Good Shepherd Educational Foundation
Imagine being a young boy caring for your family’s cattle along with other young boys from other families in the village. Suddenly you hear gunfire and know that your family’s worst fears have come true. Your village is under attack from militia sponsored by the Muslim government. You know that you must flee with all the other boys. You run and head east to Ethiopia, which is over 500 miles away. You have nothing but the clothes on your back. You see your friends die of exhaustion, hunger, disease and predators; and wonder, why God has spared you. From Ethiopia you end up in the Kakuma refugee camp in Kenya. You have no idea what has happened to your family or village, but you cling to your faith in God’s love, mercy and goodness. This is part of John Chol Daau’s Story. You can read the full story in John’s book, God’s Refugee: The Story of a Lost Boy Pastor, co-authored with Lilly Sanders Ubbens.
A couple of decades ago, God gave John a vision to take back his country for Jesus. He would do this through Christian education, peace building and reconciliation. Now, the Reverend John Chol Daau’s vision has become a reality in the form of Good Shepherd Academy and Seminary. Good Shepherd is established in Juba, the capital city of South Sudan.
I was privileged to meet John while he attended seminary at Trinity Anglican School for Ministry near Pittsburgh. My wife, who is an Anglican Priest, had previously met him, while he was a refugee at the Kakuma refugee camp in Kenya. John loves Jesus with his whole being. John is a leader. He has followed a calling to become a priest. As we got to know him, we had the opportunity to travel to Sudan in 2009 and visit his hometown near Bor, which he had not seen since he had fled as a “lost boy,” almost 20 years previously. During that trip, we provided humanitarian care and teaching to about 60 church leaders.
While we were visiting, John shared that the people of the town were confused as to why he would want to come back “home.” They recognized that he was educated, lived in Kenya and had friends from the US. They recognized that they had nothing. John simply said, “You are my people.” He then shared his vision with our team to take back his country for Jesus through reconciliation, peace building and education. As an attorney, I began to research what it would take to start Good Shepherd as a US nonprofit as well as advise John on how to develop the African entity that would become a school. In 2011, South Sudan became an independent nation. It took us a few years to put together the corporate structures. In the meantime, John was developing partnerships and building networks.
Since that time John has married a wonderful, wise and godly woman named Sarah and they have 5 sons. John’s initial vision was to begin a seminary, but Sarah encouraged him to start with children, so Good Shepherd Academy was born and is the primary focus of the current ministry. College and seminary classes are currently provided on an ad hoc basis through Good Shepherd College and Seminary. Additionally, John has sponsored several peacebuilding and reconciliation cohorts with South Sudanese leaders. John was able to procure land in Juba and through fundraising, we have built buildings for classrooms, a chapel and new guest house. There is space for athletic fields and additional campus growth.
South Sudan is a country in which 60% of men and 71% of women are illiterate. Good Shepherd Academy equally educates boys and girls. We currently have 567 students through 10th grade and many more on a waiting list. We plan to add additional classes for 11th and 12th grade in the next couple of years. Our goal is to maximize Good Shepherd Academy with 800 students and 40 teachers. We have a vision to expand the number of classrooms to accommodate more students and ultimately provide space for more permanent college level and seminary classes. We currently have 26 teachers (over 40 total staff members). In addition to education, we encourage micro-economy through sewing classes.
Good Shepherd was able to drill a bore hole, which reduced the cost of bringing in water, which was not always safe, and supplies water not only for the school, but for many people in the surrounding neighborhood. Having a safe and reliable water supply is crucial to provide for the needs of the students and staff, but also to make construction possible. As we expand, we pray that God will provide additional staffing and supplies.
Students come from 9 of the 10 states of South Sudan and come from more than half of the tribes. (Unfortunately, tribalism is a very real challenge. However, the Gospel of Jesus Christ is breaking through that challenge at Good Shepherd). Additionally, we educate children from Muslim homes. Peace building and reconciliation are realities!
Good Shepherd has received accolades as one of the top schools in the country, as its students excel on government tests. Our students have competed on debate teams and math contests at the national level. To round out the students’ educational experiences, the school is also starting athletic teams and providing drama opportunities.
Our annual operating budget is about $120,000. And we have been blessed by generous donors who provide the costs of capital expenditures, in addition to the day-to-day operating expenses. The annual cost for one child’s tuition and meals is about $250 with an additional $100 for school uniforms. Many of the children rely on Good Shepherd to fully feed and clothe them. One of the little things that John has done is to purchase food from a Muslim business owner. Reverend John and his staff are excellent stewards of the resources that are provided.
Also, our new guest house is being finalized so that we can safely accommodate guest staff and visitors and reduce that ongoing expense. This will allow John to have a safe place to stay when he is on site. In the past, he has had to find accommodations which have not always been sanitary or safe, and his body has been racked with malaria, typhoid and other diseases.
In the next few years, we specifically hope to expand the campus by building 4 additional classrooms. This would cost about $100,000. We would also like to expand the space above the Chapel to add additional rooms at a cost of about $60,000. Finally, by 2030, we would like to renovate existing structures to accommodate additional floors, so that Good Shepherd College and Seminary might be able to run in concurrence with Good Shepherd Academy.
Good Shepherd’s Main website is: gs-ef.org. The media page provides additional links to learn more. You can also follow this link for a wonderful video from about 5 years ago, to hear about John’s vision and see how far Good Shepherd has come.
GSEF US Board Members:
Barb Nelson, President
David Edelstein, Vice President
Stephen Lazarus, Secretary
Suzanne McGehee, Treasurer
Danielle Iman, Communications
Faith McDonnell
Catherine Vercaemert
Nick Storm, Founding President
Good Shepherd is uniquely positioned to provide Christian based education to the future leaders of South Sudan. We are developing citizens who bring stability to their communities. We are developing honest leaders, and people who love God and love their neighbors. Our alumni are actively implementing their learnings from Good Shepherd across South Sudan to bring unity, reconciliation, peace and hope. Good Shepherd is spreading the gospel in South Sudan.
Rev. John Chol Daau was a MAP (Mission Awareness Presentation) Talk speaker at the 2019 New Wineskins Global Mission Conference, where he shared how he and Lilly Sanders Ubben collaborated to write God's Refugee: the story of a terrible war, a lost boy, and a remarkable God. This is a story that helped establish Good Shepherd Academy. In the videos below, hear from Rev. John Chol Daau about the impact of New Wineskins Global Mission Conferences and listen to Rev. John’s MAP Talk from the 2019 New Wineskins Conference!
Nick Storm has been following Jesus for about 40 years. He is a practicing attorney and has recently retired from a 30-year legal and human resource career with Alcoa (the global aluminum company). He has been an active lay leader in his local parish and diocese. Nick and his wife Elaine, who is an Anglican priest, planted Mosaic Anglican Church in 2011. They have 4 children and currently 4 grandchildren. They were blessed to go on a teaching and humanitarian mission trip to Sudan in 2009, where the dream of Good Shepherd was introduced to Nick by The Reverend John Chol Daau, who is a former lost boy of Sudan. Nick helped John make Good Shepherd a reality, and he currently sits on the board.
