We are Raising Heroes

Our secondary school students were very pleased to be home with the family. Debora went all the way and won the National competition! She is now Number One in Rwanda! Her essay on Fruits and Vegetables and why they are good for children was judged the best and she was given an award by the minister of Agriculture.
The award is 200,000 Rwf. This amount equals $400 USD. This award is now in an account for her education.

Introducing to Rwanda a Protected Burner Barrel

This project has three compartments. 1 for cans and bottles, 1 for Compost and 1 for burning paper. It’s a step in the right direction. NGO (non government Organization) Food for Hungry came to check this one out.

The Mountain

It is still part of the vision to build schools that will aid the poor in the neighborhood and our own children. We have the land for the Day Care Center and Kindergarten. The land for the Primary school is on the mountain. That land is needed to complete the vision. It does not belong to Urukundo Village.
The talk at the present time is that a big hotel will be built on the top of my mountain. This makes no sense to me as our Urukundo Village sets between the main road and the site designated for the hotel. “God in Charge”



I can not visualize a hotel on this land.

Preparing for the future we, with the help of a team from Bloomsburg, have constructed a fence to separate the Soccer field from the road that will be used to build that hotel.



The road is a public road so we can not block it as we did the road next to the boy’s home. The openings in the wall will have metal but for now it looks ok and is protection. There will be a gate leading into the village. One day it will have a sign that says “Urukundo Village.”

A Gift

Natete likes the exercise ball a gift from Karen Lake-Champain.


Anett tries for push-up. Not doing too well.

Visitors for July, 2009

Cortney Bower from Saint Johns/Newberry, Williamsport Pa. (my home church) a second year nursing student spent a month helping out at the clinic. Cortney, Brittney(a two month visitor) and Bridget (pictured below) did an inventory of all new medicines and spent time sorting Band Aids and placing them in boxes to make life easier for me. She helped serving meals, reading to and with the kids and playing Volley Ball until the poles broke and basket ball. She can pump up a basket ball without breaking the needle. Sounds simple but believe me it is not. I enjoyed Cortney’s visit very much.



Bridget Campbell from Liberty Bible Church, Liberty, Pa joined us for two weeks. Helping in the clinic, teaching English to the kids, and helping where ever she was needed. She and Cortney worked as a team while they were here. I learned about a sugar bandage from Bridget. It really works.



People to People Delegation



Doctor with People to People Checks out Claudine

Visitors Learn History

Our visitors enjoy a trip to see the Palace of the King and learn a little of the history of Rwanda.



The King's Palace



Keena & Cortney inside the palace

At the Farm

Building with mud bricks

Progress is slow but the animals don’t seem to mind.



Cows and Sheep roam the hills together



Our first baby turkeys
Cute and little. I am told they grow fast.
I thank John for caring for our animals on his farm.

It is good to have a caretaker and pasture for our cows and Turkeys without taking play area from our kids in the village. Urukundo does supply a supplement to John's grass land for food and care of our animals.
Animals need more than just pasture. They need salt and mash etc.
We have one milk producing cow at the village. The milk from this cow (Dolly) takes care of the babies and those who require milk in their diet for health reasons.
Counting Dolly we have we have 4 cows. At the farm we have a 7 month pregnant cow named Pansy. Her baby will make number 5. We are hoping for a girl calf. We have a one year old calf, and a one 5 month old calf, all females. We hope soon to have enough fresh milk and butter for all the kids and some to sell.
I am learning a lot about the care and feeding of livestock.
In the long run it benefits our kids.
We now have our own milk, eggs, and limited meat.

Our little girl Claudine is growing up

We are so pleased with her progress. She is now eating people food. She does not try to sit up alone but when you set her up she can sit with no support. Slowly her legs are getting stronger. The time frame for her eye surgery is late August or early September. As her surgery comes near please support this little three year girl in your prayers.

In Music News

Divine gets her first violin lesson. She is one happy girl.
Keena is a very good teacher and loves music.

Greetings from Mama Arlene for June, 2009

Greetings from Urukundo Village. June has been a wonderful month. We have had 19 volunteers arrive ready to work. Vacations have started and so our volunteers come and they are most welcome. They came one at a time and stay for as long as they can be here. Some come for two weeks, others for as much as 3 months. Two others for two days and 3 came for just an afternoon. All are appreciated.
We welcomed a team of 9 from Bloomsburg, PA for 10 days. We put them to work along with our other volunteers playing baseball, soccer and other sports with the kids, working with the babies, teaching bible study, speaking in worship, helping with laundry, cooking and cleaning, building a retaining and divider wall around the village. One visitor is teaching Taekwondo, two others English as a second Language, another Piano, and yet another is teaching Guitar. A nurse came and worked in the clinic for several days. So the activities have been wonderful and are many.
Our visitors visited the Genocide Center in Kigali, Kings Palace in Inyanza, The Natural History Museum in Butare and the Farm at Inyanza. It truly has been a good month.

A New Tradition of Trees

It started with Betty Brown from Bloomsburg who asked could she plant a tree. Then my grandson Tim also planted a tree. Because we need the trees and want to have a growing testimony of volunteers who have honored us by coming and working in the village, a tree is planted in their name.

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A New Sport: "Baseball"

Our kids were again introduced to baseball. Tim Brown first introduced baseball when he brought gloves and a ball last year and now Tracy and Mike have introduced T-ball. The kids loved it but unfortunately we have no equipment. They were on the way to set up a sport center and had to take the equipment along because it was promised. I am sure this is not the end for baseball but Tracy, Mike, our boys couch, Debora, Kofi and baseball.


Just the beginning.



Aline takes a swing. Not bad for a first try.