Maggie who was coordinator for our school is now a businesswoman. She has opened a shop where she hopes to start a career that will provide a wage for herself and her child.
Maggie goes from being an employee to working at Urukundo Village as a volunteer. It is good to know we are not losing Maggie because she is loved by the children and will continue to work with them.
Secondary school - left to right.
Divine, Abis, Lucie, Mama, big brother Etienne and Gisele. A day to remember.
Lucie and her classmate.
Gisele and Divine marched in together - or rather they danced in together!
It was a very impressive ceremony!
Kaboss had special visitors in September.
Diane & Bill Currier, part of his sponsoring family, came to see him. They brought him two wonderful books and other surprises that he shared with all the kids.
Before they left Urukundo Village, Sam, Jacob, Chris and Sally Buck and Jonathon May gave a donation to have a stone placed on the PATH TO LEARNING at the school. A gift to the education fund. Our path continues to grow, as does our school. 2015 will see the first P3 class.
Position on the path.
Claude is a happy boy. He has a new favorite book.
'OLD MACDONALD HAD A FARM.'
The kids have sung the song for a long time but now they have a picture book with animals & words to see while they sing.
Please keep in prayer the much needed funding to build our Third Grade classrooms.
$30,000 will completely furnish a single room including desks, chairs, blackboards etc.
This newsletter is hard to write. My heart is aching for this little girl who has been left alone in this world. I thank God that there is Urukundo (love) here in this place. I am grateful to all of you who make it possible for us to reach out and give this child a home where she will know she is loved and cared for.
This beautiful little girl has joined the Urukundo Family. We are happy that we are here to offer a safe haven to this child in need.
Her story is a sad one. Her mama was our neighbor and friend. Betty was a single parent with two small children - a 3 year old and a 1 year old. Betty died quite suddenly a few weeks ago leaving her two little girls. The day we buried Betty, her 3 year old also died. The deaths were not related but both were tragic. It was necessary to go through the proper channels to bring the 1 year old to Urukundo. The paper work is completed and she is here and has a home where she is loved.
Hello from Urukundo
August has been very busy. Our kids out of school, visitors from abroad, construction for the nursery and dental initiative. There was just a lot going on.
Arlene's Advice
I would give this advice. Do not eat papaya like cantaloupe, and do not eat peanuts before your stomach is recovered from excess papaya. If this is not clear, drop me an email and I will expound on the subject.
Lesson Learned.
OUR SECONDARY KIDS
Having the big brothers and sisters was very exciting for the little kids and for me. It is really a fun school vacation time. Even though they study during the time it is more relaxed. They take part in the evening devotions and play with the little ones at Hope House.
Our Photo Shoot for August. Secondary Students, some not all. How they have grown! All are now taller than me and better looking. 
Abis second year secondary.
Lucie our candidate for the ministry. She graduates from Secondary (High School) this year. Her goal is to be a pastor.
Divine
Amin
Claude
Esperance
Immanuel
Bosco
Cecelia
Jason
He does not expect to graduate from Secondary School until 2032. Please be there for him.
School opens for final term of the year.
Teachers gather to welcome the children and keep everything under control. The children are so excited to be back in school and to greet friends. They are full of energy.
Big and small they are back!
The art work is pictures done by the Urukundo Kids, The design is a gift from Pastor Sharon, and the quilt pattern of hearts and hands was done by Pastor Sharon’s friend.
The quilt was accepted for the President by his secretary Irene. President Kagame was meeting with President Obama at the same time I was meeting with Irene. Both high-powered meetings you will have to agree. After the presentation of the quilt, Irene invited me to tell her about Urukundo now and our goals for the future. I was even able to tell her my hopes and plans for the rest of the mountain. She was a most gracious hostess.
A pretend cooking event and a great imagination is all it takes to have a wonderful meal on the bottom of mama’s bed.
Matt our visitor heard me say the girls had only 2 cups and a tiny teapot to have pretend tea parties. He presented the kids with a set of pots, pans and fruits that they could play with. What a wonderful gift. Now I am served strawberries, bananas, grapes and cabbage on a little plate and I pretend to stuff myself with the wonderful fruit. It is a great diet for losing weight.
The first Dish dryer, given to us by God. Not electric but very effective.
Wash, rinse and place on the platform for the sun to do the rest.
The Sun
Clothes dryer. Lines and fences work just fine but bushes also are a drying option.
Not better than a washing machine but then there's no breakdown when the electricity is turned off. This is an all day job every day but Sunday.
We also have a medium sized electric Dryer for drying baby clothes and school uniforms during the rainy season. The dryer was a gift from a friend from United Christian Parish in Reston, Virginia, USA.
Amin is in Culinary school.
We appreciated his help in the kitchen during the Holiday. He also returned to school on the 11th of August. The kitchen staff hated to see him go. At the end of this term he will serve an apprenticeship at a local hotel. Where is yet to be decided. He then will have the opportunity to work at Urukundo with the kitchen staff to give him experience.
