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D.O.O.R. International Training and Translation Center
The center also has video recording studios and computer editing stations. And, of course, there is a dining room, kitchen, and housing. On Tuesday, March 15, 2011, I had the privilege of visiting the DOOR/Wycliff campus. Greeting us was Jason Hopkins, a Wycliff consultant to DOOR. I was Jason's pastor when he was in Dallas, Texas a few years ago. Jason gave me an invitation to visit DOOR while I was in Nairobi scouting for some sight seeing locations for the Third International Methodist Missions Conference of the Deaf in August 2013. Also, I knew another DOOR staffer, Jeremy Simons, through my work with another ministry, New Life Deaf Ministry of Tegucigalpa, Honduras. Joining with me for this visit was Rev. Margaret Mukami, a Deaf pastor in the Methodist Church in Kenya, her interpreter, Joseph Kimathi, and another interpreter from the USA, Carol Stevens. I was deeply moved by the work of the staff, and beauty of the campus that is taking shape. Rev. Mukami was thrilled and gratified to see two of her former students from the Kaaga School for the Deaf at work at DOOR. Carol Stevens and I were amazed by the young age of the translators from Burundi, Ethiopia, Uganda, Tanzania and Kenya. We were touched by the story of Dominic, a 30 year old translator from Uganda whose home was destroyed one week before he left to work at DOOR. We met the illustration team from India, and were inspired by their sacrifice of having given up a year away from their families to do the work of illustrating the background scenes for the Bible story videos. On the Sunday before our trip to DOOR, I met Paul, a pastor for the Deaf Community Church in Nairobi. At DOOR, I saw Paul again and saw how he had applied the lessons learned at DOOR that Sunday in his Bible study and worship. In some ways, I felt that I was seeing a modern day version of a medieval monastic community dedicated to the work of producing God's Word in languages of un-reached peoples. The campus at DOOR is a self-contained Deaf community, striving to produce food, water, shelter and livelihood. I believe that this community of faith and works will reach thousands of Deaf througout East Africa and the world through its compelling witness in sign languages of the Bible. My mind is still grasping to perceive the multiple influences and ripples throughout the Deaf generations and people that will come through the DOOR project in Kenya. I am filled with joy!
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D.O.O.R. International has a Deaf Bible training and translation center just outside of Nairobi, Kenya. There are 30 to 40 Deaf translators who live and work here, translating the Bible into the sign languages of their respective countries.
