A Funny Thing Happened…

My wife, kids, and I spend eight, usually sweltering, days in western Pennsylvania at the New Wilmington Mission Conference. This is a gathering of Presbyterian missionaries from around the world. The purpose is to tell their stories, bring us up to speed on hapenings in their corner of the world, and tell young and old alike how they, too, can be missionaries in their own land.
As we returned to our dorm hall after lunch a hall-mate of ours was sitting on a folding chair, talking to another gentleman. When they saw us approach our friend said, “Here’s the guy you want to talk to!” which immediately made me nervous.
The stranger said his name was Robert, he was from Uganda, and he was looking for a market for his villiage’s goods. Intrigued how I was to play a role in this, I asked, “And what goods might this be?”
He mentioned that his villiage makes beads and baskets. “Uh-huh,” I thought… And they grow coffee.
You, my friend, have my attention.
He told me of how the farmers aren’t getting a sustainable wage for their labor, and how direct buying would be possible and best for those involved. Through this direct-buy program the farmers would get much needed money to fund their families, schools, and farms.
We excanged emails. I started making phone calls that very day to friends in the coffee importing business. We have gone through more red tape than I care to think about.
It’s taken almost a year and we’re in the final stretch. In about a week we should have everything in line for our first shipment of Ugandan coffee. Finally.
For more information on the New Wilmington Mission Conference, click www.nwmcmission.org