Father Mansuetus visits
with Sarah Mahoney

                    Mission History

"Communities in both hemispheres will benefit from the Solon Connection." That pronouncement followed a weekend introduction of Father Mansuetus Setonga to parishioners from Solon's St. Mary's Catholic and United Methodist Churches.

Fr. Setonga, from the Same region in northeast Tanzania, returned to eastern Iowa to visit friends made during his master’s degree work at the University of Iowa, and to strengthen the growing link between the Solon parishes and parishes of his diocese. He left with more than $4,000 in gifts and pledges for more money along with a promise to locate needed equipment to complete a health clinic in the village of Ijinyu, Tanzania.

Fr. Setonga told families at a Sunday potluck that this gift is vital in his impoverished region. "These people are poor, discouraged sometimes. You uplift them. You give them courage. Knowing they have a family in the U.S. is so important. Thank you for the relationship you are building."

That relationship came about, in large part, due to a connection developed by Solon resident Sarah Mahoney, who worked in the Same region in the spring of 2000 as part of a college study-abroad program. As evidence of how far American dollars would go, Mahoney noted that she paid for transportation to and from town and for lunch each day during her 2- month stay and spent less than $50!

While the financial boost is a tangible sign of the cooperation between Iowa and Same, St. Mary's pastoral associate Glenna McKitterick underscored the two-way support. "(This) has given us an opportunity to grow spiritually. Our faith needs your people,” she told Setonga. In response, Setonga emphasized that benefits would return, even if not outwardly visible. "Never will you be poor. You will have more and more each day because of what you give to my people."

He and Sarah spent much of the evening elaborating on customs, folk tales, and lifestyles of the Same region. They told how residents scratch out a living on a couple acres of land, with a few chickens and maybe a couple of cows. What Americans would call necessities, such as safe water, electricity, vehicles, and basic medical care, are nearly nonexistent in his homeland. With this month's gift from Solon and an inquiry from another benefactor to round up laboratory equipment, Fr. Setonga hopes to establish a medical clinic for a five-village region. The clinic, partially built, is run by Franciscan nuns. 

About 70 families in Solon have also connected with households in the Same region. Fr. Setonga elaborated on the domestic lifestyle, describing how the educational system, mail, electricity, and division of labor operate. He and Sarah both emphasized that beyond small, inexpensive gifts to corresponding families, the tax and economic structure of Tanzania make financial assistance to individual families unwise. This is the premise behind their push for community-based development.