while in the congo, boone worked as a preacher and educator. he learned kongo language to preach and teach the people in their own language. his wife eva taught at a kindergarten for the village children and started a sewing school for the village women. but she encountered resistance due to her ignorance of this culture, in which the men traditionally did the sewing. after some time, she persuaded some women to take it up. according to boone's memoir, the village women deeply respected eva; they referred to her as "mama bunu."