The death of our dear friend, colleague and brother in Christ was sudden and sad. I’m still not able to write about it, but think about him and miss him every day. He was the Executive Secretary and Board member of ECIP (Evangelical Covenant International Partners) the umbrella organization under which we Covenant, Free Church, Encompass and other missionaries work in Cameroon. He was also the Administrative Officer for RFIS. Aleta Danforth very kindly came for a couple days on short notice to help me sort through papers and help me figure out what he was working on that needed immediate attention. He loved work, and served the missionary and school communities with joy.
Following is the blog Aleta wrote in his honor…
Norbert, peace to his memory
Norbert Tchounkeu, a smiling husband and father of 3 teenagers, passed away last week, after a sudden and very short sickness out of the blue. He was the go-to guy for all things administrative for our missions and mostly for RFIS/Rainforest International School (jr./high school). He took care of everything from ID cards to electric bills. He knew people in so many offices and handled the red tape for too many things to count. The staff at RFIS is reeling at the shockingly sudden loss of a friend and colleague, and floundering at how to cover what he did and even to understand and know what all that was! This loss comes on the heels of the medical evacuation of teacher, Julia Baker, and counselor/chaplain Mark Kato.
Please pray for Norbert’s family, for the staff at RFIS – especially for Lois A., director, and Janet Z, our Covenant missions person who will be the front-line people for sorting out all the tasks at hand. Please pray for healing for Julia and Mark. Pray that this OVERLOAD right now at RFIS be manageable and that God’s presence be felt in an encouraging way.
We give thanks that there are SIL/Wycliffe mission colleagues and even our buddy, Moses, the taxi driver, who will help in many ways in the coming days of transition.
Do not worry about anything, but pray and ask God for everything you need, always giving thanks. And God’s peace, which is so great we cannot understand it, will keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Phil 4:6-7
