Lonii Finds His Calling | An Update from Tanzania
For the first four years of his life,
Lonii lived with his mother and father in his grandmother’s home in Tanzania. Soon after, his parents divorced and left his grandmother to take care of him. As she aged, it became increasingly difficult for her to provide for his needs.
Lonii’s grandmother eventually located his mother, and they were reunited. Sadly, less than a year later, his mother passed away. Lonii returned to live with his grandmother, who was now frail, ill, and incapable of providing him the care he needed.
Desperate for help, Lonii’s grandmother brought him to our team at Tanzania Children’s Rescue Center, hoping he could receive the care she wanted to give him but couldn’t.
Our team welcomed him in September of 2009, shortly before his grandmother passed away.
Lonii thrived at Tanzania Children’s Rescue Center.
He was introduced to Christ, committed his life to Him, and became a leader among the young men on campus.
He completed his education at Tanzania Children’s Rescue Center in 2017, and after additional schooling, he passed Tanzania’s national medical exams.
Lonii remembers a teacher who encouraged him to become a doctor when he was a child. She spoke to him about his strengths and helped him realize he was well-suited for a career in medicine. Another teacher began showing him biographies of doctors who had overcome great hardship in life.
When doctors would visit the medical center on campus from hospitals in the city, Lonii was excited to tell them his dreams of becoming a doctor.
Lonii is now interning with physicians at a large hospital in Tanzania.
He plans to select a medical specialty soon and will complete more schooling and training.
Lonii expressed—
“Someday, I would like to come back and work in the city of Mwanza, so I can have the chance to serve at the small medical clinic located on the [Tanzania Children’s Rescue Center] campus.”
Lonii also shared a message to those who generously give to help make stories like this possible—
“God’s servants and people are making it possible for me to achieve what I want to achieve. My success doesn’t belong to me alone; it belongs to all of us.”
What a bright future Lonii has, representing Christ in the field of medicine across Tanzania. Thank you for being part of his story!
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