Thierry Mutombo and the Africa Central Area

The first black Area President in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints will be Joseph W. Stati. He will also be the first president of the Afeica Central Area and will be running it from a city where he and his wife and children were the first full family to join the Church back in 1986 and he was the first stake president.

President Sitati's 2nd counselor in the area presidency will be Thierry Mutombo from DR Congo, who may not have yet been replaced as mission president in Baltimore. Elder Mutombo also was baptized in 1986, but was only 10 as opposed to Elder Sitati who was 34 when baptized. Note that Elder Dube was baptized first of the four black African general authorities but Elder Sitati is the oldest.

Elder Mutombo was a fulltime Church et employee. I believe he was a materials manager and then human resource manager and then family history manager. In the last position he not only oversaw records acquisition but also a,very aggresive oral history program to gather village oral histories going deep into the bush where missionaries have not yet gone.

This will be the first area with a majority African presidency. Running it in Kenya with a Jenyan in charge will move thinks forward a lot. Most recently Elder Sitati was a counselor in the Africa West Area where outreach has accelerated a lot more than in Africa southeast that central is split from. Hopefully Rlder Sutati will bring some outreach acceleration to Africa Cental Area.

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