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June 2018 Newsletter

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What an exciting month!

The Primary 6 students are our first graduating class from Urukundo Learning Center. The students, teachers and Urukundo managers had the very first field trip ever. But not the last. The field trip will be a yearly event.
Large busloads traveled to Kigali, the capital of Rwanda.

The group visited the Kigali Genocide Memorial Centre and paid respect and honor to those lost in the genocide.

After the visit to the Genocide Memorial, the children visited the Parliament building, which is the seat of governing body in Rwanda.
This was such an important day for Urukundo Primary 6 kids, teachers and managers. The students will graduate in November.

Goodbye to Special Friends

On June 4, Bob and Amy Dove returned to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA, after seven months of living and working with us at Urukundo Learning Center.
Before leaving, a new outfit “made in Muhanga” at the Urukundo Sewing Center needed to be modeled. We like.
The day before they left, Amy read the Scriptures at worship, and Bob gave the sermon. Olive translated.

Sorry to see them go.

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Event worth much ado

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We were so honored to host the Anne Frank Project out of SUNY Buffalo State in New York, USA. The city of Buffalo is sister city to the city of Muhanga in Rwanda. The project uses drama to help children learn.
This lovely painting was presented to the Urukundo Foundation as a special gift from the group.

The work the visitors did is so interesting and productive and so appreciated. The Anne Frank Project conducted two full days of teacher training in drama-based education at Urukundo Village. About 30 teachers from the Urukundo Learning Center as well as more than 50 teachers from various schools in Muhanga received professional development on how to use storytelling in their classrooms. On a third day, the teachers used it in their own classrooms. The results were outstanding! Plans are underway to define the partnership among the District of Muhunga, Urukundo Village and the SUNY Buffalo State’s Anne Frank Project to make Urukundo a center for innovative teaching and learning.

Here are some pictures from the training for the adults:

The next photo is special for John Latone, Claude's best friend. Claude and John met when the group was here about three years ago.

The kids had fun with the visitors.
Dinner with the kids
Blowing bubbles and relaxing in the front yard at Mama’s house
Claudine and the bubble wand
Always foote ball(soccer)
The Anne Frank Project group presented “Jack and the Beanstalk.”

The storyteller wore the orange-dotted shirt. All did a great job.
The tale includes the chicken who laid the golden egg.
And don’t forget the monster giant.

The children participated in the presentation. All had a wonderful time.
Now there is a new stone on the path. It shows where the heart is.

Visitors

Lauren Wright from South Carolina, USA, first came to Urukundo when she was with the Peace Corps and returned after finishing a degree in nutrition to visit her friends, the village and Urukundo. Love having her.
Lauren and her best friend Benita
Peter Zittel and his mom, Kim Zittel, came the middle of June. Mom stayed for a short time; Peter stayed longer as a volunteer helping out at the preschool. They are from Buffalo, New York, USA. Peter starts university in the fall.
Didn’t get mom’s photo. Sorry, Kim.
Big kids challenge Peter in foote ball (soccer) match.

Come back soon, Lauren, Peter and Kim.

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Time for cake

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Mistakes are edible.
We ordered a cake from a shop in Kigali. The cake was delicious.

However, the writing on the cake had a mistake. It should have said, “New Family
Meredith, Alex & David.” Instead, it said,  “New Family Marydith, David.” Alex didn’t make it to the top of the cake.

We did not have time to do the icing over, so there were no changes.The ice cream was melting. Sorry, Alex. We love you -- Mama, kids and especially David.

Meredith Lu first came to Rwanda more than eight years ago with the Peace Corps and has been David’s sponsor since he was a baby. She since has graduated from the Johns Hopkins School of Nursing. The newcomer to the family is Alex Nachis. Meredith and Alex visited Urukundo in 2017 so he could meet David. The cake celebrated their wedding on June 16, 2018.

Ice cream, cake and Fanta
Baby Jenny licked the bowl clean.

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Secondary School Plans

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The vision does not go away.
So far, $5,000 has been raised for the Secondary School. Thank you.

There’s a long way to go. We need your help.

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May 2018 Newsletter

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Soon we will be six months into 2018. So accountability and budgeting for the next six months is on the agenda.

Here’s a request to our support partners for our children: Please check your dates for sending support for your child. If it is due or overdue, please send it ASAP. Maintenance and education all require ongoing funding.

I am so grateful to all of you for supporting the children and this mission.

 

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Little animals that bite

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OK, they are insects, but here in Rwanda they are called animals.

Because of the excess rain, these insects are leaving the outdoors and moving into our preschool. It is necessary to move the kids out of the classrooms while we spray. Teaching continues but on the basketball court … 

in the yard…

and wherever.

The kids loved it and think this is a good idea for everyday. Well, it is, but with so much rain they might get wet.

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Adult English classes

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So proud of Urukundo staff and volunteer Amy Dove!  Here’s the first adult English as a second language class -- with certificates to prove it.

Pastor Yves, Amy, Delphine (home manager), Olive (children and family advocate),

Juliette (human resources), Chantal (day care supervisor), Ismail (dental receptionist) and Libby (manager for cleaners). Good job; well done all. Thank you, Amy.

Xavier (driver), Chantal (cleaner), Florida (cleaner), Amy,  Adelphine (mama), Francoise (mama), Libereta (cleaner), Clarisse (day care) and Josephine (day care).

We thank Amy Dove, Sewing Center students and Sewing Center teachers (Therese, Redumptus and Desire) for their participation in English class and finishing the first module of 30 hours in their curriculum.

 

 

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Lovely explanation

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The wedding of Betty, who is the main caregiver in the boys’ house, and Etienne was lovely. Weddings in Rwanda are interesting.

Everything is rented: the wedding gown, bridesmaids’ clothes, groom’s clothes, groomsmen's suits, decorations, tents for guests. Just everything, but it keeps the cost down, and the wedding can be lovely.

All of the invited guests contribute what little money they have before the wedding to help the bride and groom rent what they need. Depending on the generosity of friends and family, even the very poor can have a simple but pretty wedding.

It makes a lot of sense to me, especially in a country where jobs are scarce and money hard to come by.

It is amazing how friends and families support each other in Rwanda. Would that it were the same in the USA and other countries. The cost of a nice wedding in the USA would support a family in Rwanda for several years. The bride’s gown alone would more than pay for a whole wedding here.

When you accept an invitation to a wedding, you give a gift to help with the cost. Neat idea, and it works.

 

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Too much rain

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In case you missed my posting on Facebook:

A mountain fell into the small valley in Kibuye, located on the shores of Lake Kiva, about two hours from Urukundo. Lives were lost and homes destroyed. This is just one example what too much rain can do in Rwanda. 

There is no controlling nature. Not enough rain is not good, and too much rain is a disaster.