South Sudanese Ministry

The South Sudanese service starts at 1:00 pm on Sundays. This service is led in the Nuer language and led by Pastor in Training-Elijah Yuek.

It all started when…

The South Sudanese Evangelical Covenant Church and Prairie Hills Covenant Church began worshiping together in the early 1990s. Even though two separate services are held in order to honor the ancestral heritage and culture of the South Sudanese, many things are done together, including combined services for communion. We are one church.

When the Sudanese came to South Dakota during the 1990s approximately 200 of those brothers and sisters were welcomed by Prairie Hills. We helped our Sudanese friends establish homes, find jobs, and learn how to live in the United States. 

 The welcome to Prairie Hills grew into initial training for the Sudanese pastors by our pastors. This led to the establishment of South Sudanese churches across the United States and Canada, as the original group spread out to new areas where Sudanese had settled. A new Evangelical Covenant denomination was also established in Africa as Sudanese shared stories of their welcome by the Covenant church in the United States.

Together, we help one another serve the Lord through worship, prayers, baptisms, and combined programs. The relationship between Prairie Hills and the South Sudanese Covenant Church expresses a rich history and celebrates the growth and understanding of cultural differences.