Featuring baby Edith at daycare.
Big brother Jerry, little sister Edith.
Sarah is such a helper in the daycare!
Thoughts for the month
In closing, I share my thoughts for the month with you.
Let our hearts and eyes see and appreciate all the beauty around us.
Let us see the wonders of our world through the eyes of a child.
Mama
July 2020 Newsletter
The month of July is a month of celebration in Rwanda. On July 1, Independence Day is observed, and it is a public holiday. July 4 is celebrated as Liberation Day. On this day, we commemorate the end of the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi.
Because of the pandemic, there is little celebration in Rwanda this year. We celebrated in our hearts and not on our streets because of the coronavirus and social distancing.
July 4 is also independence day in my homeland, the USA. A dear friend, Clare Effiong, baked me a special cake. Clare is director of Esther’s Aid, an NGO and culinary arts and career school in Kigali. Clare is also a US citizen from New York City.
She also brought juice, and we celebrated Rwanda’s Liberation Day and our country's Independence Day with cake and juice for the staff and kids at Urukundo. The icing was delicious. I like icing better than cake. I think it is the kid in me. To observe distancing and show respect for the danger of the virus, kids and staff were invited to drop by whenever convenient and not in groups. It worked well.
Mama’s book
For some time now, I have been sharing with you the expected birth of my book. Yep, it is like giving birth. The process takes too long and the labor pains seem to go on forever. Finally, the book is produced. Like with a newborn, I am hoping and praying all is well and everyone will love the new (book) baby.
So, OK. Because I am 89 years old, a baby is not possible, but a new book is. Hope you all like my creation.
My manuscript is “Hope Made Real.” It is now a book and is available in ebook and paperback. While the book can be purchased in several locations, here is the Internet address for people to order my book directly from the bookshop where we earn a great deal more on each book sold. https://store.bookbaby.com/book/hope-made-real
Please note all proceeds from the book go to the Urukundo Learning Center Education Fund.
More information is available on the website. Check in there, please.
Book front cover.
Music, music, music
Our dream at Urukundo Learning Center long has been to have a drum set of our own and not have to rent one for graduation and special occasions. Thanks to an anonymous donor, our dream is now truly a “hope made real.” Sadly, there will be no graduation ceremony this year to celebrate, but we look forward to the future.
Music is so special at Urukundo. We began with kazoos and slowly by slowly (Rwanda term) added a keyboard, violins, guitars and even cultural instruments to our program.
I thank all who have contributed to making our music program a success over the years.
Music comes more abundantly to Urukundo. The donor also funded all the new equipment below. We are so blessed.
We now have instruments for our very own Urukundo school band. The piano also will serve our orchestra.
Hey, it’s a start. These kids and the music teacher, Emanuel, practice even though school is not in session. That’s devotion.
Dental news
Taking temperatures has always been a challenge in the dental office, especially for our young patients.
New to the dentistry is a non-contact, forehead infrared thermometer. This type of thermometer also is being used in the school health room as well.
Dental assistant Rahab appreciates the new method in caring for children and adults.
Coronavirus and safety rules
We are working hard to meet government regulations preparing for school reopening in September. Most important is the station for washing hands.
This wash station is recommended by the Ministry of Health of Rwanda. The tank holds one jerrycan (20 liters) of water and is worked by a foot pedal.
The approximate cost is $30 each. We need 15 because one wash station is required for every two classrooms, one for each of the two gates and one for the lunchroom.
Along with the wash stations, each child and teacher must have two face masks, one for morning and one for the afternoon. We are recommending four each as two would need to be washed or sanitized while the other two are with the child at school.
This is going to be an interesting new school year. We are doing our best as I believe our government is making these requirements for the health and welfare of our children and teachers.
We are now in the process of meeting the government regulations for distancing between students. Four additional classrooms are needed to provide enough space.
In May, we completed two of the needed classrooms. Two more are needed to be able to reopen our school in September. These two are ready.
Another two are in process.
Hoping to be financially able to complete these next two in the next month. To complete the construction, we need glass for windows, outside cement and grass to hold the soil.
Cement for floors and inside wall paint.
We needed to install fencing to protect the children from falling over the very steep bank in front of the upper-level classroom.
Our students’ safety is a special concern at Urukundo Learning Center. Leveling to build creates high and dangerous drop-offs.
A protection fence is the safety step needed. The fence in process.
Protection fence completed. No child will accidentally fall from the school yard to the ground below.
The next step is making the classroom levels handicap accessible. This is an ongoing project required by the government. We are doing our best to comply. As you can see, building on a mountain, there are many steps. Steps are not easy for those unable to walk. I had a sample of that when I broke my foot and ankle a few years ago. Walking in a cast to visit the school was not possible. I will share the progress being made in the August newsletter.
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.
Celebrations
With the shutdown lifted, Hope House is again a place for weddings. A wedding party can only have 30 guests and the bridal party.
For the first time, a wedding party asked if they could take photos in my garden (front yard). I was delighted. Not wanting to impose, our photographer took two photos and backed away.
I really like this photo outside the living room window.
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
July 2020 Newsletter Special
Meeting expanding needs
We are moving forward constructing a dining room big enough to meet growing needs. This dining room will be attached to our current kitchen and can be built and paid for as funds become available.
The first step is clearing and leveling the ground, which has a minimal cost. The new building will be built much like the Sewing Center classroom, only bigger. It will measure 40 feet wide by 72 feet long.
The reason for this construction: The number of students eating lunch at our school will increase. In order to have space to social distance while eating, a larger dining room is needed. It is essential to protect our children, teachers, staff and adult students from the coronavirus.
It also will be more convenient not to carry food outside from the kitchen to the dining room as the weather can be a problem. As we prepare to build the new dining room, it is necessary to remove the unused rooms located between the kitchen and the garden so that we can connect the kitchen to the dining room.
In time, a classroom will be needed as we hope to expand adult education.Teaching traditional arts and crafts is soon to be a part of our tech training school. Our current dining room, though small for a dining room, will be a perfect classroom for teaching arts and crafts once the new dining room is complete. Traditional arts and crafts include baskets, jewelry, hand carvings and items made using available materials
This development means the garden and buildings next to the kitchen have to go.
There are changes on the farm as well.
The cowsheds at the farm are no longer needed as we have reduced the size of our herd to three cows and two babies, a boy and a girl.
We also need more space for chickens. In tearing down the buildings to make room for the dining room, we are carefully removing roofing, ventilators and especially the bricks. We are cleaning the bricks, taking them to the farm and using them to change cowsheds into a chicken house for 1,000 chickens.
The bricks are being used to enclose the ends. The workers also will use the bricks to construct a wall with windows on top of the retaining wall already in place.
This level is in front of the cowstalls.
Preparing to build a dining room and constructing the much-needed chicken house at the same time seemed to be a good way to move forward.
I believe the term is “killing two birds with one stone” or "waste not want not."
One very important thing for me is being able to keep many local neighbors earning a little income to feed their families during this pandemic. I am thanking God that Urukundo can help our neighbors and at the same time care for Urukundo. God is good.