My name is Evan Vetter – and I am the Director of the Congocast project. Since this is the first blog that we have posted on here – I thought I would make this post about how we got this whole thing started.

I can not believe that it’s already MAY. It was two years ago this month that this whole project got started. I was working at my job at Port City Community Church – and I overheard our Missions Director, Christie Coley, talking about two women who were thinking about moving to the DR Congo. I was like, “DR Congo? Why are they moving there?”

I had no idea. I wasn’t prepared for what was going to happen next. And I wasn’t ready for how it was about to change me.

I had heard of the situation in Sudan – it had become hard not to. In the months prior – many celebrities had begun to campaign for the people of Darfur. George Clooney, Don Cheadle and many of Danny Ocean’s other buddies – had thankfully taken up the cause of stopping the genocide that was going on unnoticed – or maybe uncared about in the Eastern Sudan. But this was different. I was hearing about the story of Congo from someone who had been there.

Christie told me about the atrocities happening in Congo. She told of the women who had been raped. She told me about Julie. Then she told me that two young women from ILM were moving to this place that the State Department warned all of us in the US from going anywhere near.

So I dug in. I wanted to know more. Why was this happening? Why hadn’t it been stopped? How could more people die in this war than any war since WWII – and not any of us know about it?

I was riveted. I was bewildered. I was compelled. Who are these girls that want to move there? Could we show people what is happening there through their story? Are they crazy?

The Answers:

1) Wendy and Robin…
2) Yes – and we can do it by sending a camera with them…
3) Absolutely crazy…

SO that is why this whole thing got started. We knew some people going to a place in the world – that we thought more people should know about. More people knowing – means more people could help. And more help might mean that the conflict there will end.

So SHARE this story. SHARE these videos. SHARE with people that they can make a difference.

Don’t just tune in – change the world…