Thank You

We want to thank you for following our adventures in Rwanda. Please check in to this blog in the next week or so as we will be adding some more of our impressions and our pictures.

Also, thank you for your prayer support. There were many times during our trip that we felt the power of your prayers.

All team members have been healthy throughout our trip and we have had a wonderful time together.

See you soon!

Leaving Rwanda

After breakfast on the patio of the guest house, we met for our last devotional in Rwanda before we boarded our bus to the airport. We made one stop to see Hotel Rwanda.

We were very sad to say our farewells to our driver Frank and our host, Jean. They were an important part of our team and we grew to love and appreciate them. The Sousys met us at the airport to say good bye.

Our flight was late leaving Kigali. When we arrived in Nairobi, Don and Joy left the airport to have a picnic in the parking lot with Aaron and Erica Kenny. It was great to get caught up with them and we are looking forward to their visit in April.
The rest of the team waited the 6 hours for our next flight to London in the Java Coffee Shop.

The team is now in London awaiting our next flight .... home! We have a 5 1/2 layover here! If our flight leaves on time, we will arrive in Toronto at 3:15 p.m.

Debriefing with the Sousys

On Thursday morning, we went to the AEBR (Association of Baptist Churches in Rwanda...AEBR is the French shortform!) for our debriefing with Kathleen and Bruno. We had a great time sharing our impressions and experiences of our time in Rwanda.

After this we were introduced to the Dorcas Group. This is a group of women who are HIV positive. This group meets every Friday for prayer, Bible study and mutual support. They are also learning to make baskets, clothing and other items for sale so that one day they can be self-sufficient. They also catered our lunch.

Before our lunch, we had the pleasure of watching a group of young people performing their traditional dance. The young people are street kids who have been meeting every Saturday under the leadership of a Theological student working at the church. Through this programme, many have become Christians and turned their lives around.

We spent the rest of the afternoon shopping in Kigali. Kathleen went with us to ensure that we were able to get the best deals.

In the evening, we went to the General Secretary of the AEBR for dinner. Andre and his wife were great hosts and provided a very traditional meal. This time together gave us the opportunity to learn more about the challenges of the ABR Church in Rwanda.

Orphans and Vulnerable Children Project.

On Wednesday morning we were joined by the programme staff of the OBC Project (Orphans and Vulnerable Children). This project is also know as the Children of Hope Project. Ir was started by CBM 3 years ago. Currently it serves 1560 children in three different villages.

We drove high up into the hills outside of Kigali on red, dusty, clay roads to visit the families. We took rice, cooking oil and food staples to each home. We broke into two groups for visiting the families. Each group visited 4 families. Each story was heart breaking.

"E" is 14. His parents both died of aids when he was 10. His older brothers and sister left him on his own to live in his parents home. Through project he has been given a mentor who visits him weekly. CBM has put a new roof on his house and given him seeds to plant. He keeps a small garden. CBM hopes that he will become self-sufficient.

"G" is on her own with her two young children ages 3 and 4. She is infected with HIV and so are her children. She has also taken in 3 orphans. CBM has build a very samll 2 room house for and is also providing food and counselling.

"M" is an 18 year old who cares for her two younger sibs. Their mother was recently sentenced to 30 years in prison for a crime she says she did not commit during the Genocide. In addition to caring for the younger sibs, "M" takes food each day to the prison for her mother. It takes 3 hours to walk each way. CBM supports the children with a mentor from the village, some rabbits to breed for sale and counselling. Theeir house is in poor repair and will need to be replaced soon.

"P" is an 80 year old grandomother who has raised 8 children but is not caring for 4 orphans whose parents have died of AIDS.

Needless to say this was a difficult morning for the team.

In the late afternoon we made a quick visit to Amani Ja Yu, a women's co-operative in Kigali. The women are all HIV positive. They make beautiful crafts and clothing.
Several team members made purchases for family and friends.

After a short break at the guest house, the team enjoyed a wonderful meal and evening at the Sousy's home. This was a special time for their son Ben has he the company of our youth.

The Visit to the National Genocide Memorial

In the afternoon the team visited the Genociade Memorial. The Memorial was tastefully presented but emotionally dificult for us. We were moved by the videos, the pictures of adults and children who were murdered, the human skulls and bones,
and the mass graves. We were all quiet and deep in thought as we returned to our guest house.

Things lightened up for us after a wonderful time at an Italian Resturant with the Sousy family where the speciality was wood oven pizzas. Until this restaurant, our usual meal consisted of chicken, rice, potatoes, beans, peas, and sodas to drink.

The time with the Sousys was very helpful as we learned more about the Genocide, the political and economic climate of Rwanda.

Leaving Fatima

This Tuesday morning we were sad to leave the Fatima Pastoral center. We all have wonderful memories of are time there. The drive into Kigali was about two and a half hours long and threw some spectacular scenary of the thousand hills. Upon our arrival in Kigali we went directly to lunch. We were joined by Kathleen and Bruno Soucy, global field staff and their entire Sharing Way staff. After lunch the team drove to the Iris Guesthouse which will be are home for our last three nights in Rwanda. It is a beautiful oasis.

Final touches

On Monday morning we returned to the school for our last day on the job. Our first task was to move a pile of bricks. We immiediatly set up a human chain. It took us about an hour. After this some team members worked on tuckpointing the bricks, while others painted the windows and trim. The team worked very hard and were very tired, we left the site at about 2 pm for lunchback at the Fatima centre which is a 15 minute drive we returned at 3 45 for a rematch soccer game with the highschools team. This time the highschools team played very hard and aggressive. Brian Mitchell was our goalie. He had a cheering section of approximetly 30 community kids who cheered him on with every save. The final score Canada 2 Rwanda 1 the winning goal was scored in the dying minutes by James. After the match everyone gathered at centre field where the local pastor spoke highly of the team and their work at the school and community. And he also prayed for a safe journey home. Students and youth took pictures together and said goodbyes before we boarded the bus. This would be are last time at the school . The classroom was complete and ready for students use next week. The initial construction started on July 29. When we returned to the fatima centre they had a special farewell dinnner prepared for us. This post comes to you from james' iPod touch in bourbon cafe in Kigali .