This is an alert about and an invitation to this Saturday’s African Soiree to benefit the United Front Against Riverblindness,  founded by Lawrence resident Daniel Shungu, who has an amazing story — he took early retirement from Merck to “give back” to his home country, the Democratic Republic of Congo.

My church, Princeton United Methodist, sent a mission team to the Congo in 2008. That was the year we had four (count ’em 4!) fundraisers including the “first annual” African Soiree.

Here, a picture of the bountiful feast — the multi-course home-cooked African and American dinner prepared by volunteers — a major feature of the African Soirée. On Saturday, March 19, it starts 5  p.m.(doors open at 4:30 p.m.) at the  Mackay Campus Center of Princeton Theological Seminary, 64 Mercer St. Princeton NJ. Tickets are $70 per adult and $35 per child at www.riverblindness.org. For free parking, enter from College Road.

At the Soiree you can shop at the “African Market,” bid on exciting auction items, and get an update on the progress of the UFAR mission by Dr. Shungu. If you’ve attended in the past, you know how much fun it is — Thursday is not too late to get tickets. 

In 2008 to get support for the mission trip, adults and kids from PUMC acted out what it means to be blind in the Congo — where riverblindness ruins two lives, the adult who is blind and the child who must leave school to lead the adult with a pole. This photo shows how we marched through Communiversity with children leading adults to bring the message “$10 saves 7 people from going blind.”

Every year since then UFAR sets up a table at Communiversity in front of the church. Look for them on April 17 on Nassau and Vandeventer at  “the friendly church on the corner.” .