Emmaus Outreach Center (EOC) – The Order of Friars Minor Capuchins Cameroon
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The Emmaus Outreach Centre (EOC), Bamenda, is a centre that caters for the mentally impaired and homeless persons. It reaches out to those who have been marginalised by their families and by the society, in most cases because of mental disabilities. It is a place of welcome, friendship and support. It stands as a witness to the Gospel values that we preach. Remember that Jesus reached out continually to people in need, some of whom were mentally disturbed like the man living in the cemetery in the country of the Gerasenes (cf. Lk 8:26).

Our society largely neglects, rejects or scorns the mentally impaired persons, even to the extent of blaming them for their own conditions. Unfortunately such non-Christian attitudes abound in our society. The EOC helps to break down these non-Christian attitudes.

Brief history of the EOC

The EOC was initiated in the year 1997 by a Saint Patrick missionary priest, Reverend Fr. Byrne Brian, living and serving in the Archdiocese of Bamenda in fulfilling the Catholic Church’s mission of evangelization. After formally proposing to the then Archbishop Paul Verdzekov (of Blessed memory) his project of setting up an Emmaus Outreach Centre – Bamenda, the Archbishop accorded his consent and approval for setting up such a centre to fulfil the Gospel of Christ by meeting the needs of the homeless and dejected persons of the society. This Centre is for Christian Charity not a profit making organization. With the help of his Mother house back in his country, he ran the EOC till August 2005 when he was transferred from Bamenda Town to Bafmeng. He then solicited the help of the Order of Friars Minor Capuchins (OFM Cap.) living and working in the Archdiocese of Bamenda to take over the charitable apostolate. The OFM Cap. willingly accepted to continue with this apostolate because it was in line with their main charism – to welcome the lepers of our time – as St. Francis of Assisi our Founder welcomed and embraced the lepers of his time.

The EOC project was a personal initiative of Fr. Brain Byrne, but upon taking over from him by the OFM Cap. and being also in accord with the then Archbishop of Bamenda, His Grace Paul Verdzekov, it was made clear that the EOC is a project of the Archdiocese of Bamenda under the direct care of the OFM Cap.

This project started in rented houses till the time of the handing over from Fr. Brain to the OFMCap. Since the population did not want these people to live close to them, and the cost of renting houses kept increasing as a way of exploitation of the situation, we then turned to the government for help and we were given this land that is outside the residence of the population and not far from the town, for these people love going out to the streets in town. In 2007 with the help of our missionary brothers and some benefactors mostly from Italy, the centre was constructed in the new site above GBHS Down-Town Bamenda, where we are presently.

The mentally impaired persons living in EOC are called Residents and those staying and helping them are called Assistances. Presently, we have 20 Residents, with two Assistances, 3 workers and the Director, a Capuchin Brother, Fr. Pascal Fomonyuy OFMCap.. In the centre we assure the feeding of the Residents, they have their rooms to sleep, they have good water supply and there is a psychiatric nurse who follow each case. Many have come here in the past years and were healed and went back home. Some have gone and come back again since Psychotic disorders are so complex and you cannot claim to treat it once and for all. Some are off and on. It takes a very long time and some are for life. Some of the residents were brought here by charity groups with no information about their family background. These ones have become permanent members of EOC because they have nowhere to go after their treament. Some have even died in the centre. We buried some and some families took back their relatives to bury. Some families bring the brothers or sisters to us who are sick, we also invite some that we see on the streets or we provide them with something to eat on the streets. Some sick persons come by themselves.

The EOC, is a complex reality that live only from charity. For now we have no income generating activity to support the EOC. Thanks to our Missionary Brothers for their help and support through their benefactors abroad who are very much interestd with the idea of the centre. With the passage of time, the missionary brothers are getting old and the number coming to Cameroon has greatly dropped. The funding of this charitable activity has greatly dropped. This also is due to the current COVIT 19 pandemic and the socio-political crisis in the North West and South West Regions (Anglophone crisis) of Cameroon.

With the current Anglophone crisis, many people have been calling the centre with so many traumatised cases. There is also so much drug abuse amongst the young and calls keep coming for more help and a place to keep these affected brethren.

Our major setback for now is the presence of the DDR centre very close to the EOC. The ex-combatants are very free and so, some of the Residents turn to follow them and sometimes, smoke. We need a strong fence that can keep the centre very secured.

We have a big land for farming and so we have engaged ourselves in farming so as to support the centre with fresh food from our farm. We intend to extend the farm and even to keep some animals. Some of the Residents are willing to work and others are not just ready to do anything. Our vision now is to buy less vegetables and to cultivate much using natural manure and less chemicals.

Because of insecurity around the Town of Bamenda now due to the anglophone crisis we prepared some personal batches for the Residents to help them as they move around in town.

The water situation of the centre is relatively stable. The centre is enjoying a constant water supply from the hill of the centre. Some maintenance work is needed to be done in the water catchment areas. Our neighbours depend on us for water and so if there is no strict control it may not be enough for us and for them. Our sources of water have greatly reduced and the demand from the outside community is really high. We are looking forward to work more on our water sources for next year. The demand this year is really high. The population around the centre is depending on us for water during the difficult moment of the dry season.

Other foreseen works to be done in the EOC are:

the road at the main entrance to the centre is very bad and needs serious repairs at the beginning of the raining season.

Levelling of some places and planting of flowers and grass in the centre to make the place beautiful, welcoming and a good place to live in.

The beds and the rooms of the Residents need to be arranged. Lots of repair works is needed.

The centre is in need of a good car for running its activities.

I render thanks to all the Capuchin brothers especially in the missionary centre in Milano and the benefactors who have been helping us all this while in the centre. May God bless you.

Br. Pascal FOMOMNYUY OFMCap.

Tel: 654 785 224

Director Emmaus Outreach centre