More Rwandaness

Check it everyone:

http://www.dewittobserver.com/

Click on the article to read the full thing.....oh wait, I'll just post it here. But still, go there to see the pics.

9/5/2007

Trip to Rwanda instills students with sense of spirituality, hope

By Kate Howes
Staff writer

When three area college students decided to help citizens of an impoverished, third-world country, they never expected to get so much in return.

Their mission began at the suggestion of University of Northern Iowa (UNI) student Nancy Umuhire, who originally is from Rwanda in east central Africa and has not been back to her homeland in three years.

Nancy often had spoken of her dream of returning home and taking other college students with her in an effort to help the residents of Rwanda.

When fellow UNI student Kelly Keegan of DeWitt and her good friend, Iowa State University student Kate Schmidt of Delmar, heard about the idea they wondered what was keeping Nancy's dream from becoming a reality.

"We said, 'Well, let's go to Rwanda,'" Kate recalled. "Nancy asked if we were sure and we said, 'Absolutely, let's go.'"

Over the course of the next year, a group of 13 students from various area colleges volunteered to go, including Kate's younger brother and fellow Iowa State University student, Ben.

The group worked diligently and was able to raise over $30,000 to cover expenses for their trip.

"It was amazing," Kate shared. "Just to have so much affirmation from people. We had a lot of people telling us, 'It's so great you're doing this.' We just thought it was great that we could be doing it."

So, in mid-July, the group traveled to Rwanda where they would stay for two weeks, helping to build a new home for three orphan siblings, ages 15, 20 and 22.

In hopes of being taken off the third-world country list, Rwanda has launched "Vision 20/20," a plan designed to help move poor people out of the capital city of Kigali and into their own homes.

The orphans' new home was part of that effort.

Although their main objective was to build the house, Kelly, Kate and Ben came away from the experience utterly amazed by the progress the people of Rwanda have made since the 1994 genocide and truly inspired by the sense of unity and hope which binds them together.

Welcomed to the family

Members of the group lived with different host families during their stay in Rwanda, all of whom warmly welcomed the students with open arms.

Kelly and Kate stayed with a mother and her four daughters, while Ben stayed with the Mubiligi family whose son, Eugene, is a student at Iowa Wesleyan in Mount Pleasant.

"The hospitality they showed us was amazing," Kate related. "They let us invade their homes, fed us, did Bible study with us. We felt such a connection with them."

In addition to helping build a new house in a small village just outside of Kigali, the students were able to take in a lot of the city's historic sights and culture.

Some of the stops on their itinerary included the famous Hotel Rwanda and Kigali's Genocide Memorial Center, which pays tribute to the nearly 800,000 people brutally murdered in 100 days by way of machetes and guns during the genocide.

"That was really heart-wrenching to see," Ben shared. "They had a children's section where you could see pictures of kids who died, learn how they died . . . that was really intense."

They also visited two orphanages, including the first such facility to open after the genocide. The orphanage is home to 180 children, with whom Kelly, Kate and Ben played games, teaching them American classics such as "Red Rover" and "Duck, Duck, Goose."

"Meeting the children was a great experience," Kelly shared. "We taught them games, they taught us games, we sang songs . . . the relationship we were able to build with the people in the village and the children was awesome."

"The kids all just seemed really happy," Ben noted. "We gave them bubbles to blow and they loved those. We also gave them a football, bags of school supplies, stuffed animals and candy."

The students made a positive impression on the older members of the village as well.

To build the new three-bedroom house, the college students worked with a crew of construction workers whose tools consisted of only shovels, pic axes, a wheelbarrow and hammers.

Ben made an instant connection with the workers, talking to them for hours at a time and not letting the language barrier stand in the way.

"We didn't speak the same language, but we were still able to communicate," he explained. "They wanted to learn English. I hated to say good-bye to them. They wondered when we were coming back . . . we told them, 'Hopefully soon.'"



A lesson in forgiveness

Many of the students who visited Rwanda, including Kelly, Kate and Ben, would like to return someday.

Known as the "Land of 1,000 Hills," the group found themselves fascinated by Rwanda's picturesque landscape.

Yet, more than the country's unexpected beauty, the students truly were amazed by the friendly and compassionate nature of the people.

Although it was just 13 years ago when over half a million people were brutally murdered - neighbors killing neighbors - the country has made tremendous progress and has gone on to become the most stable country in Africa.

Knowing how far the citizens of Rwanda have come and how much forgiveness they have shown one another has forever changed the way Kelly, Kate and Ben will look at the world.

Although they completed their mission of building a new home, the students believe they came away with far more than they gave.

"There's a huge need there, but they've made huge steps," Ben related. "It really was a spiritual thing for me. It helped me to see how God can do so many great things. There's so much hope there. The people all are trying to make things better - they're really united in what they're doing. They all work so hard together . . . together, they can do anything."

"Being there really expanded my world view," Kate shared. "The way they've forgiven each other has helped me realize I need to show more forgiveness and to be thankful for what I have. I'm going to try to be more giving and thankful for my family . . . after all, it's something so precious."

"It was really inspiring to be there and see how much those people have come together," Kelly noted. "They're setting a great example to other countries in Africa. It gives a person a lot of hope to see that. It definitely changed me. The poverty you see there; you can't see it and not want to do something about it. It makes me realize how truly blessed we are in America."