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Welcome to Christian Mission for Dodoma |
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Christ commanded his followers to proclaim the Gospel and to improve the world around them: fostering justice, healing the sick, comforting the afflicted, feeding the hungry, etc. Wherever Christians go, hospitals, schools, and economic improvement follow. This is building the Reign of God brick by brick. As St. Francis of Assisi advised, "Proclaim the Gospel at all times. Use words when necessary."
We are a not-for-profit 501(c)3 independent charitable organization working to improve conditions of people in the Dodoma region of Tanzania. Our “mission” is not about winning these folks for Christ - as Dodoma Christians themselves are doing God’s work, spreading the Gospel, especially to people who have not yet heard it. Our mission is to “come alongside” our brothers and sisters in Dodoma to make people aware of their work, and help them with their projects and efforts to make their world a better place to live.
We focus on the following: - Buying crafts and other products from artisans at fair prices and selling them in Western markets to generate profit to plow back into Dodoma communities. Artisans are provided with "Western" markets so they can realize a greater economic benefit from their God-given talents.
- By collecting and generating funds through sales, we can provide funds for community-improving projects in Dodoma.
- We also organize work-visit trips to bring Americans to Tanzania to visit fellow Christians in the Dodoma region, living with them and sharing lives at least briefly, as well as working on a service project that benefits the people. We usually finish with a parks tour to experience Tanzania’s spectacular wildlife resources. It helps people to understand and care about others when you get to know them.
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CMDI’s founders began their entanglement with the Dodoma region in the mid-1990s. The ELCA’s Northwestern Ohio Synod (NWOS) was linked with the Dodoma Diocese of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania (ELCT), halfway around the world and a very different place from the farmland and industrial towns of northwestern Ohio. As a result of communication, trips were organized for NWOS Lutherans to visit Lutheran churches in the towns and villages of Dodoma, many of them very young churches in this mission diocese of the ELCT. Pastor Dave organized the first trip in 1996 and has led one annually ever since (since 2002, under the auspices of CDMI). Stuart joined a trip in 1999 and quickly became convinced of a call to work alongside Tanzanians to build their economy, a task that would take decades.
Pastor Dave and Stuart quickly became involved in “help” projects. By 2001, it became apparent that what was needed was an independent organization (separate from the official church) to work in these areas and to organize visitation trips. The three founders incorporated CMDI in 2002 as a not-for-profit service organization. |
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Dave was born in Fort Wayne, Indiana to middle-class parents. Little did he know that he would one day be doing Christ’s mission work on the other side of the world in Tanzania. He attended Purdue University majoring in European History with a minor in Political Science. He attended Hamma School of Theology and graduated with a Master of Divinity. He was ordained in 1977 and has served in parish ministry for 32 years. Dave and his wife Jill live near the small town Grand Rapids, Ohio. They have four children and one granddaughter. Dave has been involved with the Dodoma Diocese of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania since 1993. It began when he served as a pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church in Arcadia, Ohio. He led the congregation in establishing a companionship with Lufu Lutheran church, located on top of a mountain in the Rubeho Range in central Tanzania. He has led 13 mission groups to the Dodoma Diocese since 1996. |
 Stuart Smith is a Christian, worshipping in Lutheran churches all his life. His mom wanted him to become a pastor, but he was attracted to the sciences, and instead (but not by his own design) he became a pastor’s husband (that’s possible in the ELCA). He married his college sweetheart, Julianne, who entered seminary and has been a pastor serving NWOS parishes since 1986. Stuart is by profession a hydrogeologist and microbiologist and partner in Ground Water Science, a consulting firm specializing in ground water supply development, improvement, and regeneration. In Christ’s service, he focuses on the ministry of meeting the physical needs of people and participating in worship music. In Tanzania, he is involved in small water project planning and start up business efforts of Tanzanians. Stuart and Julianne have two adult daughters. |
Jill has been in the Secretarial/Administrative Assistant role for 30+ years. Since the formation of Christian Missions For Dodoma in 2004, she has enjoyed being on the “Retail” part of this non-profit business.
Although Jill has not physically traveled to Tanzania, she has felt a bond between the people of Tanzania through her work selling their crafts at church bazaars, church services, Farmer’s Markets, a Christmas Open House and attending various craft shows in the Northwest, Ohio area. It has been very rewarding getting to meet and host many people from Tanzania who have traveled to Northwest Ohio to share the Good News of Jesus Christ and how they have been blessed.
Jill feels very committed to helping the men and women throughout the villages of Tanzania, who have such talent and gifts, to sell their items to help them provide for their families and friends. |
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The Lord now sends us forth with hands to serve and give, 
