Ardent American preacher with soft spot for Kenya
By Emeka Mayaka, August 19, 2022
Senator Chris Coons, who is in the country amid a standoff over the presidential election, is not new to Kenya.
An ardent preacher, Coons attended the 2020 National Prayer Breakfast in Kenya that brought together President Uhuru Kenyatta, Deputy President William Ruto and former Prime Minister Raila Odinga.
Earlier, while a student at Amherst College from where he graduated with a Political Science degree, he spent a semester studying at the University of Nairobi.
Coons chairs the sub-committee on African Affairs at the US Senate and has been President Joe Biden’s envoy on issues touching on the continent. He is the senator of President Biden’s home state, Delaware.
“Senator Coons has made it a priority to work with partners in Africa to encourage good governance and strengthen democratic institutions. He has chaired hearings and emphasised the importance of broadening political participation, reducing corruption, ensuring fair electoral processes, and protecting equality, justice, and rule of law throughout the continent,” says the US Senate website.
Ordained elder
He returned to the continent in 1987 to work with the South African Council of Churches in the anti-apartheid movement.
According to the website, Coons grew up attending Red Clay Creek Presbyterian Church in Wilmington, DE, and was an ordained elder with West Presbyterian Church.
He continues to preach regularly at houses of worship across Delaware. In February 2019, he and Republican Senator James Lankford of Oklahoma co-chaired the 67th annual National Prayer Breakfast. The prayer breakfast is a tradition dating back to President Eisenhower that brings Americans of all backgrounds, faiths, and political parties together through a celebration of spirituality and prayer.