimerance Kiyombo, a member of United Methodist Women in Beni, also survived Ebola and said she was shunned by her community. She said she was humiliated when she went to the market as people stared and made fun of her.
“The (United) Methodist Women of Beni have helped me a lot with advice, since I am already at home. Today, I start to be useful even though others are humiliating me. The Lord has delivered me, and today I have the breath of life,” Kiyombo said.
“My local church of Bulongo continues to help me materially and morally support me. This remains in my heart and I will never forget The United Methodist Church.”
Since the beginning of the Ebola epidemic in August of last year in the provinces of North Kivu and Ituri, more than 2,000 cases have been recorded. The death toll has topped 1,500, according to the latest reports from the Congolese Ministry of Health and the World Health Organization.
