The United Methodist Church has a deep historic connection to the continent of Africa. The New York Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church, of which Asbury church is a part, has strong ongoing Africa. Our own congregation has been connected to Africa in some very special ways. In 2004 two of our members participated in a mission trip to Ghana. Out of that journey came a special connection with a woman, Caroline Ross, living in a refugee camp for displaced Liberians. Caroline suffered from a disfiguring congenital condition. Through the efforts of one of our mission team members she came to the United States and has had a series of major surgeries to correct this condition. In the process she has become a part of the Asbury church family. A number of church families are immigrants or refugees from Africa, and to their life experience we have come to be touched very deeply by the agony in the hope of the people of Africa. This congregation also joins with all United Methodist congregations in its active and ongoing support of Africa University in Zimbabwe.