The Kinderhaus Saron of the Moravian Church in Paramaribo, Suriname, will celebrate its 115th anniversary on September 27, 2025. The Surinamese TV station “STVS – De Nationale Zender” took this occasion to interview Marcel Leune, director of the foundation, for eleven minutes. Click here. to watch the video in Dutch. Marcel Leune explains that the celebrations, including a church service on the children's home grounds, a reunion for former residents, and a children's and sports festival, will last for exactly two weeks. The Saron Children's Home on Schlangenhautstraße in the center of the state capital (only about one kilometer from the Suriname River), founded by the Moravian Mission, has 40 places for children between the ages of 6 and 18 who do not have a stable home life. The interview mentions the good relationships between the children and young people and the educators, the Christian character of the home, and many wonderful educational successes.

On 10 August 2025, a festival for all children attending Sunday school in the congregation was held in the indoor facilities and large outdoor grounds of the Moravian Church's youth centre in Paramaribo, Suriname, as part of the annual ‘Herrnhut Month’ in August. The theme was ‘You will be my witnesses.’ See here. The festival commemorated the children's revival in the old Herrnhut on 17 August 1727. The children of the ‘Friedrich Stahelin School’ also celebrated their annual children's festival on this Sunday in the wooden ‘Große Stadtkirche’ (Great City Church) in Paramaribo. Pictures here, several videos here. The best children from the various schools of the Moravian Church were awarded prizes and honoured with flowers for their achievements during the last school term. Davina Pengel, member of the parents' committee, was also honoured for her commitment. Football player Maycheal van der San presented the awards. Many pictures here.

Hendrik Van Leesten, Candice Doornkamp and Magalie Oldenstam, three young people from the William Severinus Richenel Ritfeldschool in Paramaribo, Suriname, took part in the final round of the Surinamese Mathematics Olympiad on 1 and 2 August 2025. See here. The Olympiad has been organised since 2013 by the Surinamese Association of Mathematics and Arithmetic Teachers and consists of several qualifying rounds. Last year, around 1,700 pupils took part in the first round and 89 of them reached the final round. As part of the school foundation's annual career discovery days, young people from the Adolf Theodor Pengelschool in Bersaba visited the technical facilities of the Surinamese water supply company SWM. See here. Before the visit, no one wanted to pursue a career in water management, but afterwards many of the young people said they could imagine working for SWM.

On 18 August 2025, Hesli Pansa announced on Facebook that he was stepping down as head of the City Mission of the Moravian Church in Paramaribo, Suriname, the most important institution of the Moravian Church in the country, which was founded 156 years ago and is active in a wide range of evangelical and social welfare work. See here. He writes: "Ecclesiastes 3 makes it clear to us: Everything has its time. There is a time to come and a time to go. My time to go has now come. After several years of working in God's vineyard, the City Mission, God has now called me to serve elsewhere. This step was not easy, but I am taking it after prayer and fasting. It has been a joy to serve you as head of the City Mission. In my work, I have come to know God as a God who never changes in his faithfulness. To you, my dear brothers and sisters, I would like to say that we Christians are to be salt and light in the world. I wish you God's rich blessings." A video showing Hesli Pansa recently giving a sermon can be found here.

Getting children ready for primary school is a priority in many villages in the vast tropical interior of Suriname. Primary school lessons in Suriname are taught in Dutch. However, this is not usually the mother tongue of the young children. Most of the children grew up speaking Sranan. With the support of the Zeister Zendingsgenootschap, the Dutch sister organisation of the Herrnhuter Missionshilfe, a preschool education project has therefore been running for ten years – and is now starting again for eight children – in the village of Nieuw Aurora on the Suriname River, led by local teachers Shirley and Persis. A picture can be found here. A short video can be found here. Nieuw Aurora has a small airstrip in the rainforest, otherwise the village is only accessible by boat on the river. Around 2,000 people live here, most of whom belong to the Saramaccan people.

The Dutch platform Dutch Health Hub recently featured Herman Jintie, who has been head of the Medical Mission in Suriname (Medische Zending – Primary Health Care) since 2019, on its website. For more than 250 years, this organisation has been providing reliable healthcare in remote villages in the tropical interior of Suriname with 52 ambulances. Two groups of people live here: the indigenous inhabitants and the Maroons (i.e. the descendants of escaped African slaves). Herman Jintie comes from Commewijne, not far from Paramaribo. His parents were simple farmers. He actually wanted to become an economist, but had to drop out of university due to a lack of money. A friend advised him to work in healthcare. While still in training, he worked at the psychiatric centre in Suriname and then rose through the ranks to his current position as director. You can find out more about him and the organisation he heads here.

"The biggest challenge for the Medical Mission in Suriname (Medische Zending - Primary Health Care) is achieving its strategic goals for the period 2025–2027. This was recently emphasized by its director, Herman Jintie, to Amar Ramadhin, Suriname's Minister of Health. He continued: “Making plans is easy, but we have to fill the plans with life, and that requires commitment, a lot of resources, and good cooperation.” The director did not hide the problems: “We cannot do the work alone.” The strategic plan is closely linked to the actions of the Ministry of Health, Welfare, and Sport, which often falls short of its promises, especially with regard to improving health care in the interior of Suriname. Logistical and personnel problems are still the order of the day there. More in Dutch in the Suriname Herald here.

The youth center of the Moravian Church in Paramaribo, Suriname, recently reported on two major youth events held on its premises and large grounds. The National Youth Conference on Saturday, July 19, 2025, was described as an inspiring day that brought together 30 committed youth leaders from several Surinamese Moravian churches. There was intensive discussion about the future of church work with children and young people, and groups drew up a plan for the next five years. A new youth board and various committees were also elected. 28 pictures here. Immediately after the conference, the youth of Paramaribo were invited to another nightly Power Hour (praise hour). The theme of the balmy night was All White Praise Party. There was song and music by Raff Chanco & The Musical Youth of God. Also present were Eugene Main and Kennia Domini. A 40-minute video here. 42 photos here. More music here.

For the fourth time, members of the Dutch armed forces provided medical assistance in the interior of Suriname. The online forum waterkant.net reported on June 30, 2025: "Two women and a man from the Dutch Army Medical Service have been working tirelessly for the past eight weeks in the ambulance of the Medical Mission in Suriname in Brownsweg in the tropical rainforest. Despite limited resources, the team, together with local staff, managed to provide essential nursing care under difficult conditions. The temporary deployment of the army team not only relieved the Surinamese health care system, but also trained the Dutch team's ability to improvise, according to the Dutch Embassy in Suriname. Seven more medical soldiers from the Netherlands are expected to arrive in Suriname soon. See here.

The Moravian Church's school foundation in Suriname (Stichting Onderweijs der EBGS) has provided teachers at its 65 schools with a new digital tool via Facebook. See here. The foundation writes: "All the tests taken by students provide a wealth of data. But how can this data be transformed into targeted educational action? How does a teacher get from performance trend analysis to team discussions with other teachers? And how can schools ensure that key educational priorities are firmly anchored in the minds and hearts of all teachers?" A digital tool for quality control and quality assurance (Kwaliteitszorg: zicht op je onderwijs) is being introduced. The description states: “Discover how feedback from students, parents, and teachers can become a driving force for school development: with intelligent formats, context-oriented questionnaires, and understandable visualizations for practical use.”

The Zeister Missionsgesellschaft, the Dutch sister organization of Herrnhuter Missionshilfe, reported on June 4, 2025: "The 400 reprinted children's Bibles in the language of the Trio people have now arrived in Suriname and are being transported to the village of Sipaliwini. From there, they will be taken by canoe and on foot to the isolated Trio communities in the tropical rainforest on the border between Suriname and Brazil. Among the Trio, children's Bibles are read not only by children, but also by adults who never went to school. By the end of 2025, all Trio children should have access to the Gospel. Every year, the Trio hold a Bible conference where indigenous people from many villages come together. For a week, there are daily church services with music, dancing, and encounters. Another Bible conference is planned for August 2025. Take a look at the children's Bible here. Watch a video of a Trio church service here.

The Deaconess Hospital in Paramaribo is one of the most important medical facilities in the Republic of Suriname. Founded more than 60 years ago under the auspices of the Moravian Church and its mission, the facility now has 210 beds. The hospital management writes about the current economic situation: "The economic crisis and the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic have had a negative impact on the financial situation of our hospital. We no longer have any reserves to carry out major maintenance or necessary (replacement) investments." The Zeister Missionsgesellschaft, the Dutch sister organization of the Herrnhuter Missionshilfe, wants to help in this difficult situation. One of its projects involves replacing the ventilation and air conditioning systems in two operating rooms. This is the only way to ensure the safety of patients, doctors, and nursing staff. The Zeister Missionsgesellschaft would like to invest $5,000 in good nursing care in Suriname. It is asking for donations. See here.

The Suriname Herald published two articles on the critical situation of the Medical Mission in Suriname (Medische Zending). On May 22, 2025, the focus was on the state's outstanding payments to the aid organization. See here. The state owes the organization the adjustment of its payments to the wage increases for July to December 2024 and the promised inflation compensation for April and May 2025. On May 29, 2025, the newspaper reported on the inadequate supply of medicines in the structurally weak tropical inland country. See here. In many places, not even the bare essentials are available. “There is a list of essential medicines that must be available in every ambulance, as well as standard medical supplies. But we don't have enough of them. This problem remains unresolved,” said Maureen Wijngaarde-van Dijk, the head of the organization.

The Paramaribo Central Lions Club has supported several projects run by the School Foundation of the Moravian Church in Suriname. Now, before the summer holidays, the club's donations have been used to fund a new project for the Friedrich Staehelin School, a primary school in the center of Paramaribo: repainting the entire exterior of the school. Some of the pupils gathered on the school steps. See here. The following message was posted on Facebook: “We, the teachers and students of the Friedrich Staehelin School, would like to express our sincere thanks for the wonderful repainting of the school. It was wonderful that the finished project could be handed over to us today. We wish the club good luck with its next projects. God bless you!” A short video can be found here.

Last year, the Moravian Church's Saron's children's home in the Surinamese capital of Paramaribo had requested 31 new mattresses for the beds of the boarding school children, as the majority of the old mattresses had long since become outdated and were barely usable. Now, with the help of the Zeister Missionsgesellschaft, the Dutch sister organization of Herrnhuter Missionshilfe, 40 new mattresses have been procured and delivered by the company M.A. Madhar's in Suriname. From Paramaribo we heard: "The mattresses and mattress covers were immediately put to use by the children. The children enthusiastically helped to unload the mattresses and put new ones on their beds. And of course there was also a test bed. With broad smiles, the children discovered that the new mattresses were wonderful to lie on." Some pictures here.

Huize Francis is a retirement home run by the Moravian Church in Suriname. It is located in Nickerie in the north-west of the country and has been providing a comfortable home for elderly people in need of help but not care since 1976. Now the roofs of the facility urgently need to be replaced. The wood of the old roofs is rotten; it has termite damage and already has several holes. All of this threatens the safety and security of the residents. The Zeister Zedingsgenootschap, the Dutch sister organization of Herrnhuter Missionshilfe, is supporting the roof renovation of Huize Francis with a substantial amount so that the elderly do not have to worry in the future. The initiative to found the facility came from Pastor Rudy. F. Polanen. The facility currently has 22 places. A video of the facility here.

The School Foundation of the Moravian Church in Suriname commemorated the 120th anniversary of the founding of what is now the Julius Theodor Wenzel School in Paramaribo. On Facebook it said: "The school was founded on May 25, 1905 as Annieschool and was only intended for British-Indian and Javanese children. About 60 children attended. The first girl to be admitted was called Annie. That is why the school was named after her. On November 25, 1963, the school was renamed the J. Th. Wenzel School. Julius Theodor Wenzel, the son of a Herrnhut missionary, studied Indian languages and religion in Berlin, among other places. He returned to Suriname in 1901 and worked for the Moravian Church throughout the country. This missionary did groundbreaking work among the thousands of Indian contract workers who worked on the plantations in Suriname." He founded the anti-government organization Ikhtiyar aur Hakh (Freedom and Justice), a kind of trade union for the exploited contract workers and their families. He died in 1921.