Events

Maryland

On the road again

This time, the destination is the area of Baltimore, Maryland, and a meeting with nursing students at Bowie State University in Bowie, Maryland.

The discussion was on health care and a possible partnership between Bowie in Maryland and the Urukundo Foundation in Rwanda.

SLK Health Corp. is the nongovernmental organization for the nursing school.

International recognition

An invitation to take part in Global Health Education Week at University of Maryland, Baltimore, was indeed an honor for me and the Urukundo Foundation.

The discussion was on health care and a possible partnership between Bowie in Maryland and the Urukundo Foundation in Rwanda.

In on the brainstorming discussion were Virginia Rowthorn, assistant vice president for global engagement at the University of Maryland, Baltimore and executive director of the Center for Global Engagement, and Bonnie Bissonette, director of education abroad and international safety at the university’s Center for Global Education Initiatives.

It was my pleasure to meet and be a part of this discussion.

The event was organized and chaired by Valli I. Meeks, DDS, MS, RDH, clinical professor in the Department of Oncology and Diagnostic Sciences in the University of Maryland School of Dentistry.

Valli has visited Urukundo and was instrumental in the start-up of Urukundo Dental Clinic in 2013.

October Newsletter

Hello, Everyone.

October has been an exciting month and was a very special month for me as I was a guest at the weddings of two of my great-granddaughters. They met a special young man who will come to Urukundo and teach art at Urukundo Learning Center.

His name is Jacob Staskowski. Jacob just graduated from Kutztown University in Pennsylvania with a degree in fine arts and a minor/concentration in art education. We welcome him as a volunteer at Urukundo Learning Center where he will work with our teachers and students. His introduction to Urukundo/Hope Made Real is through Pastor Sunny Stock of Christ Church McKeansburg in Pennsylvania. Pastor Sunny has been a volunteer at Urukundo in the past. Jacob will arrive at Urukundo in January.

Back in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Oct. 4

Special appearance at Mission Sunday project at Hebron Church in Penn Hills, near Pittsburgh.

People learned about Urukundo.

Bruce and Margie Krogh were my hosts for the Hebron project. Margie and Bruce were neighbors in Rwanda for several years before returning to the USA. We at Urukundo miss them.

Gathering of the Grove Bible study group. Sharing my book, “Hope Made Real: The Story of Mama Arlene and the Children of Urukundo.”

It was a fantastic event with an awesome group. The planner was Margie Krogh.

From Vermont to New York


My hostess in Buffalo, New York, was a delightful woman. Barbara Nelson and I spent many happy hours sharing stories and life experiences. It is my hope one day Barbara will come to Urukundo. Her many talents would be such an asset to Urukundo Learning Center.

At SUNY Buffalo State College, the audience was enthralled by speaker Sophia Veffer.

Sophia is a survivor of the Nazi campaign (Holocaust) that orchestrated the slaughter of more than six million European Jews during World War II. She is one of the few survivors of the Holocaust living today and is a very special woman.

Andrew Kahn is founder of the Anne Frank Project at Buffalo State College and a member of the Hope Made Real International Board of Directors.

I was honored to be a member of this panel. The discussion was centered on the Nazi Holocaust and the Rwandan genocide -- very different tragedies and in so many ways very similar.

At the podium