Jean Niyondiko 09/01/2022
Description
Jean Niyondiko, pastor of Unbound Church in Edmond, Oklahoma, talks about growing up in a large family in Burundi. He describes moving to Bujumbura to earn a psychology degree and his work rehabilitating child soldiers before eventually pursuing ministry full-time. He discusses moving to Oklahoma to earn a master's degree in theology at Oklahoma Christian University after his family was forced to leave Burundi. Niyondiko talks about how he ended up serving the African diaspora in the Oklahoma City metropolitan area through his ministry work and through his collaboration with the Spero Project, a nonprofit organization that works with resettled refugees in Oklahoma City. As a community leader, he describes some of the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic such as translating and providing accurate public health information and advocating for following safety protocols like masking and social distancing. He also describes some of the positive outcomes of the pandemic like providing native language church services and resources to a global audience through online video conferencing tools.
| Date(s) | 9/1/2022 |
| Call Number | C19_035 |
| Subjects | Immigrant populations, Employment opportunities, Child Soldier Project COVID-19 (Disease)--Social aspects, COVID-19 Pandemic (2020-), Education, Faith, Interviews, Leadership--Religious aspects--Christianity, Refugees--Services for |
| Interviewee(s) | Jean Niyondiko |
| Interviewer(s) | Patrick Daglaris |