{"id":12183,"date":"2026-08-27T15:30:25","date_gmt":"2026-08-27T15:30:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.relufa.org\/?p=12183"},"modified":"2026-08-27T15:33:10","modified_gmt":"2026-08-27T15:33:10","slug":"presbyterian-church-u-s-a-s-young-adult-volunteer-program-takes-root-in-cameroon-preparing-a-new-generation-for-service-and-social-impact","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.relufa.org\/fr\/programs\/presbyterian-church-u-s-a-s-young-adult-volunteer-program-takes-root-in-cameroon-preparing-a-new-generation-for-service-and-social-impact\/","title":{"rendered":"Presbyterian church (U.S.A.)\u2019s Young Adult Volunteer program takes root in Cameroon, preparing a new generation for service and social impact"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A new chapter in youth service and community engagement is growing in Cameroon. The Young Adult Volunteer (YAV) Program,  is strengthening its work in the country through its partnership with the Network for the Fight Against Hunger in Cameroon (RELUFA).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The program gives young adults the opportunity to spend a year serving, learning, and growing. During this time, they will work with local partners and engage with communities while contributing to efforts that address social challenges.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In July 2026, four young Cameroonians joined the YAV Program and began their year of service and learning. Through their work with RELUFA, they will gain new skills, build professional experience, and contribute to initiatives that support vulnerable and marginalized communities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This experience is not only about serving others. It is also about learning, building relationships, and preparing young people to make a positive difference in their communities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Young Adult Volunteers engage in learning and team-building activities<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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our resource person Rev.Bih Loveline Anyeh Teaching <\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Preparing volunteers to serve with purpose<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

To prepare the volunteers for their year of service, RELUFA organized a five-day retreat from 10 to 14 August 2026<\/strong> at its headquarters in Yaound\u00e9 under the theme \u201cCaring for Ourselves and for Others.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The retreat helped the young volunteers understand their roles and responsibilities. It also gave them time to reflect on their personal growth and build stronger relationships. Most importantly, it helped them see how they can contribute to addressing challenges in their communities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The program combined reflection, learning sessions, team-building activities, discussions, and practical exercises.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From the opening day, participants engaged in activities focused on connection, self-care, care for others, and understanding the purpose of the YAV experience. An orientation session also introduced the goals and objectives of the program and explored the role of young adult volunteers and the potential impact of their work on communities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Understanding what it means to volunteer<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of the key learning moments came during a session led by Christiane Magnido, who shared experiences from volunteer and learning initiatives in Cameroon. The session encouraged participants to think deeply about their motivations for volunteering and the responsibilities that come with service.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Participants reflected on an important question: Why do we volunteer?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The discussion highlighted that volunteering is not simply about giving time. It can also be an opportunity to learn, develop skills, build relationships, understand community realities, and contribute to positive change.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Participants were encouraged to approach their volunteer experience intentionally by identifying what they want to learn, what they can contribute, and how they can grow through their responsibilities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The discussion also explored the relationship between volunteerism, professional growth, and social justice. Volunteers were reminded of the importance of professionalism, reliability, competence, trustworthiness, and commitment when working with communities and organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From assistance to social justice<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A major lesson from the retreat was the importance of looking beyond immediate problems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While responding to people’s immediate needs is important, sustainable change also requires addressing the deeper causes of social challenges. This means moving from immediate assistance to empowerment and, ultimately, social justice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This approach is closely connected to RELUFA’s longstanding work. Since 2001, RELUFA has worked to address the systemic causes of hunger and poverty, protect community livelihood sources, and support peace advocacy, trauma healing, and relief for people affected by conflict.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For the young volunteers, this creates an opportunity to understand that meaningful service is not only about helping people in the present but also about contributing to solutions that can create lasting change.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Young Adult Volunteers and facilitators <\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Christiane Magnido facilitates a session <\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Learning through teamwork and experience<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The retreat also emphasized that learning does not happen only in formal sessions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Participants took part in survival challenges, memory games, charades, role plays, and other team building activities designed to strengthen communication, creativity, cooperation, problem solving, and group cohesion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The official retreat program includes team building and morale-boosting activities, learning sessions with experienced facilitators, discussions on social justice, skills exchange, and reflections on personal growth and continued impact.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These activities provided the volunteers with opportunities to learn from one another while developing skills that will be useful throughout their year of service.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Investing in young people for lasting impact<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The YAV experience in Cameroon is not only about placing young people in service positions. It is about creating an environment where they can serve, learn, reflect, develop professionally, and grow as responsible members of society.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The program recognizes that young volunteers can contribute meaningfully to communities while also gaining experiences that can shape their future career paths.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As the four young Cameroonian volunteers begin their year of service, they carry with them a responsibility to listen to communities, learn from local realities, contribute their skills, and serve with humility and purpose.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For RELUFA, hosting the YAV international site is also an opportunity to strengthen youth engagement in the fight against hunger, poverty, inequality, and other challenges affecting vulnerable communities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The retreat’s broader message is clear: when young people are equipped with knowledge, skills, compassion, and a commitment to service, they can become important actors in creating positive social change.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The YAV Program’s presence in Cameroon therefore represents more than a volunteer placement. It is an investment in a generation being prepared to serve with purpose, lead with compassion, and contribute to lasting social impact.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

About the YAV Program and RELUFA<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Young Adult Volunteer Program is a ministry of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) that provides young adults aged 20 to 30 with opportunities to engage in mission alongside local partners through immersion in professional environments. In Cameroon, RELUFA hosts the YAV international site. RELUFA has worked since 2001 to address systemic causes of hunger and poverty, advocate for the protection of community livelihoods, and contribute to peace advocacy, trauma healing, and relief for people affected by conflict.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Together, the partnership is creating space for young people to learn, serve, and contribute to a more caring and just society.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The final day photo of the staff and YAVs<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A new chapter in youth service and community engagement is growing in Cameroon. The Young Adult Volunteer (YAV) Program,  is […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":12206,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[128,37],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12183","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-peace-advocacy-and-relief","category-programs"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.relufa.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12183","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.relufa.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.relufa.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.relufa.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.relufa.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12183"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.relufa.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12183\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12214,"href":"https:\/\/www.relufa.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12183\/revisions\/12214"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.relufa.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/12206"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.relufa.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12183"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.relufa.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12183"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.relufa.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12183"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}