Dr. Osterholm and his wife, Luetta Margaret, were appointed in 1925 for service in Congo (Zaire). After language study in Belgium, they arrived in April 1926. Dr. Osterholm was not only a medical doctor; he was also a teacher and a preacher. He received an honorary Doctor of Divinity degree from Linfield College in 1949 and was ordained. Dr. Osterholm was a popular song leader as well as a popular preacher. Over 25,000 patients a year were treaed at the 125-ed hospital at Vanga, with many more treated in the dispensaries throughout the district. He translated the Book of Acts into Kihungana, the language of the Vanga area and nurtured those showing an aptitude for nursing and general medical work. In 1958 the Osterholms came home to retire, but in 1959 returned to the Congo for a short term. Both Axel and Luetta were awarded the Medaille de l’Ordre Royal du Lion by the Belgian government.