Hope House

Good news! Hope House is reopening soon for worship.

Some houses of worship opened in Rwanda on July 19. Every church had to pass an inspection. After inspection by the umudugudu (village leader), Urukundo Worship Center is scheduled to reopen on Aug. 2.

Distancing, masks and wash stations are required. No children under 12 years old are allowed to attend services, and children between 12 and 15 can attend but must be with a parent. A book must be maintained with names and phone numbers for tracing should one person test positive.

I am impressed with the steps taken by the Rwandan government to prevent the spread of the coronavirus and still move ahead to open slowly and safely.

Baby faces

Edith has a new hat. Her mama, Juliette, who is a staff person, made the hat for her. Cute hat, super cute baby. Yarn is a gift from donors.

A gift of yarn is so appreciated as our staff and mamas learn a new craft. There’s a possibility this craft may become a new tech training program.

“Mama, no bath please.” Maintenance manager Benjamin’s little girl is not happy and does not like a bath.

Big sister visits her newborn brother at the Birthing Center. Precious.

Closing Thought

Moving from July into August, I leave you with this thought:

A person who thinks the world can be a better place has a dream. Don’t be afraid to dream. Set a goal. Take the first step. Do one thing every day that might make a difference. Live your dream.

Mama Arlene

June 2020 Newsletter

No visitors this June,

June is bursting out all over. Summer is upon us. This usually is the month for visitors. There are no visitors this June. We miss the visitors from the SUNY Buffalo State College and the School of Dentistry at the University of Maryland, Baltimore. It is my prayer next June will be minus the coronavirus.

Necessary maintenance

It is always good to be building new structures, but, like any home, there are times it becomes necessary to do repair work. Urukundo is no exception.

Protecting our neighbor and securing the land at the preschool became a big deal. With the heavy rains in the last months, we saw the bank with no retaining wall begin to collapse. Knowing the real danger of the bank collapsing in front of the preschool and doing great damage to our neighbors’ house, we decided maintenance was necessary. Steps to alleviate the problem took place. Retaining walls are so necessary in Rwanda.

Inspection tour or just a nosy old woman wanting to know what is going on. The work went well. The walk (exercise) is good for me.

It was not only necessary to build a new retaining wall, but the deterioration of the bank caused a brick wall to crack and no longer be safe. Repair was not possible. The wall had to be replaced, and a new gate was installed to replace a damaged one. In a short time, the wall would have been gone. A photo for you to see.

A view of where the wall and old gate have been removed.

New gate in place.

Replaced stronger and reinforced inside the wall and sliding gate. Looking good and protecting our school property, our kids and our neighbors. The shutdown was a good time to do this work at the school.

View of the finished wall at the entrance to the Urukundo Learning Center. It really is an improvement.

New gate and new sign. We are proud of our school and want all passersby to know we are here.

The Coronavirus and Urukundo

Our timetable for recovery has been a slow but steady one. Rwanda took steps very early in February to detect anyone coming into the country carrying this nasty virus. In March, the airport closed for all but a few flights coming in and going out. Kyle Jerro, an advisor to the board of Hope Made Real International, and Carol Falke,the board president, were able to catch two of the last flights out.

Kyle to the UK.

And Carol to the USA

On March 21, Urukundo went into lockdown with our university kids and Claude in secondary school coming home. All seven are still home waiting for the travel ban to be lifted. That is scheduled to happen June 1.

We remained in total lockdown until the middle of April when handing baby layettes out the gate for newborns became possible. But still in isolation.

May 1 was the first date for partial opening. At this time, travel was opened but only inside each province. Distancing is to be maintained, and masks must be worn in public.

Our sewing school made masks and distributed them in the compound and to neighbors

Our teacher Theresa models a mask.

No public transportation. Motos and bicycles could be used for transportation of merchandise but not people.

May 16 brought another change. We could now deliver baby gifts to the mamas at the birthing center, observing the center’s rules of conduct. Needed employees were allowed to come back to work. The daycare, church and school remained closed.

I remained in isolation until May 10. It was my delight to be able to walk the compound and on the road in front of my home, wearing a mask.

Divine’s dream

In case you have forgotten, Divine Uwonkunda has not given up her dream and her goal to be a pilot. I found this book in our Urukundo library, and it made me remember this girl and her ambition. If you want more information, please feel free to contact me. arlene@hopemadereal.org

Let's make it happen. Another Hope Made Real.
Photo dedicated to Divine and her dream.

Out and about

After being released from isolation, my first venture out was to visit the school and the project in progress. I was pleased at what I saw happening. It is good to know life goes on at Urukundo even if I am in isolation.

I was amazed at how liberating just the ability to walk to the school was. Such an adventure!
I take time to rest beneath a tree near the library. Still going strong, just a bit slower,

Thought for May

It is said April showers bring May flowers.
OK, so where are my sunflowers?
One is not enough to feed chickens.
Maybe next year.

Mama