Stéphane Junior Yere is an international Global Mission Fellow with the United Methodist General Board of Global Ministries, engaged in a two-year term of service. The Global Mission Fellows program takes young adults ages 20-30 out of their home environments and places them in new contexts for mission experience and service. The program has a strong emphasis on faith and justice. Global Mission Fellows become active parts of their new local communities. They connect the church in mission across cultural and geographical boundaries. They grow in personal and social holiness and become strong young leaders working to build just communities in a peaceful world. At SinaÏ de la Riviera Béssikoi United Methodist Church in the Côte d’Ivoire Annual Conference, Stéphane serves in youth ministry, “helping them understand the Bible,” he said. He also preaches, leads classes and coordinates church family reunions. “I was born and raised in a Christian family where I was educated according to Christian principles and values,” Stéphane recalled. “At the Methodist church, I was baptized and received my first communion. I started at Sunday school and did all my classes there. I then served as an assistant instructor, often helping with Bible reading and prayer.” He holds two law degrees – a Master of Juridical Sciences (public law) from the Université Felix Houphouet-Boigny in Côte d’Ivoire, and a Licence en Droit from the private Université Nord-Sud in Abidjan. As a master corporal in the Boys and Girls Brigade, he said, “I learned discipline and respect for authority. At age 17, I joined the youth group of my community. As a spiritual trainer, [I was] responsible for training and supervision of brothers and sisters on the teachings of the Bible. “I was also a prayer-cell monitor during my high school career. I shared the good news of Christ with my student friends and assisted others in their choice to come to Jesus Christ. For three years now, I have joined the clergy of my church, [working] with my elders alongside the pastor by assisting in administrative and spiritual tasks. This experience allowed me to know the functioning of my church and brought a lot to my responsibilities.” Stéphane is grateful. “All this journey and these experiences have been possible because I love Jesus Christ, who saved me and redeemed me at a great price. From my early childhood until today, nothing has changed in my way of loving him. That is why I serve with zeal and passion among my generation. “This is why I want to be a missionary, to preach the good news of God to [people] of all languages and cultures throughout the world by helping to fight against racial and social injustice. Our God is a God of peace and righteousness as the Lord Jesus Christ says in Luke, 18:7, ‘And will not God grant justice to his chosen ones who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long in helping them?’” Stéphane will serve as an assistant with IDH-UCA in Central America, a mission of justice and hope for men and women in Central America. He believes that defending human rights means “listening, consoling, guiding and providing solutions for people.”

Victorino de Almeida Garcia is an international Global Mission Fellow with the United Methodist General Board of Global Ministries, engaged in a two-year term of service. The Global Mission Fellows program takes young adults ages 20-30 out of their home environments and places them in new contexts for mission experience and service. The program has a strong emphasis on faith and justice. Global Mission Fellows become active parts of their new local communities. They connect the church in mission across cultural and geographical boundaries. They grow in personal and social holiness and become strong young leaders working to build just communities in a peaceful world. A member of Jose Catumbela Lima United Methodist Church in the West Angola Annual Conference, Victorino loves his congregation. “I see myself carrying out a lot of activities such as Bible reading, liturgist and chorister,” he said. “Most importantly, I got myself familiarized with charity activities.” Since Victorino accepted Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior, he said, “God has been helping me to get involved in spiritual and social activities to [improve] my spiritual life. I am now a final-year student at Africa University, pursuing my Bachelor of Science degree in international relations.” As a member of Ambassadors of Christ, he nurtures his faith, “sharing the word of God and praying for each other as the Bible encourages to do so,” he said. Along with working as a coordinator with the campus life warden, Victorino served as a Bible reader, liturgist and occasional preacher. “All in all,” he said, “I can describe my spiritual growth as a positive change. I aim at growing every day by drawing near to God. “In terms of my call to mission,” Victorino added, “I believe that I can easily understand others by putting myself in their shoes. My calling is to impact people in everything I do because the Bible says that in everything you do, do it diligently and with all your heart because it pleases God. I assure you that, with the help of God, I will serve and impact people’s lives through my way of living.” Interning at the Angola Embassy in Zimbabwe, Victorino worked as a political and economic assistant, primarily conducing research. As a Global Mission Fellow, he said, “I would like to contribute and maximize positively and bring change [wherever I am placed]. “The Angola Embassy taught me the importance of working in a group and working under pressure.” He speaks English and Portuguese fluently.