Khadija Kargbo and Baindu Brown Mansaray, originally from Sierra Leone, recently turned their lives over to Jesus Christ through baptism and are now part of the growing African immigrant population at Timothy Lutheran Church in St. Louis Missouri. The number of African immigrants (mainly from Sierra Leone, Liberia, The Gambia, Ethiopia, Eritrea etc.) at Timothy has been growing steadily during the past decade. This was made possible due mainly to the strong and effective partnership between Christian Friends of New Americans (CFNA) and Timothy Lutheran Church.

CFNA continues to draw and bridge immigrants and refugees by providing incentives such as Scholarship Programs for immigrant and refugee children to study in Lutheran elementary and high schools, monthly Health Screening, an After-School Tutoring Program for immigrant and refugee children and teaching refugees English as a second language, to name a few. Timothy Lutheran Church, on the other hand, continues to attract immigrants and refugees due mainly to their embracement of diversity, and their tolerance for immigrant cultures and their way of life.

It was not therefore surprising to see Khadija Kargbo become a Christian through baptism on Sunday, January 5, 2020. Khadija grew up in a Christian and Muslim home in Freetown, Sierra Leone. Her mother was a devout Catholic and father a devout Muslim. In their household, they equally celebrated Christmas and Ramadan. In reality, she was neither a Christian nor a Muslim at the time. Khadija came to St. Louis as a refugee on July 30, 2002. Previously, she had lived in a refugee camp in the West African country of Mali from 1992 to 2002. She is currently enrolled in a new membership class at Timothy Lutheran Church.

Baindu Brown Mansaray, on the other hand, had been a practicing Muslim in her hometown, Kenema, Sierra Leone before coming to the US. Upon arrival, she moved in with her daughter, Mahawa Jewel Brown-Vamboi, and son-in-law, Prince Vamboi, and always enjoyed babysitting one-and-half-year-old Xander Vamboi. Prince and Mahawa are members of Timothy Lutheran Church so after Baindu arrived she joined the family in worship services there.

When Khadija received baptism at Timothy, the question Baindu asked her daughter was, “Can adults be baptized?” The answer, of course, was yes. Baindu, being a Muslim, had seen many babies and young children baptized at Timothy so she was not sure whether she would be given the chance. She then told her daughter that she also wanted to be baptized so on Sunday, January 26, 2020, she accepted Jesus through Baptism. Baindu still has six of her children back home in Sierra Leone. All of them need your prayers.

Personally, it brought tremendous joy to our hearts when my wife Yewah and I were asked to serve as the baptismal sponsors for Kadija and Baindu.

By Gerald Brewah Timothy Lutheran Church Photos by Gerald Brewah

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