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The following story appears on the Web site of The United Methodist Church. To see a video profile of Fortune Masamba, of Community UMC in Crofton,  click here.

Fortune Masamba was given a new life, thanks to his church family across the globe.

'I'm looking forward to being part of the building process, hopefully to build a new Zimbabwe.'

Fortune Masamba says his name is no mistake.

'I've been really blessed,' says the 23-year-old native of Zimbabwe. He graduated with a degree in computer science from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County in 2005. The church flew his parents the 7,900 miles from Zimbabwe so they could see their son accept his diploma.

'Graduation day was the best day of my life,' he says. He now works as a computer technician at Southeastern University, Washington.

'I don't know, there's probably more to the name than 'Fortune,'' he says. 'I've been really fortunate to be here. I've been really fortunate to know the people I know. And I've been really fortunate to have such loving parents, here in the U.S. and back home in Zimbabwe.' 

Growing up the son of two United Methodist pastors, Revs. Remember and Mariah Masamba, Fortune says, 'I was well known for running around the pulpit while my parents were preaching.' Some days he would go to his mom's church and some days he would go to both.

'I used to enjoy that,' he says. 'I used to love the attention when I would meet people, a lot of people from both churches. Also, growing up as a kid I had a lot of friends. I used to play cricket with my brother, who was my best friend. My brother is back home. He's kind of the one guy I miss a lot.'

'There is always someone listening for my voice, and there is always someone watching out for me.'

Fortune was 'adopted' by a family at Community United Methodist Church in Crofton, Md., who were Volunteers in Mission to his church in Zimbabwe. 'Our family was their host family and they returned the favor by bringing me over here for school.' Over the course of the next few years, the 900-member church covered the $100,000 in tuition and living expenses for Fortune.

If he had not been able to come to the United States, Fortune says he would have been forced into military service by the Zimbabwe government.

Zimbabwe is plagued by 80 percent unemployment and inflation is said to be over 2000 percent. It is not the same country of his youth, he says.

'We used to be the breadbasket for Africa,' he says. 'There was not a time when I was a kid when we would worry about anything.'

Now he worries and wonders if his parents have enough to eat.

'We used to go to the grocery store, and when we'd come out we'd have our carts full.  And that's the Zimbabwe I miss ... when people were so joyful and happy.'

He dreams of using his computer skills to help Zimbabwe regain that happiness.

He says his favorite scripture is John 10:3, which talks about the sheep knowing Jesus' voice.

'It's the greatest scripture for me because whenever I'm sad I feel like if I need to call to Jesus, he always is listening. And I pray that one day when he calls me, I'm listening too. That's the greatest scripture to me to know that there is always someone listening for my voice, and there is always someone watching out for me.'