Tanzania Partnership

Shepherd of the Valley's partnership with Tungamalenga Parish is just one of 70 such partnerships between congregations of the Saint Paul Area Synod and parishes of the Iringa Diocese. The Companion News is a quarterly publication providing news and updates on all the Bega Kwa Bega partnerships. The latest issue contains an article with photos showing the Idodi Secondary School one year after it experienced devastating losses from a dormitory fire. The photos were taken by SOTV travelers who visited the school in October 2009, just two months after the fire, and again in August 2010. The Companion News often has updates on other diocese wide projects, such as healthcare provided through the Ilula Hospital and seven rural dispensaries, work done by the Agriculture Institute, St Paul Partners working for clean water development, and updates from Tumaini University. Check it out!

Since June 2001, members of two congregations on opposite sides of the globe have been partners through a Companion Congregation Covenant. Shepherd of the Valley Lutheran Church in Apple Valley, Minnesota, is a large suburban congregation of the Saint Paul Area Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Tungamalenga Parish is a remote, rural parish comprised of 20 village congregations, part of the Iringa Diocese of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania. Our congregations are united through the Gospel of Jesus Christ for the purpose of sharing ministries of evangelism, education, healthcare, and economic development. Our members promise to pray for one another, to learn about one another's culture and challenges, to visit one another, and to share the gifts God has given each of us. Over one hundred Shepherd of the Valley members have visited Tungamalenga since our initial journey in August 2002. In 2006, three guests from Tungamalenga made the long journey to Apple...