After working with HOPE’s team for nearly four years, I can’t help but notice a few consistent themes with our staff, and I thought you might find them interesting!
1. We all have a HOPE love story. Just like people share stories of how they met their spouses, most of us can pinpoint the moment we first heard about HOPE and mildly gush over the details of coming on staff. Whether we used to be bankers, pastors, educators, or missionaries, HOPE is an important part of our story.
2. We love competition. Whether it’s a Christmas decoration contest, a simple team-building exercise, or building the largest church-based savings program, it’s clear HOPE staff love to compete. We’re internally driven to do our best and excel.
3. We pray and grow closer to Christ together. Throughout the day and especially at 3 p.m. every day, our staff meets to read the Word and pray. We lift up our clients, donors, and staff, and we ask God to guide us and move in our hearts. Through so many interactions with people who know and love the Lord deeply, I have personally grown closer to Christ. Continue Reading…
Most of the women in Brazzaville wear beautiful dresses or skirts made of pagne, a brightly colored fabric that comes in bold, interesting patterns. Women buy the relatively inexpensive fabric in the pagne sections of the market and then take their selections to one of hundreds of local tailors. These tailors can create customized and detailed dresses, shirts, and suits at impressive speeds. Mikhal (HOPE Congo’s Finance Manager and my amazing hostess!) helped me buy fabric and commission a few skirts from a tailor named Bienvenu. 
I had the opportunity to interview Pasteur Julien from Centre Chrétienne Néhémie (Nehemiah Christian Center Church) while a reimbursement meeting was taking place in his church.
Meet Loveline, HOPE Congo’s first loan officer supervisor. Loveline played a valuable role in assembling and training the first 50 clients, and she is also managing and training the current staff of two loan officers. She provides an important layer of internal controls and efficiency for HOPE Congo’s work. Honestly, when I think about Loveline, the first phrase that comes to mind is “rock star.”
When European powers sat down to divide Central Africa amongst themselves in the nineteenth century, today’s Republic of Congo became a colony of France. Although Congo gained independence in 1960 and you might not be able to tell at first glance, ties between the two countries are still strong. For better or worse, France has left an indelible impression on Congo’s culture, government, and economy. The official language of business and academia is French (the Congolese are way ahead of Americans with fluency in multiple languages), and many Western expats and major business owners are French. One of the happier results: you don’t have to look too far to get a good croissant, or as I was happy to find, a mil feuille (I’ve also heard it called a napoleon).
