Events

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Congratulations are in Order

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Urukundo was honored by an invitation to the graduation celebration of an amazing school: ESTHER'S CULINARY ARTS SCHOOL, RWANDA. Check out their website.
Esther's Aid trains Rwandan youngsters in the culinary arts at their Heavenly Bread Bakery. I visited this school and was surprised to find as many young men students as young women. Several of our young girls are interested in attending these classes after finishing Senior School.
Urukundo is hoping to build a connection with this amazing organization. It is much more than a bakery. Its director Claire Effiong is doing a great job and is dedicated to making life better for Rwandan young people.  

Serephina is looking forward to being accepted as a student in 2 years.

Julie's Baby

Julie has a baby boy. He is beautiful but has no name. It is the culture that a baby is not named until after he or she is more than a week old. I visited this little boy and his mom and took David, Luki and Claude#2 with me. David thought we should bring the baby home because Jacob needs a friend. He said Julie went to the hospital to find a baby for Mama and she found one and so he is not Julie's baby, he is Mama's. After much discussion it was decided we would let Julie keep the baby because she had milk that God gave her as food for him, and Mama didn't have that good milk.  Kids are awesome.
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Naming Jacob

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His first Sunday in our family Jacob was introduced to the congregation during worship. Pastor Antoine did the honors. We had not had a new baby for over a year and so the kids were excited.

Naming Jacob was a real pleasure for me. Jacob is a biblical name and that is good but Jacob also is the name of my father and so I was privileged to be able to honor my dad by naming a beautiful little boy for him.

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Christmas Day

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The children know this is not actually the birthday of Jesus but a day that we, as his disciples set aside to worship and honor his birth. It is a very special day.


On Christmas Day we celebrated the birthday of Jesus with worship. The kids had a program and sang carols in English : SILENT NIGHT & JOY TO THE WORLD. They worked very hard to get all the English words properly. The staff and their children joined us and after worship we served juice and cake donuts for all and gifts for the children of the staff.

The red hats with URUKUNDO  on the front are a gift to us from Gary Ehrig. There were enough for everyone to have one. It was very special.  Thank you Gary.

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Christmas Eve for the Kids

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We celebrated the party, hardy, Christmas on Christmas Eve. Food, fun and gifts for all the children. Fanta, sumbosa, a tree, music, dancing and 2 gifts for every child. It took place after dinner. The little ones had their treat and gifts first and went off to bed happy. The older kids then had their party into the evening.

The food and drink was provided by the sponsor of Liliane (Carolyn and Mark) who sent extra money for us to be used for Christmas. Thank you.
The music was a gift from Jean Marie one of our staff. The gifts were from boxes sent from our support family and friends to be shared with the children. Thank you all. Talia and Meredith came for Christmas with a gift for every child. What better family support could Urukundo have?

The kids sat on the floor of Hope House and opened gifts together. each child received a gift from you and a gift from our visitors Meredith and Talia.

The little children sang Happy Birthday Jesus. We all joined in. I am sure there were smiles in heaven.

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News from Urukundo for November 2012

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Greetings from Urukundo, the home that love built.  What an exciting month. Some good days, and some not so good. Our kids all came home from boarding school. It was great to have all 44 of them home at one time. Worship was outstanding. They were here a short time and went on holiday with extended family. The time at Urukundo passed too quickly, but they will be home for Christmas. Even the primary kids are on holiday. With all who are away we still have 21 kids in the houses. It is never lonely here.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION

The Rwanda Commission for Children has taken some very positive steps to protect vulnerable children and is asking orphanages (institutions) and homes for children to assist in connecting children to their extended families.

The government is endeavoring to give responsibility to the Rwandan people for the children connected in any way to their families. In compliance with the new regulations set forth by the government to protect the rights of the children, Urukundo Foundation has enlisted the families to take part in the lives of the children. This includes Grandparents, Aunts, Uncles and Mothers or Dads with little or no income. I do not know how this will work but we know how important family ties are. Preserving the Rwandan family is one of our criteria at our home for children.

Urukundo is and will remain home to the children. They have been family for 6 years and have grown up here. These are kids from 7 to 19 years of age. The children will continue to have a choice as to where they will spend holidays, which they have always had. Not much will change, but in writing we conform to government regulations and keep our kids secure. Urukundo will, with the help of our sponsors, continue to cover tuition, school supplies, medical insurance, savings at Fina Bank for the kids, and food and lodging here at home. Their families will take care of them while they are with them. This also has not changed. Unless there are further changes by the government there will be no effect on the primary and Nursery kids or the older adolescents who have no extended families.   God in Charge.

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Graduation Day at Cyakabiri Preschool

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What a wonderful day for 47 kids and their proud parents with the wearing of the robe and mortar board as the first graduates from Cyakabiri Preschool.

The kids lined up for the march from the school to Hope House was spectacular.  Led by the teachers they paraded in line for all to see followed by parents and friends.

A vision of blue and gold

Presenting  diplomas to the graduates was the highlight for the Director of Cyakabiri Preschool.
The speakers were Felix, the contractor who built the preschool and is building the primary school, and one of the parents.  The kids put on a skit about education.  Songs were sung and two of the students gave a speech.

Now the younger kids want to know when we will have another graduation. That is so great because it gives them something to work toward.