How did we come up with the idea?
As luck would have it, Gabriele Steinebach met Hermann Ngoma Mbuinga in 2015 on a pilgrimage to Lourdes. When she came back she told me full of euphoria about the great young man she had met. From that day our family had a new member. When we met Hermann, we just had to like him. Despite the bad things he grew up with like war, corruption and misery, he is an incredibly happy and warm-hearted person. When he laughs you just have to laugh with him. He has a great sense of humor, and doesn't mind using a cliché from time to time to provide amusement.
Naturally, Hermann also told us about his family, who still live in Congo and whom he supports as best he can. We learned that his parents go to work every day, but often don't get paid for months. Medicines are extremely expensive. If someone falls ill there, there is often no money for medical care, even a tablet of paracetamol is too expensive for many. Things that we take for granted. You don't worry about it if you don't come into contact with it. But when we found out, it made us all terribly sad and affected. So we decided to support families in the Congo, as well as some of Hermann's relatives and I brought medicine (Ibuprofen and Paracetamol) with us from vacation, which Hermann could send down.
Since Hermann has been part of our family, Gabriele Steinebach has been intensively involved with the Congo and the suffering of the people there.
In the meantime, Hermann was building an infirmary with the help of the Liechtenstein relief organization. It should perhaps also be mentioned here that Hermann studied theology in Switzerland and was cath. is a priest in a parish in Switzerland.
Over the years, the idea of founding an association to help the children in the Boma-Mungo region, which is Hermann's home, came up. Where in the Congo Boma is located can be seen on the map to the west.
So much for the story of how the idea for our club came about.
who we are
Gabrielle Steinbach
1. Board of Directors
Gabriele Steinebach is a registered nurse. For many years she volunteered at the Catholic Church. Municipality of Tengen. Was also active on a voluntary basis for Caritas and most recently supported the infirmary of the Beuron monastery.
Herman Ngoma Mbuinga
2. Board of Directors
Hermann Ngoma Mbuinga was born on September 15, 1992 in the port city of Matadi. He grew up in the Boma Mungo region. He began his theological studies in the Congo, then studied for a while in Frankfurt and spent the last 3 years of his studies in Switzerland, where he is now a Catholic. priest is active.
Rebekah Steinebach
Secretary/Media Design
Rebecca Steinebach currently works in a child and adolescent psychiatry. In addition, she takes care of the website of the association and the creation/design of the required forms etc.
Alexander Seifert
treasurer
Alexander Seifert works for a health insurance company and also works as a consultant in almost all situations, mainly in the area of senior citizens and spa advice. Before that he worked for Caritas for many years. Today he also works as a volunteer supervisor.
Peter Steinbach
board member
Peter Steinebach is a registered nurse and worked in a geriatric psychiatric ward in Switzerland until he retired. In addition, he was also a long volunteer for the cath. Church community Tengen active.
Isolde Selgrad
board member
Isolde Selgrad arbeitet als Sachbearbeiterin im Qualitätsmanagement eines Verkehrsverbundes. Zuvor war sie viele Jahre als Pfarrsekretärin in verschiedenen kath. Gemeinden tätig. Im Ehrenamt begleitet sie Familien mit dem seltenen CFC-Syndrom und ist bei einem Dienstleister für Menschen mit Behinderung aktiv.
Ulla Welte
board member
Ulla Welte has been volunteering at the Catholic Church for many years. Parish of Tengen.