Fr. François Noah Onguéné
My name is Father Noah Onguéné François. I was born and grew up in Cameroon in the suburb of the political Capital, Yaoundé. From a polygamous family, Noah Ngah François, my father has two wives. They are all living now. From Ngah Cécile my mother and the first wife, we are three boys among which I am the second. From Ngono Suzanne the second wife, my father got nine children in which we find three boys and six girls, and three passed away. They remained six. My parents are baptized Catholics. In the first part of my life, I grew up with my mother while my father worked abroad. When he came back from Gabon after his first daughter death from the second wife, he remained in Cameroon. He then settled in Yaoundé in 1985 with his second wife. I joined him in 1986 while my mother remained in the village with my two brothers. I got my high school degree and I went to the University of Yaoundé I to study psychology.
After a year, I left the university and I joined the Xaverian Missionary Fathers in 1999. I spent a year in Douala (the economical capital and the biggest city of Cameroon) for propaedeutic. Then, I spent three years in Bafoussam (in the West part of Cameroon) studying philosophy. In August 2003, I went to Kinshasa the capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) for novitiate. I took my first religious vows on August 3rd 2004 in Kinshasa (DRC). The same year, I went to Chicago to study theology at Catholic Theological Union (CTU) which lasted until 2010. After the basic formation, I went further and I got a master in social ethics. I went back to Cameroon and was ordained priest on July 2nd 2011 in Douala. On October 5th 2011, I went to Italy for mission and vocation promotion among young people until last June 2017. I went back for vacation to Cameroon and on October 3rd, I landed in Sierra Leone for a new missionary journey.
I am very glad to be here. I look forward to working with all people, with my whole heart and my abilities and especially with a spirit of joy. Just as I landed at the international airport of Freetown and got my first contact with Sierra Leonean people, I was impressed with the simplicity they demonstrated. Second, I noticed the resiliency of the people. Although they passed through many disasters, I did not see in their faces sadness that expresses a defeated people. But, I see hope and the élan for life. That is something I already admire in them. I am finally blessed with the welcoming spirit I experienced among my Xaverian confreres and the Sierra Leonean people. As someone used to say: one word: “continue” in this way.
My name is Father Noah Onguéné François. I was born and grew up in Cameroon in the suburb of the political Capital, Yaoundé. From a polygamous family, Noah Ngah François, my father has two wives. They are all living now. From Ngah Cécile my mother and the first wife, we are three boys among which I am the second. From Ngono Suzanne the second wife, my father got nine children in which we find three boys and six girls, and three passed away. They remained six. My parents are baptized Catholics. In the first part of my life, I grew up with my mother while my father worked abroad. When he came back from Gabon after his first daughter death from the second wife, he remained in Cameroon. He then settled in Yaoundé in 1985 with his second wife. I joined him in 1986 while my mother remained in the village with my two brothers. I got my high school degree and I went to the University of Yaoundé I to study psychology.
After a year, I left the university and I joined the Xaverian Missionary Fathers in 1999. I spent a year in Douala (the economical capital and the biggest city of Cameroon) for propaedeutic. Then, I spent three years in Bafoussam (in the West part of Cameroon) studying philosophy. In August 2003, I went to Kinshasa the capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) for novitiate. I took my first religious vows on August 3rd 2004 in Kinshasa (DRC). The same year, I went to Chicago to study theology at Catholic Theological Union (CTU) which lasted until 2010. After the basic formation, I went further and I got a master in social ethics. I went back to Cameroon and was ordained priest on July 2nd 2011 in Douala. On October 5th 2011, I went to Italy for mission and vocation promotion among young people until last June 2017. I went back for vacation to Cameroon and on October 3rd, I landed in Sierra Leone for a new missionary journey.
I am very glad to be here. I look forward to working with all people, with my whole heart and my abilities and especially with a spirit of joy. Just as I landed at the international airport of Freetown and got my first contact with Sierra Leonean people, I was impressed with the simplicity they demonstrated. Second, I noticed the resiliency of the people. Although they passed through many disasters, I did not see in their faces sadness that expresses a defeated people. But, I see hope and the élan for life. That is something I already admire in them. I am finally blessed with the welcoming spirit I experienced among my Xaverian confreres and the Sierra Leonean people. As someone used to say: one word: “continue” in this way.