Cicone October 2026

We are grateful to share a glimpse of what God has been doing at Rafiki Village Tanzania during the past quarter. Through education, caring for children, studying God’s Word, serving our community, and equipping teachers, we have seen many opportunities to nurture lives and strengthen families. Thank you for praying, giving, and serving alongside us.

Sharing dinner under the mango tree with Short-term Missionary Tamara

Morning sun through the fruit trees

Morning devotions view

Rafiki School

This quarter, our students continued to grow in knowledge, character, and their understanding of God’s truth. Drawing on her knowledge of special education, our fellow missionary Amy has helped identify students who need additional learning support and has trained several of our teachers to serve these children more effectively. One child who had been significantly behind in reading has made notable progress since Amy began working with him and his resource teacher. We are grateful for this encouraging growth and for the teachers who faithfully guide each learner.

Orphan Care

We are excited to report that this fall, three Rafiki young adults will complete their tertiary education and begin living independently of Rafiki support. This is a new milestone for Rafiki Tanzania, and we celebrate God’s faithfulness as Aneth, John, and Hilda prepare for the next chapter of their lives.

Aneth will graduate with a diploma in business management. She is currently completing an internship and hopes to become a full-time employee soon.

John pursued a certificate in tourism this year. He is excited to graduate and apply his skills as a wonderful ambassador for Tanzania’s great natural beauty and wildlife.

Hilda fulfilled her dream of becoming a teacher by completing a certificate in Early Childhood Education with a focus on the Montessori method. This method is used in preschools run by the Lutheran Church. We pray that she will be a blessing to all her future students.

We also continue to support the ten young people who live at the Rafiki Village, providing a safe and loving home where they can learn, worship, develop practical skills, and grow toward greater independence. Our current residents have been working hard in school to prepare for their national exams. This year, we have one girl in the senior class and three in the sophomore class. All four will take their exams in October. The government moved the exam dates forward in anticipation of the El Niño rains predicted for this year. School will also end earlier, so everything we usually do in two months is now happening in one! We praise God for the caregivers and staff members who serve them with patience, wisdom, and consistency.

Our Rafiki orphans studying together for exams

Bible Study

The Rafiki Bible Study remains at the heart of the ministry. During this quarter, our study of the Book of Luke encouraged everyone from pre-kindergarten students to our national workers to look at how Jesus reveals Himself in this wonderfully detailed gospel written by a Gentile doctor. We were also challenged by the unbelief of the Jewish leaders who assumed they were “good” and did not need the salvation offered by Jesus. We pray that the Holy Spirit would work to apply these teachings to our lives. We are thankful that Rafiki has us set aside time every day to read Scripture together and to see biblical truth shaping our hearts and daily lives.

Secondary students acting out this week’s Bible lessons from Luke—Jesus before Pilate

Every morning, national workers meet to study the Word with John and Tekle

Outreach

Outreach continues to expand under the leadership of Rafiki Missionary Tekle Kumera. After several months of conversations, we signed a memorandum of understanding with the Anglican Church in northern Tanzania. Church leaders are excited to receive Bibles and use the Rafiki Bible Study in their English-medium schools. They are also considering sending some of their teachers to Rafiki for training in Bible and classical education. Additionally, John and Tekle met with leaders of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania (ELCT) in the Arusha Diocese and are working to build a relationship with them as well. We praise God for these new opportunities and pray that these partnerships will continue to grow and bear fruit.

It’s official! New Church partners in Tanzania

Rafiki Classical Christian Teacher Training

This July, we welcomed eleven unemployed teachers into the Rafiki Teachers College. The program in Tanzania differs from those at other Rafiki Villages because it serves teachers who already hold credentials to teach in Tanzania. In the mornings, the trainees work as assistants in the Rafiki Schools, learning from our experienced teachers and gaining practical insight into how the school system operates. In the afternoons, they complete coursework in classical teaching methods, Bible knowledge, English grammar and literature, and introductory art and music. We are blessed to have this new group join the teachers who arrived in January. The July cohort brings the enthusiasm of freshmen, while the earlier group has taken on the role of upperclassmen, introducing the newcomers to everything “Rafiki.” Alongside this expansion, we have worked with the Home Office to tailor the coursework more specifically toward teaching reading and literacy skills. In a country where English is often a second or third language, we are already seeing encouraging results from these additional courses in the Rafiki Teachers College curriculum.

The January cohort celebrating Gwen’s birthday

Ways to Pray

Give thanks for the official start of our partnership with the Anglican Church in northern Tanzania. Pray that the relationship with the Lutheran Diocese in Arusha will be formalized soon.
Pray for wisdom, strength, and courage for all the Rafiki Children during their school break. Pray also for graduates to make wise choices in their new places of education or work.
Pray for the teachers graduating next month to find employment in a Christian school. Pray that we will have another quality group of teachers join our training college in January 2027.

Thank You for Partnering with Us

Your partnership helps make each of these ministries possible. We are grateful for your faithful prayers and support as we seek to serve children, families, educators, churches, and communities for God’s glory.

Learn more about Rafiki’s expanding opportunities.

Visit our newly designed website RafikiFoundation.org to learn how to:

Purchase the Rafiki Bible Study for small groups for your church or neighborhood
Serve as a missionary with Rafiki
Sponsor a child with the Rafiki Foundation to bring God’s Word and the best education in the world to some of the neediest children in the world in Africa.

Explore the Rafiki Foundation YouTube channel.

Visit (youtube.com/@RafikiFoundation) for videos from Rafiki children, teaching at our annual Enrichment conferences, and the teaching at our African classical Christian conferences.