History

On November 24, 1964, Dr. Paul Earle Carlson was killed by Simba rebels in the Congolese city of Kisangani, then called Stanleyville. Dr. Carlson had served a six-month term in Congo in 1961 and was deeply affected by the Congolese people. In 1963 he returned as a career missionary with the Evangelical Covenant Church, bringing  his young family with him.The Congolese people welcomed them with great affection and with their own name for him: Monganga Polo -- Doctor Paul.

When the rebellion arose and his family was evacuated, Paul stayed behind to continue treating those in need. He was killed when rebel soldiers opened fire on a group of hostages in the public square in Kisangani just as Belgian forces in American warplanes arrived overhead. The grief at his loss was shared by the people he had loved and who had loved him, both in America and in Congo. He was buried in Karawa, site of the largest CEUM hospital; the hospital at Loko, newly acquired by the CEUM, was named after the beloved doctor.

Two years later his widow, Lois, and other friends and relatives formed the Paul Carlson Medical Program, with the goal of raising money to assist the medical system in northwest Congo where Paul had served. In 2002 it was reorganized as the Paul Carlson Partnership. In June 2004 the Congo Project was publicly launched, with three priority concerns: health, education, and poverty. Four years later, with the coming of executive director Byron Miller, the Partnership sharpened its focus on catalyzing sustainable communities in the face of deep poverty.

Learn more about Dr. Paul Carlson.

 

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