Come and see the amazing work of the Bismarck African Mission

Editor’s note: Tracy Kraft was one of four short-term missionaries from the Church of Corpus Christi who spent time at the African Mission this past summer. On Dec. 1, 2025, she was named the diocesan director of the mission overseeing the administrative and operational aspects.
 
June of 2025 was a month that I will never forget. After months of planning and preparations, our team traveled to Africa to participate in the short-term missionary program. We were excited to meet the people, see the country and offer our skills and abilities in support of the work of the mission, but the experience was so much more than the four of us could have imagined.
 
After our long flight and an overnight stay in Nairobi, we began our five-hour ride into the Kisii Highlands of Kenya. The roads were a challenge, but the beautiful, green landscape was amazing. We drove past zebra grazing along the road and saw so many lush views of the countryside dotted by small homes in a wide variety of bright colors. Many small towns serve as hubs for people who must walk to take care of their basic needs for water, supplies, school and religious services.
 
Everywhere we went, we were greeted by Kenyans of all ages walking along the roads. Most greeted us with wide smiles, lots of waving and excitement about seeing a car full of wazungu (white people). We finally arrived at the shamba in the afternoon after almost two full days of travel, and we were so pleased with what we saw. The new shamba (farm) consists of a two story house, large building that contains a gathering room, storage for the supplies needed for the Water with Blessing Program, space designated for the library and tutoring program, large barn for the cows and chickens, caretaker’s cottage and large garden filled with fruit trees, vegetables and napier grass for feeding the cows.
 
The house contains five bedrooms with sinks, closets and a prayer corner in each that offer a private space during your time in Kenya. There are two bathrooms that contain a toilet, sink and shower, two sitting rooms, laundry room, kitchen and beautiful chapel where we gathered each night for evening prayer. The rooftop balcony allows you to sit in the sun when it arrives midafternoon and dry your clothes on the line while gazing at the mashamba (farms, plots of land) all around you where the people live and raise crops such as maize, beans, bananas, millet, tea and potatoes. You can hear talking and laughter from neighboring families along with music from local churches. It is peaceful and beautiful.
 
We learned very quickly that thunderstorms play havoc on the electricity at the shamba, and we had one almost every night. We woke up very early and drove to Mass at Gekano Parish in the dark on winding, muddy roads. We prayed the rosary each day while holding on tight to avoid being thrown around in the back of the land cruiser. After the first few days, we got the hang of keeping our balance, and the drives became a very prayerful way to start each day. Upon arrival at the church, we carefully walked through the mud toward the front door where we greeted around 300 girls each morning for Mass. Their voices sang the songs and prayers of the Mass so beautifully, and we learned very quickly that language was not really a barrier to worshiping our Lord. We followed along with the prayers to the best of our ability and slowly learned to pray and sing along in Swahili and English. After Mass, we said goodbye to the girls and the sisters and headed back up the hills to the shamba for breakfast and our assignments for the day.
 
Our afternoons were spent working on various chores around the mission including some deep cleaning, work in the garden, meal preparation, working in the business office and cleaning the filters that allowed us to have safe, drinking water. The shamba utilizes the same water filter system as the many women who have received training and supplies through the Water with Blessings Program. This is one of the primary outreach ministries to the community, and we had an opportunity to see it firsthand.
 
We learned how to prep the buckets and filters for an initial training with women from the surrounding communities, and then attended a training to see how Lilian and Emma teach the ladies about the health benefits of clean water, provide them with a demonstration of how well the filters clean the water and then a chance to taste the filtered water for themselves. We had a chance to do follow up visits to women’s homes to see how things were going for them and their filtration systems, and the women were so gracious and excited to welcome our group into their small homes.
 
We learned very quickly that, just like in America, the homes reflected the personalities of the women who cared for them. Some were very neat and tidy; others were a bit more chaotic and each one gave us a first-hand glimpse into the lives of the women and children of Kenya. Finally, we had the opportunity to attend a graduation session for a group of women who completed their training, demonstrated their mastery of the system and were awarded large drums to store water for their families which will save them many steps up and down the hills each day. The smiles on the women’s faces that day were positively glowing. 
 
We also traveled around with Robert, who oversees the heifer program for the mission. We did home visits to check on the heifers and their calves, provided salt blocks or spray for insects, and ensured that the animals were well cared for. The first calf from each heifer is given back to the mission for another family, and the cow will become theirs permanently.   
 
We were also able to tour the latest home that was awarded to a family through the housing program. The mud house was solid, sealed to protect the family from the elements and sturdy enough to last them for 40 years or more. We were so impressed with the size and quality of the mud homes and with the fact that they are so well built that the family did not have to worry about the mosquitoes or the rain getting in.
 
Saturdays mean spending time with the orphans when they come to meet with the team for Mission Saturday. Each student brings their report card to discuss their grades and how school is going with Fr. Morman. They visit with Rogers and Robert about any needs or problems they have and then they see Sr. Teresa for their allowance, sanitary supplies and a boiled egg for some extra protein. Finally, they receive their monthly allotment of maize to take home to the families that care for them. Some of those little children carried those heavy bags so far to get them home that our hearts broke a little. But they were so grateful for all they received and thanked Bismarck Mission for all the care and support they receive. Visiting with them and seeing their shy smiles was a highlight of each week.
 
Sunday provided an opportunity to travel around with Fr. Morman to mission churches and celebrate Mass with the Kenyan people, and it is truly a celebration! Watching them sing and dance and praise our Lord was one of the most moving experiences of my life. I could have stayed with them all day singing and praising the Lord. They have great reverence for the Word of God, and they offer what little they have, whether that is a coin or a stalk of sugar cane. Five or six hours of Mass on Sunday went much too quickly, and I couldn’t wait to go again the following week!
 
The people of Kenya are warm, welcoming and joyful while living hard lives in abject poverty. I learned a lot from the people of Kenya about being grateful and at peace with what I have, and I will carry this lesson with me for the rest of my life. And now, I am blessed to be able to continue to serve our mission in Kenya, East Africa as the Director of the Mission for the Bismarck Diocese. I will do all I can to support the efforts of Fr. Morman and his team at the mission, as they work to provide for the orphans we serve and the greater community of Kisii and Nyamira counties. I look forward to sharing the short-term missionary program with people of the Bismarck Diocese and I am excited at assist future missionaries who will “come and see” the amazing work that our diocese is doing for the African people.