October 2011 Update

The academic year 2011-2012 is on. We have resumed the Leadership And Development Studies course ( LADS) in three partner institutions of the city of Yaounde. LADS will be a full graded course delivered in a class setting in these schools. Through this transformational leadership course we will help equip more than 750 young people this year with paradigms of servant leadership. The launching of Young Leaders Clubs is also going on in the same high schools. In the Club setting, we will help members to engage in a dynamic personal relationship with The Lord Jesus while they are trained to lead and serve according to biblical principles.
The video below shows the first meeting of the Young Leaders Club at College IPONI (a partner high school in the outskirts of Yaounde) two weeks ago.

It is a custom for us to end each ministry year with a Young Leaders camp. We are still receiving testimonies of changed lives at the camp of last June. A few weeks ago, we received the encouraging testimony below from the mother of a camper:
"The grace and love of our Lord Jesus-Christ be with you! I wish to express my gratitude to God and to you, the whole team who worked to make this camp happen.You did a great ministry at Libamba and even beyond, by encouraging us to give our children a daily devotional book. Once a week, William shares with the family the teachings of one day at the Libamba camp and we are blessed. Be strengthened for other activities, for which I hope you are planning already”.
Many blessings in Christ

         Victor & Florence

Lettre des nouvelles: septembre 2011

Du 06 au 08 juillet dernier, nous avons tenu la rencontre d’évaluation de nos activités de ministère. Pendant ces trois jours de réunion, les encadreurs des deux Clubs des Jeunes Leaders ainsi que l’animateur principal des cours de Leadership And Developpement Studies (LADS) dans les établissements ont présenté les bilans de leurs activités respectives à toute l’équipe. Le cours de LADS a été enseigné dans une douzaine de salles de classes avec une moyenne de 500 élèves enseignés. Les deux Clubs des Jeunes Leaders (CJL) ont mobilisé 40 jeunes réguliers pour une année de travail riche en activités. L’activité permanente des CJL était la rencontre hebdomadaire de chaque CJL. A celle-ci, il faut ajouter des activités spéciales telles que :

• · Une excursion au Mont ELOUMDEN : un exercice d’endurance qui a permis aux jeunes de réaliser la possibilité de traverser des obstacles apparemment insurmontables, par un effort intense et soutenu: « derrière un grand obstacle se cache une grande victoire » a dit l’un d’eux au sommet de la montagne
• · Une journée de l’excellence au Collège Les Sapins pendant laquelle  les 5 premiers de chaque classe ont été honorés et encouragés à toujours rechercher l’excellence dans leurs réalisations
• · Un projet « Non à la tricherie ! Non à la fraude ! » : pour encourager les jeunes à l’intégrité. « D’habitude plusieurs dizaines d’élèves sont traduits au conseil de discipline pour tricherie, mais après la campagne contre la fraude du CJL cette année, nous n’avons attrapé qu’un seul élève entrain de tricher », nous a rapporté une Surveillante Générale du Collège les Sapins.
• · Une visite à l’Orphelinat LE BON BERGER : application du leadership de service
• · Un investissement humain à la Sous-préfecture d’Efoulan pendant la semaine de la Nation pour développer le patriotisme
• · L’un des coaches de CJL a travaillé avec les jeunes dans sa plantation de pastèques en application du cours sur le coaching. Comme résultat, les enfants coachés ont acquis une aptitude avérée en matière de culture de la pastèque.
• · Un camp des jeunes leaders qui a rassemblé 55 jeunes à LIBAMBA , un village situé à environs 70kms de Yaoundé

Tout compte fait, nous pouvons dire que l’année 2010-2011 a été un autre pas vers la réalisation du projet pilote de formation des leaders intègres pour notre continent .

Feedback from the 2011 Young Leaders Camp

The Young Leaders Camp this year was a great time of true fellowship and real transformation. We spent the week of the 19^th to 26^th of June with 53 youths at Libamba (about 50 miles away from Yaounde). The Theme of the camp was “Be An Example”, drawn from 1 Timothy4:12. We had numerous activities around the theme of the camp. These included teachings, discussions and role plays, film shows, talks and and storytelling. Watching Alex Kendrick’s movie titled “Facing The Giants” on big screen was one of their favorite time. All of them remembered a life lesson from the movie that says one should prepare his fields for sowing, to avoid missing the opportunity when rain begins to fall.
Drawing inspiration from 1Timothy 4:12, we explored the following aspects of the theme:
· Be an example in word
· Be an example in conduct
· Be an example in love
· Be an example in spirit
· Be an example in faith
· Be an example in purity
We also had an excursion in the jungle and visited the Nyong River, (Second longest in Cameroon). During the excursion, campers were lead by Florence in a moment of praise to God for the beauty of the jungle. At the end of our week at the camp, participants were not ready to leave. They all said they can’t wait for next year’s edition.
Young Leaders also did a community project at Libamba. They painted classrooms black boards to demonstrate servant leadership.
We had very encouraging feedback from parents after this year’s edition. Below are a few reactions from them.
Feedback from parents of campers
“By the grace of God I send you thanks for everything that the Young Leaders Camp has done to my boys. Ludovic (one of her boys) is always prompt to talk about lessons learnt at the camp this year, and after a week of observation, I see a remarkable improvement in his behavior, ... I commit to offer them devotional books for their daily meditations… once again, may God bless you all” Eliane Clarisse (Mother of three boys who attended the Young Leaders Camp this year)
“Uncle Victor, My mother says I should say Thank You!... Because I keep talking about being an example (the theme of the Camp this year) since I came back from the Young Leaders Camp. And I have stopped doing the bad things I used to do before” Hervé (14 yers old boy who attended the Young Leaders Camp this year)
“Ernest (14 years old boy who attended the camp) was having serious difficulties managing puberty; I have noted a great improvement in his ability to manage it after the Camp; Maybe you should consider holding the camp twice every year. ” Alphonse (Father of two boys who attended the Young Leaders Camp this year)
Please pray with thanksgiving that the changes in the lives of those who attended the Young Leaders Camp this year will be permanent and will bear lasting fruit.

Feedback du Camp des Jeunes Leaders “Libamba 2011”

Cliquer sur l’image pour lire les nouvelles du Camp.

Young Leaders Camp: “Libamba 2011”

Tchadian Leadership Foundation

We are back from our trip last week to Chad.

The General Assembly of “Fondation Tchadienne pour le Leadership” (FTL) which means Chadian Leadership Foundation went very well. The meeting was both officially opened and closed by the Chadian Minster of Communication, who personally represented the Prime Minister.

My presentation on the Young Leaders League was highly appreciated. Several members of the audience, including the newly elected FTL Coordinator came to me after, asking that we will extend our pilot project to Chad.

The newly elected leaders of FTL are aware of the high expectations people have on them.

Let’s continue to ask for wisdom from the Lord as this new team trusts God for their initial steps toward transformation in Chad.

Camp Des Jeunes Leaders

Voici venu "Libamba 2011"
Camp Des Jeunes.
Lieu: Collège Evangélique de Libamba
Dates: du 19 au 26 juin 2011
Frais: 10.000 F Cfa
Inscriptions & plus de renseignements: ylc.cameroon@gmail.com, ou appelez au 77 29 97 86 ou au 96 29 62 05 ou au 96 67 33 34

Manyims Update (First Quarter 2011)

 

Dear friends and partners,

We will first apologize for sharing no updates since our December 2010 end of year newsletter. The least we can say is that the lord really kept us active in many leadership development fronts during this great season of service. Please join us and give praise to God for all He has enabled us to experience during the first quarter of 2011.

Teaching compassion and reaching hearts

This academic year again, members of two Young Leaders Clubs (YLC) went to visit "The Good Shepherd" orphanage in the outskirts of Yaounde. We had been there last year with about 30 youths. This year; the YLC members challenged their classmates and friends to join them for the visit. As a result of their mobilization, 55 students joined the 40 members of our two YLCs to pay a memorable visit to our friends of "The Good Shepherd" orphanage. Students came with bars of soap, or bottles of oil, or even clothes and other gifts for the residents of the orphanage. Above all the physical gifts, these young people came because we had challenged them to give a gift of love. We asked them to share the warmth of their hearts with other young people like them, who needed to feel loved and considered. Taking this challenge of true love and service, the students spent a whole afternoon with the orphans. They played all kinds of games with them, and at the end presented the gifts they had brought. Victor concluded the visit with a message of hope to all who were present. Reading from Psalm 113: "He raises up the poor out of dust…in order to make him sit with nobles…". He encouraged the audience to remember that our circumstances do not limit God, in what He will make of us. As He raised Hannah from barrenness to the mother of the great prophet Samuel, As He raised Mary from an anonymous humble girl to the mother of the Lord Jesus, He will raise them from the orphanage and make of them great men and women of our Nation.

No fraud & No cheating in school

Every year, YLCs organize a project to lead transformation in their environment. After realizing projects related to the transformation of their physical environment during the last two years, YLC members came up -early February this year-with a plan to address moral issues. The "No Fraud! No Cheating!" project. This was a campaign organized in school, to sensitize the school community on the dangers of fraud and cheating. Helped by their teachers, Young Leaders went from class to class, organizing discussions on the danger of fraud and cheating. They sold a T-shirt in school on which it was written "No to Cheating! No to Fraud!" They also organized an art contest on the theme of the campaign, with winning prizes for the best story, for the best poem and for the best drawing against fraud and cheating. This campaign was organized one week before the school second term examinations, and the objective of the campaign was to reduce cheating and fraud by 50% in the school (with 1,800 students). We had feedback from a discipline mistress that one student was found cheating during this session of exams, whereas in previous exams, they had to deal with more than 20 cases. Donald Agasoh, the president of the Club who was at the forefront of the campaign made the following comments: "Once we took the risk to come out and challenge our fellow mates to turn away from cheating, we put ourselves on the spotlight. They closely monitored the behavior of all YLC members during the exams. And we understood that you cannot preach the values of Jesus, you don't demonstrate the same values consistently in your own life. We need your prayers so that we can continue to be good examples to our classmates".

The Challenge of Transforming Leadership

From March 09 to 11 this year, International Leadership Foundation (ILF) organized a "Transforming Leadership Seminar" (TLS) for top government and business leaders in Yaounde. This seminar was attended by representatives of the Presidency of the Republic, of the Prime Minister's office and of five ministries in Cameroon. There were also four honorable members of parliament and a few key leaders of the business sector. The Prime Minister and head of Government of Cameroon received the facilitators of the seminar and encouraged our initiative, recognizing that Cameroon is in great need of leaders with a high level of integrity and character. He was particularly happy that we thought of taking this value based leadership curriculum to high school students. And he also expressed a hope that the next generation of leaders will embrace their responsibilities with a high sense of calling to serve the people and the Nation and not their personal interests. Our discussions with the Prime Minister also opened doors for future collaboration in the areas of economic transformation. Dr Victor Koh of Singapore, who is the ILF expert on economic development and TLS facilitator lead these discussions.

TLS participants formed transformation groups according to their professional sectors and they designed transformational projects on which they will begin to work as a result of their participation at TLS. In addition to the outcomes mentioned above, we are currently exploring possibilities of partnership with the Ministry of Culture on summer educational activities to create awareness among youths on issues of character and leadership.

The
Mountain
Top
Experience

Yaounde (Capital city of Cameroon) is also known as the city of Seven Hills. This is because the city is surrounded by 7 small mountains. One of these mountains is called Mount Eloumden. Last March 12 we climbed to the top of this mountain with 35 students for an excursion. The distance from the foot to the top of the mountain is 1600 km (about 1000 miles), and the slope of the mountain is very stiff. The challenge of climbing Mt Eloumden is very intimidating because of the stiffness of its slopes, and one of the Young Leaders confessed that he considered abandoning the adventure as we came close to the foot of the mountain. But Thank God, all Young Leaders reached the top, after being patient and sustaining physical efforts. At the top of the mountain, Dr Dela Adadevoh (ILF President) told them his life story of endurance. He taught them through this story that enduring hard conditions is the only way for leaders to develop extraordinary capacities that will enable them to stand out and make a difference in life. Young Leaders were asked to make comments about their experiences. Christian, one of them, made the following comment: "Behind every big obstacle hides a big victory".

Pray with us:

• Praise God for open doors and a positive attitude of the Cameroon Government toward our initiative.
  
• Praise God for 540 students who are being exposed to transformational leadership principles on a weekly basis.
  
• Pray for Florence and I, as well as the team of volunteers working with us to highly depend on God.
  

Pray that an official authorization to operate as ILF in Cameroon be issued. We thank God the file was sent through the Ministry of External Relations (Foreign Affairs)