Frequently Asked Questions
1.) What does Koinonia mean?
Sitting in church on Sunday, I listened to Reverend Bob Smith, our district superintendent, use the term Koinonia (coin-a-knee’-uh) several times. He explained that it is Greek, meaning “fellowship,” “working together,” “helping one another” and/ or “social interaction.” The word seemed to describe precisely what we were trying to accomplish. We adopted it…
Excerpt from All Things Are Possible, by Dale L. Williams, M.D., E.E. Wiggin, 1986
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2.) Why go overseas when there is so much need in the United States?
In 1996, during the war, Andrew and Dale Williams worked in the Mugunga Refugee Camp outside Goma, Zaire (now Democratic Republic of Congo). They started by helping vulnerable populations – orphans, the elderly, and the disabled – to find medical care. When the refugees returned to Rwanda, it seemed obvious that this was where Dale and Andrew were intended to use their resources. The Foundation began doing this by assisting in the building of schools and provision of supplies such as computers.
Additionally, the Koinonia Foundation does help within the U.S. We have never forgotten our roots or our original mission of helping the needy in this country, which started in Muskegon Heights, Michigan. Since the opening of that clinic, most work by the Foundation has been done in the United States.
However, one must look upon the world as a whole now. Africa is a rich and beautiful continent with many natural resources. Unfortunately, its people, in many areas, are suffering, and we may not turn a blind eye to that. With our projects, we have found a way to help those in need in Africa.
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3.) What exactly does the Foundation do with donations?
Please see our Program page for a description of the Foundation’s current programs. Donations may help to fund grants of K-Lights for women in the Beacon Program, provide schools with books through the Wall of Words program, or carry out the projects in our solar power programs. Donors may indicate a preference for the program their donation helps to fund. However, the Foundation will ultimately determine what program donations will benefit.
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4.) What does it mean that 100% of all donations go directly to projects?
When someone donates to the Koinonia Foundation, the entire donation goes into our projects to help those in need. We are good stewards of your donated dollars. This means that you can be assured that your money is being spent the way you intended it to be spent, not on salaries and paper. The Koinonia Foundation can do this because of an annual operating grant received from the Williams Family Foundation.
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5.) What can I do to help?
The Koinonia Foundation welcomes ideas that will help us to attain our goals. In addition to monetary donations, the Foundation will, at times, accept other donated items, such as medical equipment, tools, new or gently used books, etc. Most items that we use can be purchased and shipped, unless very specialized. Any ideas can be sent to info@kfaid.com.
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6.) Why help Rwanda? What happened there?
In 1994, Rwanda experienced a genocide in which one local group attempted to eliminate another group. The animosities between the two groups can be traced back to European colonization, and violence erupted on a smaller scale through the years leading up to the genocide. The worst of this violence occurred in 1994, when organized gangs killed approximately one million people in a 100-day period. This resulted in a civil war and unprecedented refugee crisis.
In the years since the genocide, Rwanda has worked hard to rebuild its infrastructure and economy, and it remains one of the most peaceful and secure countries in Africa.
