Introduction of Irene Mparutsa

Irene Mparutsa, a missionary with the General Board of Global Ministries of the United Methodist Church, serves in Phnom Penh, Cambodia as the Community Health, Agriculture, and Microenterprise Coordinator with the Cambodia Mission Initiative.

Ms. Mparutsa was born in a mission hospital in Mutoko, Zimbabwe, and has been in mission all her life, serving mostly in health ministries, and as a Global Ministries Individual Volunteer health advisor in Cambodia since 2003. Her father was among the first group of African pastors to be ordained at the Old Umtali Mission in 1912; her mother was one of the first African women to become qualified as a trained teacher. She was one of 13 children born to her parents.

Trained as a nurse, midwife, and public health professional in England and Norway, Irene has worked in Zimbabwe, Zambia, the United Kingdom, and Switzerland. She was affiliated with the International Federation of the Red Cross in Geneva from 1989 to 1995. In 1999, she went to Cambodia as a health program coordinator with Christian Outreach Relief and Development (CORD), a three-year assignment that turned her toward missionary service.

While the world is her home, Irene remains a citizen of Zimbabwe and counts the Zimbabwe West Annual Conference as her own. She speaks Shona, English, French, Zulu, Nyanja, and Khmer, the latter being the language of Cambodia.

After studying at Old Mutare Mission, Nyatsime College, and Ranche House College in Zimbabwe, Irene received her nurse’s training at Guy’s Hospital and other institutions in England, and earned a certificate in public health from Oslo University.

She has one grown son, Tichafara (which means “joyful anticipation”), and three grandchildren.

”[After the CORD contract in Cambodia], I wanted to return to Zimbabwe to serve as a Missioner of Hope…I found myself increasingly drawn to do missionary work here [in Cambodia]. Though not certain about many things, I am certain that I am where God wants me to be. I also believe that God is using the Church to bring healing and hope to the nation of Cambodia.”

Make an online donation to: Irene Mparutsa #15086Z.