Zimbabwe – South Africa
This article was originally published in the June 2019 edition of ITMI Monthly.
He saw something out his window that compelled him to pull over and stop.
Cozmore was driving home from another town to his city, Durbanville. What he saw was actually something you see often in South Africa, but still, Cozmore delayed his return home to alight his vehicle and get closer.
What did he see?
It was group of boys playing “football” (soccer). Cozmore loved to play soccer, so he asked the boys if he could play.
It turned out that the boys lived in an informal township which they called “kliphuewel”, meaning Stone Hill. After playing soccer with the boys, Cozmore saw their nearby shanty town. His compassion took over and he began regularly coming to Stone Hill to play sports with the boys.
ITMI's Charl van Wyk ministering among youth in Stone Hill.
Others joined. Women started reaching out to the girls offering crafts and activities. Local churches started donating mattresses. And the rest is history. Today the ministry at Stone Hill has grown to involve many, and has seen the fruit of changed lives.
After the ministry at Stone Hill took off, Cozmore, a Zimbabwean, legally was forced to return to his home country.
He and ITMI’s Charl van Wyk have partnered to reach out to a few remote villages in Zimbabwe.
They’ve offered gospel camps for the young men as well as a gospel camp for their parents, they’ve helped provide for local pastors and ministries by installing maize mills, they’ve helped a survivor of a croc attack get his painfully mangled leg amputated.
Youth from a Zimbabwean village at one of Charl and Cozmore's gospel camps.
Cozmore with his wife, Laizah and their daughter.
Recently, they supplied young girls in those villages with feminine hygiene products. Cozmore’s wife educated them on how to use the items supplied. This simple outreach will help prevent infection and the spread of disease in this impoverished place.
Charl called Cozmore the “father” of the thriving and fruitful ministry at Stone Hill. Now together with the help of generous supporters, they are seeking to demonstrate and declare the gospel in similar ways to a new group of people.
Steve Evers has advocated for and served the ITMI partners as ITMI Director since 2001. Approximately once a year, Steve visits with ITMI partners in their countries and brings stories back to encourage supporters. Steve enjoys photography and mechanics, (both hobbies that have greatly benefited ITMI partners!) Prior to becoming ITMI's Director, Steve served on the Board of Directors for 4 years. Steve lives in Arizona with his wife, Darlene.
