Today were two more Food Security site visits! They are both new sites, but we did get to see them last year for a quick visit! The first site was Mubazi, we had about 80 people jammed into one of the primary school classrooms. Every single one of them eager to learn! There are 58 members of the cooperative, with two main goals; 1. improving animal husbandry and 2. improving agriculture. Listening to the group and their struggles, Rachael quickly changed topics and went over the importance of deworming and parasite control. The second site was Taba where there is an association of 75 members, 43 members came to the training. They also are working on goals of improving their animal husbandry and modern agriculture. Rachael and Leah taught on disease prevention and avoiding its transmission to people!
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This morning we met with all the assistant Veterinary Technicians, or paravets! There were the 9 certified, and the 4 new ones for the 4 new Food Security sites. The 9 veterans reported lots of positives! They all are proud of the work they are doing and feel they are helping farmers to improve in their farming abilities. They not only work closely with the Food Security veterinarian, they are also called upon regularly by the different sector vets. Rachael was very excited to hear about the difference they are making in the lives of people in the areas they serve! The 4 new parapets are also excited about the learning they have had so far, and are already making use of their knowledge in their areas. All the Paravets expressed appreciation for the training they have been given and vowed to work their hardest to serve. The veterans have formed an association, and all contributed money to join, and a monthly stipend. They started in March 2013 and have saved enough money to have already purchased one bull, and now have enough for a second. There goal is to put a bull in each area! Until they are all trained in artificial insemination, they feel this will be the way to improve the genetics in the cows. After lunch we had an opportunity to meet with most of the new students for sponsorship! A very eager group of young people! There will be 26 new students available for sponsorship! Afterwards we went off on a long walk to visit more of the APAP farms. Along the way we met many people, lots of great kids, some working, some playing!! Here are just a few.... We visited 6 farms, all APAP members! Rwanda - land of a thousand hills!!!
Today we drove (or did some Rwandan dancing) on a rough road - 2 hrs - to one of the new Food Security Sites! Definitely worth the drive!!! What a beautiful part of Rwanda, very close to the Burundi border, as a matter of fact, so close we were getting welcome texts on the phones! The cooperative in this area is made up of many people from many different denominations in the church. They have a vision of the reduction of the poverty in the area. They are working together, combining resources to work towards this end. There goal is by 2020 there will be no poverty! Leah and Rachael taught a group of about 130 farmers all about rabies: where it comes from, what to look for, as well as what to do about it. They also spoke on prevention of other diseases that can go back and forth between cows and humans. They gave excellent advice on proper cooking of the meat, as well as preparation of the milk!
Today was spent with all of our students in the secondary sponsorship program. We had a fantastic time! What a dynamic group of young people!! Carolyn spoke to the group about kindness, and a challenge was made to 'Pay it Forward' as they have been blessed with so many gifts and talents as well as sponsors who have helped to pay their secondary school education. This sparked quite a discussion regarding students forming a fund for 'Savings and Credit' that they would all put into that will help any students in the program that have a need, and maybe even others that need fees! This expanded to all people within the diocesan programs that have been sponsored to be invited to contribute - this would extend to our two veterinarians! Was quite inspiring to see this develop. We have left them to figure out all the logistics, and are planning on heading back in 30 minutes to see what they have come up with! After lunch, all of the students that are in our Post-Secondary program came to meet with us. This included the five new ones who have qualified for a bursary for the upcoming university year. We had a fantastic conversation, they shared the positives and the struggles, they asked lots of questions about school in Canada, and the returning students gave very good advice for those starting in September! We are extremely confident that we will see this group of young men and women being very successful and making quite a difference in their communities!! As in years past, all the students expressed their gratitude for the support they've been given! I wish all sponsors could hear it!!! We took some video to bring back and share!
We arrived in Kigali at about 6 pm. We had to wait a bit for our hosts to come and get us. Then we were taken to a guest house, Scripture Union, in Kigali for the night. They fed us a great meal, then we went on a hunt to exchange some money - a first time experience, a 'drive through' Forex! We didn't seem to question the fact that the entire dealing was out of our vehicle and on a back street. Hey, we got a pretty good exchange! Back to the guest house for some sleep, as we knew it would be an early start in the morning!
Sunday morning we went to church and found lots more of our old friends! We were treated to lots of singing, Rwandan's love to sing and participate in choirs!
In the afternoon we visited a few farms. On one farm, the milk production in the cow has increased to 10 L / day form initially 1 - 2 L / day! Quite an improvement. On the way to the last farm, we had to walk across the soccer field where there was a game going on. We were surrounded by lots of children watching who were from the Congolese refugee camp on the hill. They followed us! We walked through a section of the camp and picked up lots of kids! There was lots of laughter and touching of our white skin!!! A little hard when going down some of the hills as they were scrambling in and out of us and bumping us a little. Guess we were quite a show! The living conditions in the refugee camp are less than ideal but these people are amazing at making the best out of a challenging situation. Today we will be finishing packing - we spent 3 hours organizing, wrapping and packing all our packages - we have only decreased in numbers of totes by 3! (Too much shopping? NO!) We are hoping to have a nice lunch with our host before heading to the airport for a 5 pm flight to Kigali! This might be the last entry for a couple days until we get our internet set up in Kigeme, Rwanda.
Late afternoon we met with the board for Tumaini. As usual it was very informative and we had plenty of good discussion. We heard how the school was doing, made some suggestions, listened to ideas and hopes for the future!
A big highlight is how the students have been doing! We are heading into our fifth class of grade 8's to write the National exam. Over the last four years our average scores have been rising; 295, 296, 302 and last year - 340! Total enrolment is 350, up from 288 last year.
In the afternoon we were back at Tumaini to meet with as many of our secondary students that could make the trip in. Some are boarding at a school that is just too far (up to 300 km away) to make it in. Others were sitting exams. Any students we were unable to meet with, our people here will meet with at semester break and send us updated photos!
Living Kids Educational CentreToday we spent some time at our second primary school project here in Nairobi. The Living Kids Educational Centre. We have been working with this school for the last three years to help fund the building of the new school building. We were very excited to see the progress! As you can see in the picture below, the third level has been built! As well, the second level has been finished and railings installed up the stairs and along the front. and the doors and windows are in. The six classrooms are just about ready to move students in. Future plans are to finish the third floor and build on a fourth and final floor. There will be a metal roof put on one side, and a flat slab on the other to hold a water reservoir for the school. When the school is finished, it will have enough classrooms to hold the three pre-primary classrooms as well as grades 1 through 8. (Presently the school goes to grade 4, but will expand as the students move up in grade.) There will also be a library and computer room, a meeting room, as well as a classroom to teach vocational skills to parents to help them find a way to earn a living.
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Team 2019This years team: Archives
August 2019
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