For the next six months, Riverland Hills Church in Columbia, will be sponsoring a Somali Bantu family as 120 Bantu are resettled into the Columbia area.

Currently, Riverland Hills is providing an apartment, food, utensils, clothing and other basic necessities for the family of six. Also, a ministry team from the church is spending time with the family to help them learn about life in the United States.

"We hope the family will be self-supporting after six months. After six months we will evaluate our level of involvement," Ed Carney, Riverland Hills Church pastor, said.

In preparing for the Bantu family to arrive in Columbia, the Riverland Hills ministry team met, planned, prayed and learned about Bantu culture and lifestyle. The primary language for Bantu people is Af May, so there is a major language barrier for the ministry team. However, often an interpreter is on site to help, and each of the family members are working hard to learn English, according to Carney.

Some church members have received training in teaching English as a Second Language and will be teaching English classes four days a week.

Lutheran Family Services, also located in Columbia, invited Riverland Hills Church to be involved with the Somali Bantu resettlement. Also, the South Carolina Baptist Convention and the Lexington Association have partnered with Riverland Hills to help minister to the Bantu families arriving in Columbia.

A typical day for the Bantu families after coming to South Carolina includes making appointments for Social Security cards, immunizations and orientations. "They are cooking, shopping, practicing English and visiting other Somali Bantu that are here," Carney said.

The Somali Bantu refugees are from Somalia, which is on the eastern coast of Africa. For years the Somali Bantu people have faced persecution and needed to resettle as a means of protection. Currently there are approximately 300 Somali Bantu people living in the United States, mainly in metropolitan areas such as Atlanta, Ga.*

''This is a great opportunity to live out the Great Commission and to love and welcome others just as Jesus did," Carney said. "Our lives have already been impacted by meeting the family. We want to help them and to provide a Christian witness."

Three other Columbia area Baptist churches, Three Rivers Church, First Church Irmo and Lexington Church, are currently preparing to sponsor a family when they arrive.

For more information, contact the Missions Mobilization Group, SC Baptist Convention, at (800) 723-7242, extension 5600 or email gloriashull@scbaptist.org.

*Information gathered from www.culturalorientation.net/bantu.