When the Black Methodists for Church Renewal adopted "Harambee" as the central theme for its annual conference for ethnic United Methodist youth, the organizations choice of the Swahili word for gathering and pulling together embodied a message that resonates to this day.

The Southeastern Jurisdiction of the BMCR held its 2017 Harambee Youth Conference at Claflin University June 22-29, bringing together more than 180 youth who engaged in spiritual enlightenment and learning more about The United Methodist Church.

We are celebrating the 20th anniversary of Harambee, and this is the fifth year Claflin has hosted the conference, said Reverend Dawn Hand, program coordinator of the event. The conference is a religious experience that provides youth an opportunity to examine their Christian faith, learn leadership qualities and have open and honest discussions about life in a fun and relaxing environment.

The Southeastern Jurisdiction comprises seven states -- Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia. Many representatives from The United Methodist Churchs 14 general agencies also attend the conference to inspire and encourage the participants during their journey to greater spiritual awareness. The general agencies provide essential services and ministries to more than 14 million United Methodists worldwide, including a common vision, mission and ministry for the entire global church.

Claflin is pleased to help Harambee celebrate a significant milestone, President Henry N. Tisdale said. It is consistent with the universitys proud affiliation with The United Methodist Church.

One of the many reasons we enjoy coming to Claflin is that the largest number of Black United Methodists are in South Carolina, Hand said. We also receive tremendous support from the university and the campus community.

The schedule of conference activities included workshops on health and wellness, building relationships, worship services and athletic competition. Participants performed songs, inspirational dances, drama presentations and recited poetry at a talent show on the final day. All counselors and Harambee planning team members are volunteers and several students who are Black College Fund Lina H. McCord Summer Interns work to make the ministry a success.

Harambee reinforces the relationship between The United Methodist Church and the 11 historically black colleges and universities -- including Claflin -- that are supported by the UMCs Black College Fund, said Dr. Roosevelt Ratliff, assistant vice president for academic affairs who serves as Claflins coordinator for Harambee.

In addition to encouraging these youth to become leaders in their schools and communities, we want to inspire them to continue their education after high school. We make them aware of UNCF (United Negro College Fund) and other scholarship programs. Claflin has enrolled a significant number of students who participated in Harambee."

According to Helen Allen, who has served as SEJ Harambee coordinator for the last five years, more than 4,500 youth have participated in the SEJ-BMCR Youth Harambee during the programs 20-year history.

We shared video testimonials at this years event and we heard how lives have been changed, life-long relationships have been forged and closer relationships with God have resulted for this program, Allen said.

Among the events key supporters is Africa University, which is located in Zimbabwe. Founded in 1988 and chartered four years later, Africa University is the first and only accredited institution of higher learning established on the African continent by action of the General Conference of The United Methodist Church. Additional resources from The United Methodist Women, who awarded scholarships for several female youth; The Black College Fund; the Board of Discipleship/Ministries with Young People and United Methodist Communications all contributed to the success of this years Harambee.

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Harambee Youth Conference draws more than 180 to Claflin - The Tand D.com