Rwanda - Developing World Connections

Last few days in Gashora: July 16th 2011

2011-08-31T09:54:00.000-07:00

~written July 2011 but unable to post due to poor internet connection in Rwanda

Our last days in Gashora were overwhelming and just flew by!
EXCITING NEWS! WE GOT THE FIRST WING OF THE COVAGA INNOVATION CENTRE COMPLETE! It took a lot of hard work from everyone; the Covaga women, the community volunteers, VCC, and we managed to help out a bit too! The last couple of work days saw us painting feverishly, carefully installing the glass into the windows and door frames, finishing up the setting of the floor and cleaning up the site. We enjoyed sharing lunch each day with the Covaga volunteers and our VCC friends! It was a great way to extend our bond with the Covaga women and encourage more cultural exchange. We have had some good giggles (usually the Covaga women laughing at us trying to speak Kinyarwandan! I would laugh too!) And we shared some good meals!

We have had a great couple of evenings here in Gashora, celebrating and enjoying each others' company before everyone goes their separate ways. We organized a hockey game for us to play with the Covaga women and other community members! It was a great evening topped off with a meal prepared by our very own work site manager in his home! We ate delicious cassava bread! We’ve also participated in some basketball games and a soccer game with teachers from two local schools. It was much fun and a great way to meet other members from the community. The games were usually followed by some beers, Fantas and friendly speeches and conversation.

We visited the local medical centre in Gashora during our lunch break one day as well. It was interesting to see and learn about other aspects of the town we were living in. We also visited the local genocide memorial in Gashora. It was an insightful experience, and meaningful, because we worked with the people directly affected by the genocide that was represented by this memorial. That was overwhelming but necessary.

We visited the beautiful Musanze region of Rwanda (gorilla territory!!!) on our last weekend in Rwanda. Fortunately, two of our participants were able to actually go see the gorillas! They said it was worth every penny! Musanze is a very different region than the Bugasera region we were working in. It has volcanoes and mountains, lush forests and is SO GREEN. Bugasera is dry, and flat, yet has its own charm too, especially Gashora which is right on the lake! It was good to see the vast difference in landscape that the tiny country, Rwanda, has to offer.

On our very last day in Gashora, we held a small lunch celebration to say thank you and goodbye to our Rwandan hosts! It was a sad day, but a beautiful one! We exchanged gifts, shared food and Fantas, snapped lots of photos, hugged, and said goodbye to Covaga and Gashora (well, at least for now…) The connection that we made with the Covaga women, the Vision Construction Company, and the community I am sure will stick with us for a very long time!

Murakoze (thank you) Gashora! Until next time!

Robin Ripley
DWC Team Leader

Reflections from a Volunteer.

2011-07-04T09:47:00.000-07:00

One word: wow!

The life over here in Rwanda is so far from our lives in Canada, it's so important to experience in order to put things in perspective. The little town of Gashora is filled with beautiful, appreciative people that are barely getting by. Mud houses, dirty clothes, torn shoes, and big smiles!!

As we walk from our hotel to the work site in the morning, kids pop out of the bushes yelling MUZUNGU!! which means white person, but they don't say it to be rude. They are genuinely happy to see us and walk with us, holding our hands.

The work is tough: hammering, sawing, painting, shoveling. But it's fun to all work together and we break for great food. We're working with a group of local construction guys who are super cool as well as the Covaga women. They work with us, carrying things on top of their heads and strapping babies to their backs- pretty amazing women. They sit beside us, weaving their beautiful baskets, hats, bags etc. I went into their little shop yesterday and was overwhelmed with the amount of things to choose from. I selected a basket, 2 hot plates, a peace basket and a purse! On the work site I don't really think about if I can do it or not, I just go for it. I may be left with cuts and bruises by the end of the day but a bottle of cold Primus beer smooths everything over.

Amy Ruttan
DWC Volunteer 2011
:)

Celebrations and reflections: Student Team 2011.

2011-07-04T09:35:00.000-07:00

Back in Kigali after an excellent week of work and fun. Looks like the rain has finally stopped and that we are well and truly into the dry season, and it happened just in time for the celebration at the Nelson Mandela Education Centre. The Green Helmets, a German non-profit and non-governmental organization (NGO) who have been working on developing a school for young students since 2005 has finished its term and has handed the school over to the Rwandan Government. It was an excellent ceremony. Illustrating all the new technologies and building principles that they have been working on for so long. It also showcased the CIC and the work that the NMEC students did last year before graduating and now the six former students have created their own construction company, Vision Construction Company. They have already received to job requests after showcasing their work in Gashora. Some members of the Covaga women were also there to show their appreciation to the Green Helmets and the school. All in all a great day for everyone.

We had lunch and dinner. Then took a group to the very emotional genocide memorial at Nyamata. A church which was used for the slaughter of over 5000. It is always so shocking even for myself after experiencing something so positive and uplifting and then having the reminder of the past...

So after getting all depressed once again. We headed off back down to NMEC for Irriguagua aka. banana beer and sang and danced the night away. A very memorable day indeed.

Yesterday was Liberation Day in Rwanda so we only worked a half day then visited the finally completed Girls Initiative School In Gashora. It has very impressive facilities and it makes school facilities in the West look poor. Its a very interesting experimental program only for women studying sciences. It hosts some of Rwandas most intelligent girls for three years before they hopefully go on to Universities in Rwanda and all over the world. The school is run at the moment through an NGO from Seattle, Washington. And the plan is to also hand the school over to the Rwandan government in 7 years. The school is especially special to the Vision Construction Company boys as well. They came with us to see the different construction methods and irrigation in place there and we hope can be integrated into the community gardens of the Covaga center.

Finally we are waiting to catch a bus to Gisenyi on Lake Kivu for some much deserved R&R. It will be a short trip as we will be returning to Kigali tomorrow so that we can catch the Festival of Independence day at Amahoro Stadium on July 4th to signify the end of the genocide.

Grant Jenkin,
DWC Student Team Leader
Rwanda 2011

Sore Joints, Sore Muscles, Smiling Faces

2011-06-28T11:53:00.000-07:00

Our first day in Gashora we were accompanied by students of KIST (Kigali Institute of Science and Technology) who have expressed interest in the development of the CIC. They presented the Covaga Women, the Nelson Mandela Education Centre and Developing World Connections, with a presentation about how to use the water hyacinth plant and different weaving techniques in the completion of the project. It was interesting to see the unique ways these creative and enthusiastic students applied traditional weaving mastered by the Covaga women to the building. We continued the day by taking a tour of the CIC work site. It is crazy to think that just over a year ago there was only a broken down foundation and now there is an almost complete building! We hope (fingers crossed!) to complete the building this month! After NMEC and KIST left the Covaga Women, the seven of us went into town and we all shared in Primus and Fanta at Le Bar Referrence. We were welcomed to Gashora with a song and dance preformed by the Covaga women, a very special experience indeed!

Our first work week brought us sore joints and muscles as we painted beams, sawed logs, hammered nails, crushed rocks, and made cement! The NMEC electricity students managed to give the building light on Wednesday and we started laying down the flooring on Friday! We eat lunch hosted in a local bar with the Covaga women who help with the work each day. Although shy on both sides, we are warming up to each other and trying to communicate better at lunch and during the work day. Language barriers can be so tough! Luckily we have the NMEC construction student graduates (who have now formed their own construction company) there to help with work and communication!

We have enjoyed goat brouchette, Primus, the beautiful landscape, the rain (very rare to have rain at this time of year but welcomed greatly for it cools things down a bit!), and the smiling faces of Gashora! This coming week we are invited to NMEC for the celebration of the handover of the school from the Green Helmets to the Rwandan government. We also hope to visit the Nyamata Memorial Site and the Girls Initiative School in Gashora to celebrate Canada Day and Rwanda's Liberation Day at the end of the week. And of course, we are looking forward for further progression of the CIC!

Cheers,
Robin Ripley
DWC Student Team Leader

Amakuru from Beautiful Gashora

2011-06-28T11:42:00.000-07:00

"Amakuru from Beautiful Gashora! Our team has all arrived safely in Kigali and we hit the ground running by exploring the city of Kigali a bit before we headed out to Gashora. We visited the Kigali Genocide Memorial Centre which was a difficult, yet rewarding educational experience that gave us a better understanding of Rwanda's history and hope for the future. We also toured the recently updated neighbourhood of Nyabugoro with Lama where we of course had some Primus and met up with Till, leader of the Green Helmets at the Nelson Mandela Education Centre (the other NGO that Developing World Connections works with here in Gashora through Building Bridges with Rwanda). He filled us in on the future plans of the Covaga Innovation Centre (CIC.)
The plans look amazing! The building we are currently working on is the boutique where the Covaga women can showcase their work and also sell their work. The other three buildings will be a restaurant, a workplace, and an office. There are plans for fruit and vegetable gardens, a bus stop and a solar power station. The hope is that eventually the CIC will serve as a hub for innovated thinking and practices for the community of Gashora...and it all started with the Covaga women!!

Robin Ripley
DWC Student Team Leader

2011Student Team arrives: Eager to get started and happy to reconnect with friends.

2011-06-20T09:21:00.000-07:00

Well hello to all you travel enthusiasts, we are so excited to be back "in the land of a thousand" Rwanda! It is almost as if we never left. I guess in my mind I had not as Rwanda has always been a priority in my mind since leaving last June(2010). It was so great to catch up with Lama yesterday and to see some familiar faces at la Palisse Hotel in Kigali. Lama has shared some updated information and photos with us on how the Covaga Innovation Center is coming along. I can't wait to get back to work and see all the friends that we made one year ago.

Amy, Will and Wade arrived last night but were up and at it early this morning eager to get out and explore. John and Drew will be arriving tonight and that will be our team. Lots to do tomorrow including a trip to the Genocide museum in Kigali and a tour of Kigali. Monday we are off to meet our building partner at the Nelson Mandela Education center and then to Gashora to meet with the Covaga women. So excited can hardly wait!

We will try to keep you posted as best we can however Internet is a dodgy at best.

Miliwe! Cheers

Grant Jenkin

DWC Student Team Leader

2011 DWC Student Volunteers head out.

2011-06-20T09:15:00.000-07:00

This past weekend, a Developing World Connections Volunteer Team headed to Gashora, Rwanda to continue to build the COVAGA Innovation Centre. The Covaga Innovation Centre is part of an integrated community development program that has convened several stakeholders from private, public, civil society and academia to contribute to the implementation of Rwanda’s Vision 2020, at the community sector level.

The Covaga Weaving Cooperative is the perfect first development toward a sustainable community of Gashora. This cooperative of women weavers harvests the water hyacinth plant as a renewable natural resource to turn environmental challenges into socio economic opportunities. While ridding local lakes and rivers of the invasive water hyacinth, the Covaga weavers will produce a variety of export quality furniture and home accessory products utilizing the leaves and stem of the plant, and will use all other components of the plant for fertilizer and cattle feed. The weavers currently produce baskets, hats, purses, belts and other artifacts
using other natural grasses.

The Internet connections in Kigali and Gashora are intermittent at best. We hope to post as much as we can about the Volunteers, the community of Gashora and the project over the next month. Stay tuned.

Rwanda, Gashora: Team Leader Shannon's thoughts and reflections

2010-10-21T10:09:00.000-07:00

September 8th, 2010

Today is our third day in Rwanda. It is 7:47am and the team has just headed off to work for the day. I have stayed behind a few minutes to organize my budget and our teams day. As I reflect over the past few days I am not sure how exactly I am feeling. This trip has been over a year in the making for me and having previously been here, at a different project, I feel overwhelmed with emotions. My first time as the Team Leader places a unique spin on my role in the group and I have to say I am enjoying it. The team that I have is absolutely incredible. I am proud to have 14 such hardworking, dedicated and caring individuals to share this experience with. I was originally worried about having three 17 year olds in the group…however, they have blown me away with their positive attitudes and playful nature. Their energy warms the group. One member has been suffering with back pain. This has not slowed her down once, she works so hard and stays so positive I am humbled by her. On the job site yesterday each person quickly picked up a shovel, wheeled wheel barrows, heisted boards to the roof and sawed logs without a moments hesitation. One member is even teaching English to the Covaga basket weavers – to help them learn to communicate with future customers. Overall, I am deeply amazed with this team!

It is a strange feeling coming back to Rwanda for a second time. Flying into Kigali I felt déjà vu arriving into the same airport, filling out customs forms and anxiously waiting, and praying, that our bags all arrive – and they did! Greeting Lama in the arrivals area I was grinning ear-to-ear. His warm smile, patient/laid-back nature and good heart reminded me of one of the many reasons why I fell so in love with Rwanda last year. Even better, Claudine, Lama’s girlfriend, is here to work with us. She is from Brundi and speaks English very well. It is like having two Lama’s! Leaving the airport I was also reminded how warm Rwandan’s are. A simple greeting of “Bete” will always spark a big smile from women, children or men who quickly thank you and in Kinyirwanda ask you how you are. I also remember how safe I feel here. There are no swarms of locals trying to sell you things. The country feels very peaceful. Despite the hundreds of people that fill the streets in this tiny overcrowded country – they seem to peacefully interact and go about their business.

On the worksite the locals welcome us. They seem very connected to this project. The Covaga Cooperative of women have elected officials who democratically make decisions for their cooperative. They will help out on the project in their beautiful traditional dresses and some even have babies tied to their back. The project works together with the Green Helmets who teach skilled trades to locals at the Nelson Mandela Education Centre just a few minutes away. Their students are working on their practicum and come to work with us each day. They can communicate in broken English which makes communication an easier job for us. On the job site there is hard work, laughter and pride. At one point we made two long assembly lines to pass tiles off a truck into a pile. The teamwork was impressive and the locals shouted out in Kinyirwanda “Go Development! Go Covaga! Go Development! Go Covaga” over and over. It was amazing!

Overall, I am humbled by this experience. I am inspired by my group, and I feel so much love for Rwanda and these remarkable people. This is all I have time to write now as I must get off to work.

Shannon Ritchie
DWC Team Leader
Rwanda 2010

Gashora, Rwanda: First day on the project with the community

2010-10-21T09:59:00.000-07:00

I am so excited for this day is our first day on the Covaga Innovation Project in Gashora, Rwanda. We are up early, eating a good breakfast omelets, potatoes, cornflakes, fruit and coffee, Merv & I didn’t have a clue what we would be doing today but it was going to amazing that’s for sure. We headed down the dirt road (the earth is very red in color here and they have trees that look like cactus, we stay at the La Palisse Hotel where there is rooms that are modest with a bed and may-be a dresser every room has a mosquito net but the mosquitoes aren’t bad so far...We have toilets to share and showers as well with the best cold water that trickles from the shower head but OHHHH so appreciated after lots of dirt and sawdust on us.

We all walked down the dirt road to our work site ,which is about a 20 minute walk along the way we met many beautiful little children, they were all ages, so excited to see the Muzungu which is the name they say for white person. Some wear shoes like crocs, most still bare feet. They all came running up to us shaking hands, asking our names and loving it when we take there pictures. They laugh and giggle and when we take their pictures we can show them on the digital camera, they are always posing. Despite what these children’s families have gone through when the genocide took place in 1994 these children are very happy with what they have they are truly amazing, Yesterday we had the opportunity to visit the genocide museum in Kigali it broke our hearts so much to absorb, seeing the children, and the human bones brought tears to my eyes how senseless the killing and torture to women men and children of Rwanda was. Merv and I feel so privileged just to be here sharing in there lives a life determined to rebuild to include, family, love , laughter and education. We are thankful for so much we take for granted in our own daily lives...

Once at the site there were groups of people gathered many women ,men, and children very happy to see us shaking our hands, smiling introducing themselves, both of us saying our names to each other they wear the most beautiful bright colors, with dress and shawls, they also wear clothes we know have been donated like the Wendys’ soccer (football to them) shirts in bright yellow and purple and say Kamloops on them, how neat was that to see.

There mode of transportation for most is by bicycle, they carry each other, water, chickens, benches, anything they need to transport they do, as well as just for the pleasure, as vehicles are expensive and no one can afford them. The bicycles are older, with carrying racks and often big adult ones not small ones but the children readily adapt and zoom everywhere with them. When we arrived on site we had a group of men introduce themselves who were going to direct us and keep the project flowing. The structure of the centre is built of brick and today we were putting the frame up for the roof. This was hard to believe everything done by ropes and people power it is always a team effort we really helped there today everyone jumping in. We also dug a ditch with a pic axe and shovel good old manual labor but it felt so good and so right with everyone working together . Sad note on that was we had to fill it in because the authorities changed there mind where it should be placed. And another big hole had to be dug.

One of the most shocking things for most of us who went to the toilet was the kind of toilet it was an outhouse with a steel hole shaped like a key hole with two feet on it which you squatted down to do your business on you pack your own toilet paper or Kleenex because you never know if there will be any! Wish the kids could see this !!!

Merv found his grove with the guys and he took to the wheelbarrow hauling the dirt away, helping with the lifting of boards and enjoying the children which were many. I am so proud of him for coming on this trip. He too thought about how we take for granted in life that we have all the tools, and trucks available at home to make a job like this so easy here they have been working on this for 5 months and they are just at the roof the final stages which they hope to finish while we are here to help.
During the day we work, take a banana break, walk back to our hotel for a hot lunch, walk back ,to work, have another banana break which usually women deliver to us in a basket and these bananas are grown in nearby plantations. Just before the end of the day the tiles showed up in a big truck to do the roof and it was amazing we had women, with babies on the back, all of us, men workers, young boys, pitch in and pass the tiles to each other until that big truck was emptied the Rwandans love to sing and laugh and they did as we passed the tiles it was what Developing World Connections is all about even though we don’t speak the same language we are still connecting, people helping people.

I was so happy, I got to talk to the different woman who weave there baskets, and I also purchased some to bring home, I got to work shoveling dirt in making a trench, I got to have a lot of fun working with Peter (He will be graduating from his trade in carpentry he is very excited) who directed Ruth, Jenn, & I with the carpentry skills of using tools to cut, and shave the wood, measure and pile it back. It was great fun and we could tell he enjoyed teaching us. I got to hold a beautiful baby today, he was so cuddly and happy we all made him laugh and he giggled and we all melted. His mother was proud to share him with us. It is very important to Rwandans to have children and they think it is very sad if you don’t have any, they often ask you that question.

Merv & I just are so happy to be here and we are so Super happy Shannon and Lama have worked so hard to give us this amazing experience. Everyone should one day!

Merv & Ardell Fedorchuk
DWC Participants
Rwanda 2010

Gashora, Rwanda: The journey getting there

2010-10-21T09:31:00.000-07:00

It’s 2:30 am Rwandan time, on Monday morning, September 6th. We are 9 hrs ahead of BC time and we are spending our first night in Kigali before we head to Gashora later today. It’s the first time I’ve slept with a mosquito net over the bed, but so far the mosquitos haven’t been too bad from what we can tell. That will likely change when we go to Gashora which is by a lake that has hippos and crocs in it. No swimming here!

We arrived into Kigali at about 3:00 pm Sunday, September 5th. It was a very long 2 days worth of travel from Kamloops, which started on Friday, September 3rd at noon. The flight into Kigali reminded me very much of flying into Kamloops – it looked very similar. We were greeted in Kigali with every single bag in much better shape than expected. It was with great joy that we saw every bag make the journey safely and all 15 of us team members had all of our clothes and donations without anything missing! I understand this is quite remarkable – especially considering the Air Canada reps in Kamloops found flight discrepancies between our tickets and the airline schedule!

Lana, myself and Shannon left Kamloops to Vancouver and met up there with Marlene, Jen, Ruth, Ardel, Merv, Kelsey, and Lauren. We then flew 9+ hours to London throughout the night. Sleep came difficult. I felt like I was Air Canada’s personal pill pusher as I distributed little blue sleeping pills amongst the team members. We got to London on time, but all quite weary from a long, sleepless night. We met up with Sarah, Mirae and Amy (all from Vancouver). We didn’t want to miss any opportunity though to explore London while on a 10 hour layover, so we checked our carry on into lockers and took the tube, or the “underground” and rode to Picadilly Circus.

We promptly went for some traditional English fish n’ chips and beer and although it was lunch time in England, it was only 3:30 or 4:00 am back home. Yum – fish n’ chips for breakfast!!! After some fuel, we went and did a whirl wind sightseeing tour to Buckingham Palace, the London Eye, Big Ben and just enjoyed the architecture and people of London until it was time to take the tube back to the airport for the next leg of the trip – another overnight flight to Ethiopia (7 hrs +). This flight wasn’t quite as comfortable and I’ve gotten quite spoiled to the newer planes with individual tv monitors. This plane was quite old and the attendants were kind enough to brighten the lights and feed us dinner at about 1:30 am. Once in Ethiopia, we went for a wonderful breakfast of scrambled eggs, orange juice, toast and jam, and coffee – from a wonderful espresso machine with steamed milk! The best sight I’d seen all day. Plates upon plates of toasted baguette came to the table. There must have been 6 or 7 loaves sliced up. A lot of bread!!! It sure tasted amazing and the coffee was fantastic. However, after the one pot of steamed milk and one coffee each, it seemed like they ran out when we asked for more. We laughed about them having to go milk a goat. Which may have actually happened, because when we asked another waiter about 30 minutes later, he was kind enough to bring us some steamed milk and more coffee.

I used my first squat toilet in the Ethiopian airport. It was very clean, and it was right beside the female prayer room. There was this cool tub in the bathroom which I assumed was to wash your feet before praying. I found out later the other washrooms in the airport were western style toilets, but they always had line ups, and the very clean squat toilet didn’t, so it was all good.

One more flight – last flight of the day to Kigali. Just a short skip and a hop of 2.5 hrs. However, there was an unknown stop in Uganda for about an hour. Oh well, by this time although we were all antsy to get to our final destination, there is not much that can be done, so we just chilled. We flew into Kigali during a major rain burst ( it is the rainy season and it certainly has rained the past couple of days), but it was beautiful. As I mentioned, despite the cynicism, all bags arrived in tact so it was cause for celebration. Lama and Claudine met us with a little truck and it took two trips to load all of our luggage and us to the hotel. It’s a good thing half the luggage was donations or it would have been awfully embarrassing! In Rwanda, we met up with our final team members – Warren from England and Karol from France.

The first impression of Rwanda was amazing – very clean. I didn’t see any garbage or litter and Lama told us that the use of plastic bags was illegal in the country (hence why they took them away from us when they saw us in the airport). Pretty proactive for a country such as Rwanda I’d say.

We checked into La Palisse – fancy on Rwanda terms and in our terms probably a 2 star hotel. However, it was clean, the thought of sleeping horizontally on a bed was very appealing by this time, and the best part……hot showers!!! We were so delighted to have hot showers after that long journey and we were all incredibly happy and content by this time. We cleaned up, went to exchange some money and then to a fantastic Moroccan restaurant. PS. Forgot to tell you that before we went to the restaurant, we were out and a few of us girls had to go to the washroom – we went and used the public washroom and when we came out discovered we had to pay 100 francs…that’s about .25 cents and obviously well worth it.

Anyway, back to the Moroccan restaurant – it was down the road from “Hotel Rwanda” and it was fantastic. We sat outdoors in the most beautiful outdoor setting with a ton of lights and candles hanging from trees, on tables, etc. Most expensive meal was 5600 francs which is about $12. It was absolutely fantastic. Shannon is spoiling us – she keeps needing to remind us that this will change soon as we get to Gashora. After eating, we were intending to go get supplies and water from the market, but after a full stomach, we were all exhausted. It was a long 2 days, we are very content and tomorrow will bring a full day doing our orientation, going to the genocide museum which will be an emotional experience prior to leaving for Gashora. It is also the presidential inauguration in Kigali with 15 heads of African states in attendance, so I’m sure tomorrow will be a very exciting, full day filled with excitement and new memories.

Now, it’s time to go back to sleep prior to an early start……good night!

Lisa Fuller
DWC Participant
Rwanda 2010

Gashora, Rwanda: August 2010 - Reflections

2010-08-23T14:36:00.000-07:00

I'm writing this from our 'vacation' within a vacation at a luxury safari lodge. We've momentarily slipped back into our western world and I'm able to be a bit more detached from the emotional time I spent in Gashora. Therefore, I can finally tell you this story without getting teary eyed. I was going to blog about hanging out with my 'adopted' Rwandan family, drinking milk straight from the cow or watching the 100 year old woman ride on the back of a bike to the hospital. But those stories will have to wait...wanted to share a more meaningful but less fun story.

I arrived in Gashora with about 15 snapshots of kids that I had taken on last year's trip. None of the families in Gashora have a camera and i knew that the kids would be excited to have a photo of themselves. I gave most of the photos out in the first few days...got plenty of squeals from youngsters and thank you hugs from their parents. After the third day, I still hadn't found one of my favorite little guys to give him his picture. Now, I shouldn't play favorites but this 9 year old boy was one that I remembered from last year as helpful, quiet but sweet. I remember saving a little AYSO soccer jersey for him and gave it to him at the end of our trip last year. Anyway, I started showing his photo to several other children and found out that the boy's name was Karisa. He was one of the poorest kids in the village-his father had passed away and he lived with his mother. He would rather watch the Muzungus than go to school- which explains why I remembered him so much from last year's work site. After the village kids got over the disappointment that I didn't have a photo for them, a few ran off to find the little boy. Awhile later, I saw him walking up. At first, I was surprised that he didn't seem more excited to get his photo. My surprise turned to concern when I saw him up close. He was breathing really hard and he seemed a bit thinner than last year. I tried to tell myself that maybe he just had a growth spurt or maybe he just had a cold...but deep down I knew that something was wrong. Even though he was excited for his picture, he just didn't have the same brightness in his eyes. He doesn't speak a word of English but I could tell that he remembered me. I had tears in my eyes as I gave him a hug while trying to hide my worry from him.

That night, I talked over my experience with Nick and decided that I would pay the $2 for a years worth of Rwanda's universal health care. Then the doctors would see the boy at the nice new health center and hopefully figure out if he had worms or even malaria. The next day, I had Lama find the boy's mother to be sure that was okay. After an in-depth Kinyarwandan conversation between Lama and the mother, Lama steered me off to the side. "I have bad news" Lama said and my stomach dropped. Apparently the little boy (and his mother) were both HIV positive. This was not news that I was expecting and I had to walk away for a bit. It seemed so unfair that this little boy was born with HIV. The family was receiving medication from the health center, but with a sick mother and no father, the family did not have enough money for nutritious foods and it was taking a toll on the boy's health. Perhaps this wasn't the best approach but I gave some money to the boys mother (about $50 US) and made it clear that it was for their well being. She thanked me, slipped it under her shirt and we took a photo. I did not see her again the entire trip. Later that day, I saw the boy in a brand new outfit and freshly bathed. He looked much better, though I couldn't help but wince when I felt his hard belly. At movie night that night, the little boy sat in my lap as the team worked to get the electricity connected. Being a nine year old boy, he was a little too big to be cuddled like a baby, but he briefly feel asleep in my arms, and I loved him more that I thought was possible for a stranger. When he woke up, I had one of my Rwandan friends tell the boy that the could go play with his friends and that he didn't have to stay with me. He told her he would rather stay with me so that he could see the screen (We snagged one of the desks). He then proceeded to tell the Rwandan translator that his mother had told him that I was a good person and that she couldn't care for him like I could and that I was taking him to America with me. I have no idea where that rumor came from, but clearly the villagers talk and that story was created. I told the Rwandan translator that there was no way I was bringing him to America and that she needed to tell the boy that he should stay with his mother. She responded that she didn't have the heart to tell him and that it was best for him to believe that there was hope in his future. I tried to tell her that he should know the truth but the movie had started and the kids in the room were screaming. Later, during a scene in E.T where the American mother is putting dinner on the table for her kids, he looked up at me and smiled and cuddled close. My stomach dropped and I, once again, had tears in my eyes. The next day, I had a Rwandan friend tell the boy that he was not coming to America. I wasn't there to see the boy's reaction. I didn't get to say goodbye. I wish I could tell you that there was a happy ending to this story but there is not. I am resting easier knowing that my 'adopted' Rwandan family has promised to look out for the boy. They are showing their love for me by helping the boy. Covaga should be giving the boy a goat out of the funds that we raised. But, life is tough for these people in Gashora. Much tougher than I realized last year. It is not just a village filled with women chatting while weaving and happy kids running through the streets. I am not sureI was prepared to peel off the layers and see the harsh reality that is life in a developing country. As we enter Uganda, I am honestly not ready to reach out and make such deep connections as I have with those in Gashora. I hear life is even harder in Uganda-less government structure, less access to healthcare, etc and I'm not sure I can handle another heartache. But, I didn't come on this trip just for safaris and photo ops. Situations like these spur me to care more and therefore do more. My Rwandan friends have asked me to say God Bless you to our team's friends and family. I couldn't agree more.

Love, Melissa
DWC Participant

Gashora, Rwanda: August 2010 - Friday Night, Movie Night.

2010-08-23T14:34:00.000-07:00

On Friday night we held the first movie night in Gashora. People came from all over the village. We walked up from the hotel and when we got close to the Gashora Primary School children came running out of the dark night to greet us! They literally jumped on us!

We got to the school. We had a plan. Ryan was to get the projector. Michon had the computer. I was to get the two thirty foot extension cords. We were going to plug into the classroom at the opposite end from the computer lab and project on an end outside wall. That was the plan. First hiccup. No power in that classroom. Ok, no problem, they had an extension cord. Sortof. It was a mass of tangled wires that could be used to wire something. So, after 20 minutes of sticking bare wires into electric sockets and wrapping bare wires around plug in posts - tahdah! - still no power. Turned out that one of our fancy new extension cords was defective. So, plan B (or is that C?). We move the group to the second classroom and use the shorter extension cord. Again, 20 minutes of fiddling with wires and we have a connection. Power on! But when we turned on the projector and the computer....not enough electricity! So, we decided to go on battery power with the laptop...and we are ready for the show.

More than 80 kids and parents poured in the small classroom. I can't tell you how that is possible but the floor was covered with children as young as 5. We started by showing pictures that we had taken of the kids during the week. Well that was the biggest hit. They were roaring when they recognized someone. Then we put on the movie ET. I wish I could tell you that you could have heard a pin drop but that wasn't the case. People were talking and narrating the movie. We loved it. We watched about the first half and then it was time to wrap up. We all had the same sense of closeness with the group packed into the room. You weren't so much sitting in a chair or on a bench but sitting "with" the people of Gashora. As we filed out and the movie goers disappeared into the darkness we too quietly left feeling closer to this community. Things aren't easy here. Several times we thought about canceling. But perseverance is key. Maybe that is the same in North America and we just give up too easy. But this was so worth it. The next day were were asked, "When is the next movie night?"

Nick

DWC Team Leader

Rwanda 2010

Gashora, Rwanda: August 2010 - Sunday's Best.

2010-08-23T14:33:00.000-07:00

We started our final day in Gashora by attending mass at the local Anglican church. We were welcomed into the church by Janvier, the principal at Gashora Primary. As we entered, we were greeted by beautiful song and scripture. It's fair to say that I don't wear my emotions on my sleeve, and I haven't been actively participating in the catholic church back home in Chicago. As we spent our final hour with the community of Gashora, in their church, in their community listening to their amazing songs, I couldn't help but wear my emotions. I can't tell you one word that was spoken during the mass, but I was consumed by their incredibly beautiful song, I was consumed by the sense of community in the room. I believe in the power of music, but sitting there today, I think I found some clarity in the role of community. We live in an incredibly complex world, but it's not as big as we make it out be. We live in a global community.

We look out for each other in our communities across North America, but it's important that we look out for our neighbors across the global. What happens in Rwanda or Uganda likely won't make headlines in your local paper, but it has an impact. You might not notice it right away, but it will touch in you in some way, at some time. On the topic of Sunday's best, we did some incredible things this week. We continued to work on the Covaga Innovation Center. In October of 2009, we laid the foundation for the main wing. This past week we finished up the entryway and work is beginning on the roof. We brought over 400 pounds of donations to Gashora in the form of medical supplies, clothing, school supplies, and technology equipment. We showed the movie E.T. at a movie night at Gashora Primary. We donated $1400 to Covaga through the Gashora Basket Project sales (to be used for the purchase of livestock and youth scholarships). We made new friends, we celebrated with old. Above all, we created a stronger bond with our global community.

We are off to Uganda tomorrow morning. We have a couple rest days and then back to work. Another successful trip to Rwanda, and we can't wait to return. With love from Rwanda..

DWC Team

August 2010

Gashora,Rwanda: August 2010 - Construction Days are over.

2010-08-23T14:32:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we finished the construction of the terrace. We pushed hard and thanks to our Rwandan friends who also worked very hard we got it done. It looks great and we are very proud of what we accomplished. It was a lot of picking, shoveling, wheel barrowing, and stone work. And it looks great!

We celebrated with a beer as a team at a local establishment which was fitting.

We then observed the donation of a cow and scholarship money by Melissa and Ryan to the women of the Co operative. They were very surprised and happy. This donation was the result of Melissa and Ryan selling baskets and raising money all year. It was very emotional and a wonderful gift that will keep giving.

We are all very tired and looking forward to some time off. Though we are tired and sore we have no regrets and would do it again. We now look forward to some good work in Uganda.

Michael Loeters

DWC Participant

Gashora, Rwanda: August 2010 -

2010-08-23T14:12:00.001-07:00

Our team of ten people is traveling to Rwanda and Uganda in August of 2010 to volunteer.

We will be working in Gashora, Rwanda helping construct a building for the women of Covaga Basket Weaving Coop. They take Water Hyacinth out of the local lakes and weave it into beautiful baskets as a way of generating some local income.

We will also be taking 6 laptops to help establish a computer facility for the Urungano Youth Association.

In Uganda we will be volunteering at African Child in Need, Sanyu Babies Orphanage and the OCA Computer Center. African Child in Need takes street boys off the street and gives them a home and an education.

Follow our adventures - we will update our progress daily!

Mapendo

2010-06-21T15:18:00.000-07:00

We've reached day 27. The regular bouts of sickness have come and gone for most of the group. The project is moving along smoothly and the team has gelled nicely. Jenn and I have had some pretty interesting days recently as well. On Friday, we spent a few hours in the bank withdrawing some money. Initially it was an annoyingly slow process, especially for us Canadians who are used to jetting in and out of the bank on a lunch break. But with unreliable networks, we ended up waiting for quite some time.

Although we were stuck, it turned out to be a bit of a blessing in disguise. As Jenn stood for a while working out the transaction, I sat with our stuff. I was sitting next to a lady who, as it turns out, is one of the most interesting people I think I've ever met. Her name is Rose Mapendo. She is the co-founder of Mapendo, an organization that helps women and children refugees from the Congo, from Sudan, and from Somalia. She is a 1998 genocide survivor from the DR Congo who is now a spokesperson for several organizations, including the UN. She was also the 2009 United Nations Humanitarian of the Year. After an hour conversation, we parted ways with hopes of meeting her organizations headquarters in Nairobi in August. Being Muzungus here certainly draws a huge amount of attention, but every once in a while it sure is a great conversation starter.

Dan
DWC Student Team Leader
June 2010

Biking in the Dark

2010-06-21T15:14:00.000-07:00

As travellers we know that there are few moments along the journey where you become completely absorbed by your surroundings. We are in Rwanda and every ounce of our being gives into this. You don't know when these moments will come, they are not anticipated and they can not be found in a guide book. For us this moment came last night, we like to call this our Rwanda moment number 1!

Last week we were invited to the local school to play a game of soccer against the teachers. So yesterday we arrived at the knee high grass football field in our work clothes and running shoes to face our opponents dressed head to toe in matching red uniforms. We enjoyed the moment despite knowing we would surely lose. After the match we were surrounded by 600 students, half of the school had come out to watch. We enjoyed some beers with the team and were soon encompassed by darkness. And by darkness I mean you can not see your hands wave in front of your face. We then spent 45 minutes trying to find our bikes while negotiating in Kinyarwandan with our taxi drivers trying to increase the prices again. A fun game that we usually lose. We finally bunched together, left our bikes and headed down the road for a 40 minute walk home, all the while continuing the negotiations. After nearly another half an hour we settled on a price and were offered free rides home.

Now begins our Rwandan moment number one. We climbed on the back of our bicycle taxi driver's bikes and settled in for a bumpy ride home in the pitch dark. As we rushed down the hill I began to realise that I never felt more encompassed by Rwanda. My life in the hands of my new friend Bernard, the bugs and the rain flying at my face, and the distant singing of the Rwandan women along with a little bit of fear and a whole lot of excitement. In that moment I let go and let myself become completely engulfed by Rwanda.

Dan and Jen
DWC Student Team Leaders
June 2010

Gashora, Rwanda: May 2010 Student Group

2010-06-03T08:50:00.000-07:00

Today, we've been working all day and at 430, half an hour to quitting time we got rained out. Work is going great and everyone is happy. We just went through our first wave of sickness in the group which surprisingly took a long time to come. Just sore stomachs and headaches. Nothing a little cyprofloxacin and some rest can't take care of. This weekend is the time for the gorilla trek for the lucky ones who are getting to do it.
We will update when we can.

Dan and Jen
DWC Student Team Leaders
May 2010

Gashora

2010-05-25T09:59:00.000-07:00

Gashora, our host community, lies beside one of Rwanda's many beautiful lakes. It is much dryer here than in Kigali and the hills are softer as though someone has rolled them out with a rolling pin. The community has been very welcoming, for quite a few this means a new pass time of watching the Muzungus while we work. We have made many friends, played a few games of basketball and have been practicing our Kinyarwanda. All in all Gashora will be a lovely home for the next two months.

Covaga is a women's collective working in Gashora to fight poverty though their incredible talent for weaving baskets made from water hyacinth and papyrus. The women are kind and seem to be constantly giggling usually at our attempts to speak Kinyarwanda. These women are strong, patient and empowered. They dress in colourful traditional dresses and sit comfortably in the shade weaving for hours. Sitting amongst them in silence can only be described as serenity.

Jen and Dan
DWC Student Team Leaders
Gashora, Rwanda, May 2010

Kigali

2010-05-25T09:57:00.000-07:00

Surprisingly, the arrival of our 25 friends in Kigali has consumed most of our past week and has not allowed us access to a computer. For the first week of our African journey Dan and I spent our days exploring Kigali. Kigali is clean, beautiful and constantly bustling. The city is spread out over at least a dozen rolling lush green hills dotted with banana trees and corn fields. Brick houses line the dusty red roads.

Dan and I spent our days on crowded fifteen passenger city buses and slow moving motos and have enjoyed a constant diet of beans, rice, potato, banana and brechette(basically goat on a stick- the local favorite). We have met a dear friend Chistopher who has given us a incredibly warm welcome to Rwanda which has included several Rwandan lunches and tours around downtown. Chistopher has even been kind enough to invite us to his house where we enjoyed an evening of Rwandan beans and rice and of course rap music videos. What unites us always comes in surprising forms!

On May 15th Dan, Lama, Chistopher and myself spent the day meeting our host partners. At the Nelson Mandela center, just outside Kigali, we met the greenhelmets team from Germany who will be the architects on the Covaga center. Currently the team is working with the community to build a school for vocational training. We enjoyed a french cup of Rwandan coffee with the group then headed to Gashora to meet the Covaga women.

Jen and Dan
Student Team Leaders
Rwanda May 2010

African Scene

2010-05-25T09:55:00.000-07:00

The travel took thirty hours, but we've landed safe and sound. we've met Lama Mugabo, our host and director of Building Bridges with Rwanda. we made it out last night- our first night in Kigali- and walked around, went to a few restaurants and had a few beers with Lama.

Not much has happened to this point, but I will leave you with a little anecdote:
Yesterday morning, we were flying into Nairobi International Airport. Having flown over night, it was the tail end of a long, dark, 9 hour flight. We flew over many things that we wished we would have been able to see; the sahara, Lake Victoria, the mountains of Kenya. but just as we were making our final approach, the sunrise poked gloriously over the horizon out the window over my left shoulder. The cocktail explosion of colors would be hard to do any justice by mere description but there was however two Kenyan men sitting directly behind me who summed it up best. They had been quiet for the duration of the flight, but seeing the sunrise one leaned over to the other and said to the other in his distinctive Swahili accent: "it's beautiful, no? this is an african scene."

Dan Couture
DWC Team Leader
Rwanda 2010

May and July 2010 Student Teams in Gashora, Rwanda.

2010-05-25T09:53:00.000-07:00

vutika - be interested, be attracted, be fascinated

All news out of Africa is bad. It made me want to go there, though not for the horror, the hot spots, the massacre-and-earthquake stories you read in the newspaper; I wanted the pleasure of being in Africa.

- Theroux-

November 2, 2009: A Journey to Rwanda

2009-12-09T10:50:00.000-08:00

When I walked onto the plane leaving for Rwanda I had every intension of updating the blog each evening, internet allowing. The journey to arrive in Rwanda was a long one but it was exciting and filled with new places and new people.
When the Softchoice Team arrived in Kigali it was late and Nick was there to meet us at the airport and with his welcoming face, we all felt a sigh of relief knowing we had finally arrived and we were only a bus ride away from Gashora. The team gathered their luggage and headed towards our transportation and that is where my real journey began..... My luggage did not arrive in Kigali with the other luggage and I was soon to learn how slow things moved in Africa. I waited patiently for what seemed like hours to report my missing luggage, they were in no hurry to get the paper worked completed and they took one person at a time patient asking questions and getting descriptions of our luggage (several other passengers were also missing luggage). I asked if I could complete the paperwork in order to speed the process up but I was just answered with a smile. This is where I learned the true definition of African time.
The next morning after gathering some supplies we left Kigali and headed out for our village, Gashora. My luggage, still nowhere to be found.
In Kigali the streets were crowded with cars driving recklessly in and out of traffic, motorcycles known as taxi’s whipping in and out and between cars, it was a hectic sight. We traveled a two lane highway which brought us to a dirt road which looked like something you would not want to take a take a car down, my first thought was that we were pulling off of the road for some reason but that was not the case, this bumpy primitive dirt road was the road to Gashora and this was a road leading to a journey that would change my life.
We passed homes that had dirt floors, no glass in windows and many without a front door and after leaving a city like Kigali with buildings and cars this came as a shock to me, it was as if we were taken back in time on this dirt road and it was on this dirt road that I decided that I would not use my cell or a computer to update anyone, no emails, no blog, I wanted to see what it was like to not have technology, no internet, no cell phone, I wanted to feel like the people of Gashora. I did not want to know what was going on outside of our village. Would I make it?
We arrived at our hotel in Gashora it was raining and muddy, they did not have paved roads. We settled in for the night and met for breakfast the next morning, which soon became a routine, breakfast at 6:00, lunch at 1:ish and dinner at 7:ish….it was all on African time. The 00ish…….. Equals (=) African time.
In Africa I learned that no one rushes, there is no urgency to get things done in record time. If your luggage has not arrived, it will be there when it gets there, no worries.
The hotel was powered by a generator so we only had electricity for a portion of the day; the generator was turned off during daylight hours and after 10:00pm each evening to conserve fuel. We were lucky our hotel had showers but in my building we did not have hot water and not once during my stay at the hotel in Gashora did I ever get a hot or warm shower, they were all cold. I learned to live with the cold showers and after a hot day of working they came to feel good to me and were always welcomed.
When I packed for the trip I remembered Nick saying “bring the things you need right away in your carry on, just in case your luggage gets lost”. The night before I left for Africa Nick’s comment stuck in my head and I re-packed my luggage at 10:30pm that evening allowing me a couple of changes of cloths, my work boots and gloves along with a jacket and a rain coat, no shampoo, no personal items except what I had in my purse. I was told that the Kenya airport would take all liquids including shampoo so they were packed in my checked luggage along with a piece of luggage that held the donations that I had collected. Packing a carry on with a few necessary items proved to be a good move on my part because my luggage arrived about 4-5 days after I arrived. I learned a lot about Africa during the “lost luggage event”.
My luggage was found by the airline after a few days and was delivered to a hotel in Kigali where we stayed the first night, which was about 1 ½ hours from where we were staying in Gashora. We had no way to pick up the luggage because we did not have a vehicle; we chose our method of transportation in Gashora to be a bicycle. I had no way to get my luggage; I was at the mercy of the hotel staff that might be making a trip to Gashora, hoping they would remember to bring my luggage to me. The first few days I wanted my luggage so bad, I was a little restless. I felt as though I needed my things and how could I survive without my hairdryer, my change of clothes, and my shampoo….my everything that was in that luggage. I felt we needed the donations, we needed to get them up to the school, there were things in that donation bag we needed.
After my second day working on the basketball court in Gashora I learned something, the people in Gashora that were working with us men, women and children were wearing the same clothes they had on the day before and I came to learn over the next 4-5 days that the majority of the adults were wearing the same cloths day after day and each of the children were wearing the same torn dirty clothing. Seeing people in the same cloths day after day I came to realize that they did not have many cloths and many of them just had the cloths that they were wearing yet they came to the job site everyday and worked. The people of Gashora were not going back to a hotel to a cold shower and washing their cloths out in a sink and laying them to dry on the porch of their room, they did not have running water, they did not have a couple of outfits to switch out and yet each adult and each child smiled each day as they worked by our side.
The lost luggage taught me how little one can get by with if needed and the truth is I did not open my luggage nor did I use anything out of it for the first few days after it arrived, it somehow seemed unimportant to me at this point.
In the village of Gashora we met many people the first day they were excited to meet our Softchoice team and they were excited for us to bring technology to Gashora as well as a basketball court and a volleyball court. We were welcomed with smiles and people wanting to sneak a touch of our white skin, the children were especially fascinated with us. They were all gentle in their touches and were even happier when they knew we did not mind them sneaking a touch of our skin.
In Gashora I was known as Momma and I earned this title by coddling and protecting the children as well as putting them to work on the basketball court. When we arrived to start work on the basketball court we started moving bricks, there were several children watching, most of which were little girls I approached the children and I was met with warm smiles and a little shyness as they met a stranger for the first time. After a short time I asked the children if they wanted to help of course they could not speak English but I handed them a brick and showed them where to put it and that proved to be a good move. The children were able to move small bricks and pieces of concrete where the adults moved the larger items this helped speed up the process of clearing out the debris so the ground could be leveled for the court. The first day we had at least 6 children that wanted to work and be a part of the new basketball court and they were very happy to help and smiling the whole time. The children were rewarded with a high-five when they moved the small pieces of concrete and this brought more children to the work site each day all who wanted to work for a high-five and a smile and a hug. At one time we had over 15 children taking part in making Gashora a better place and they were all a part of something that would forever change their village.
Some of the children went to school part of the day and they would come to the site to help after or before school and there were several children that did not go to school possibly because they could not afford a uniform or they had younger siblings that they needed to attend to while their parents worked in the fields but either way we had the same children show up to help everyday that we worked. We had many children that showed up to the site with a sibling tied to their back and one held by the hand, it was truly children watching children and they were doing a good job. I was surprised at the level of responsibility that the young children possessed, I guess this was a way of life in Gashora and a responsibility you have to take on, caring for your younger siblings at such a young age, no Nintendo Wii, no TV or computer.
As I arrived at the sight each day the children would come to me for a job and it was my responsibility to make sure they had something to do. When these children grow up I want them to look at the basketball court and say….I was a part of this, I helped build this.
Our Softchoice Team was not just making a basketball court for them we were making memories together, we were communicating although we did not speak the same language there was a chemistry between the Softchoice Team and the people of Gashora, a chemistry you had to see too understand.
I am sure the children and adults of Gashora will always remember the kind Softchoice employees who came to their village and built a recreation center and brought the internet to their school.
I had a nickname for the kids that worked with us every day and they came to know their nicknames and responded to them. We had a language barrier but the children seemed to understand me and they did what I asked of them. The children took direction and guidance and at one point Lama asked me how I was communicating with them and I said “I don’t know, I just tell them to do something and they do it”. We got a good laugh out of that comment. They worked for a high-five and a hug which was a small price to pay for all of their hard work.
I looked out for the children each day I made sure they were safe and that they were given bananas for lunch as well as water. Water was a precious commodity in Gashora and I would fill water bottles and have Chick make sure that the water was shared by all of the children. For children that had nothing sharing came easy for them and I am impressed with their ability to look out for each other.
On the Basketball job large rocks were being hammered into smaller pieces and shards of rock were flying through the air and we had one adult get cut by the flying shards. Nick took the injured adult to the health center to get stitches, this left me nervous, afraid that the children would get hurt so during this time I needed to keep them contained in an area away from the flying rock and as you can imagine with the language barrier I was not sure how I would accomplish this. I drew a line in the dirt in a safe area and told the children that they needed to stay behind the line and I accomplished this by using hand gestures as well as speaking English (which none of them understood). They soon came to learn that the line meant.... do not cross and they knew it was for their safety, they would play behind the line waiting for the time to pass so they could help. These children always wanted to help; they wanted to be a part of what was happening in their village.
I developed a relationship with a small girl who was about 6 or 7, I nicked named her Chick and she followed me everywhere and helped me every day. I also had Belly Girl, Buddy, Buddy 2 and hardworking girl and others that became my “Peeps” as Cate would call them. I looked forward to seeing them each day and working with them, helping them make a difference in their village. I knew getting attached to them would make leaving Gashora hard and it was. I was convinced that I needed to bring all of them home to live with me. I could give them so much more that they had in Gashora, were they orphans, and where were their parents?
After a week I learned that Chick, had a mother and a father I also found out that Belly Girl and Buddy 2 as well as Six Finger Girl (a small girl with 6 fingers) were all her siblings and the day we had the ceremony for the opening of the basketball court I saw Chick, Belly Girl, Six Finger Girl and Buddy 2 sitting with their father on a bench, they were all sitting close together with their arms around each other and I walked over and I kissed each kid on the cheek and I stood up and their father gave me a head nod as if to say thank you for making them a part of building the basketball court, this was my moment…….. Nick, you asked about my moment and this was my moment, this was the moment I could not share at the table the last night in Gashora with our team when you asked us all to share a moment, if I had shared this moment I would have cried and I did not want to cry over that moment, I wanted it to be between me and the kids father, a moment when no language was spoken just a simple nod and a smile said more than any language could have ever said.
We were in Gashora for 14 days and we completed a computer lab complete with internet, taught teachers how to use a computer and then taught the teachers how to teach their students to use a computer, not an easy task when most of them have never seen a computer and none of them have electricity in their homes.
We were thrown many hurdles setting up the computer lab and with the help of our trusted Lama we jumped each hurdle, made a new decision as a crisis popped up and together as a team we made it happen. We left our Softchoice logo painted on the wall in the computer lab; this will be a reminder to them of who brought so much to a small village.
What we accomplished in 14 days in Gashora will change the lives of hundreds people. When people ask why Africa, I now know the answer.
I want to thank each Softchoice employee who bought a T-shirt or made a donation or attended a fund raiser for Softchoice Cares to know that every dollar that we collected made a difference to a small village in Rwanda as well as computer labs and charities around North America but seeing firsthand what the donations accomplished is indescribable.
To everyone who is not a Softchoice employee who donated time, money and items to our cause everything was used and was appreciated more than you can ever imagine. You cannot imagine the look on their faces when they received a pair of tennis shoes, a soccer ball, or a bag for carrying items or a child getting a pair of brightly colored sunglasses or shoes, it was great!
As I look through my pictures of the trip I am reminded of an incredible group of Softchoice people who were chosen to go on this trip. I am also reminded of two wives who took their vacation time to come with their husbands and share in building a computer lab and a basketball court they are kind women and they were an asset to our team. I am homesick for Gashora its people, my peeps and my Softchoice Team. We worked very hard, we accomplished a lot and we will always remember being a part of something that will forever change so many lives. Maybe one day someone from Gashoria will work for Softchoice after all with our name on their computer lab wall how can they forget us!
I am also reminded of the one thing that I wanted to accomplish on this trip and that was to change one life. The one life I know I changed is the life of Chick we developed an instant bond. I took a small shy girl who did not speak the same language as I and turned her into someone who helped organize the children for work each day she became a little more assertive and less shy over our 14 days together, she developed o confidence when I put her in charge of the other children and they learned to listen to her. I am sure she will always remember me and my kindness and high-fives. I hope she grows up to be a successful working woman or whatever she wants to be, maybe a Softchoice employee.
What Chick will never know is that she changed my life more than I ever changed hers. I hope to go back to Gashora and you can bet I am going to find Chick, I am sure we will remember each other.

Vickie Zeis
DWC Volunteer Participant Rwanda
Softchoice Care September 2009

October 24, 2009: A Quote with Meaning

2009-12-09T10:49:00.000-08:00

As we make our way home it is good to bear this in mind:

"Inability to compete with technological competence will compel billions of people into a survival stride of long hours and degrading work, sometimes far from their homes, driven to exhaustion, dropped to their knees to beg on behalf of spouses and children for shelter, medical care and rations."

Rwandan President Paul Kagame World Technology Summit 16 July 2009

October 24, 2009: The final day in Gashora continued!

2009-12-09T10:47:00.000-08:00

After teaching the Internet to the teachers at the school we quickly biked up the hill to the basketball court for the ceremony opening up the basketball court to the community. When I arrived I couldn’t believe my eyes, there were hundreds of people gathered at the courts and the media was present (Rwanda television). We spent the first hour or so teaching the residents how to play certain sports that are popular in North America. We played American football, baseball, and of course basketball! I’m always amazed at how playing a sport with someone can build a stronger friendship, even with a language barrier. A DJ showed up and the locals sung a welcome song to the Softchoice team. When the Mayor and other guests of honor arrived the ceremony began.
Ryan Douglas had opened up the Softchoice speech by speaking a few lines in Kinyarwandan to the crowd and they were thoroughly impressed by the fact he had taken the time to learn their language. I followed with the remaining speech in English which was translated into Kinyarwanda by Lama. We thanked them for their kindness in welcoming us and praised them for their hard work and great sense of community. We hoped that we had made a lasting impression and laid down a foundation for future opportunities with the sports facitlities, innovation center and computer lab. We also told them that they will always have a place in our hearts. I chocked up on that last part.
The community leaders rose o ne by one and made speeches as well. The Covago cooperative thanked Softchoice for all of our hard work and gave us each a hand woven basket as a going away gift. The gift was hard for us to accept. How could we accept a gift from these people when they have so little and we have so much? The gesture truly speaks to the kind of people that they were and we were in awe. I will cherish that basket forever.
Last but not least the Mayor spoke. She was a very well spoken women who carried herself with grace. After saying the necessary pleasantries about the new facilities and what they meant to the community she turned to her people and said that the Softchoice team has set an example that they should all learn from. She said she was amazed by our work ethic and our selflessness by coming all the way over to Gashora to help their community. She hopes that everyyone in the crowd can show the same qualities in the building up of their community. I don’t think I have ever fealt so proud to be a Softchoice employee as I did at that moment. The mayor then proceeded to shoot the first basket on the new court. She missed a few times but eventually got it in!
We quickly had to go to the school to perfrom the opening of the computer lab since Rwanda television was on a tight schedule. The teachers had set the room up beautifully and it was decorated with Softchoice signs everywhere. This may be my second proudest moment as a Softchoice employee. Soon enough the classroom was filled with local residents and many more crowded around the windows from the outside. Nick Foster started this ceremony with a speech about the Softchoice dream of bridging the digital divide. His words beamed with pride and he also chocked up near the end as our long journey had finally been completed. Janvier (the principal) cut the ribbon and then he began a speech in English. I was amazed that he took the time to write the speech in English and thought about how much he must have practiced the night before. This moment meant a lot to him. He ended his speech with giving Softchoice a gift as well, a very large basket that will be displayed in our office. Another gift hard to accept but that would be the trend with these incredible people.
We left the school courtyard for the last time with hundreds of kids screaming our names and running behind us trying to jump on our bikes. With the chaos ensuing I rode off quickly to escape all of the children jumping on my bike, potentially resulting in an accident, until I heard a familiar voice yell “Pita” (that’s how they pronounced Peter) I turned around and it was my favourite child Omar who I had given a ride home on the back of my back that whole week. I stopped my bike and told him to jump on, I owed him one more ride home. I pulled up to his little shack of a house that was barely big enough for him although it housed his family of 6. I gave him a big hug and thought to myself that this smart little guy has a bright future ahead of him. I just hope that I was right. A tear went down my face as I pulled away on my way back to the hotel.
We left Gashora that afternoon on a bus and we were singing our reincarnation of John Denver’s classic “West Virgina” which we turned into “Gashora, Gashora”. The people all waved at us as we road by. There were no words after the song, we couldn’t find them.

- Peter Cibula
DWC Volunteer Participant

October 23, 2009 The final day in Gashora!

2009-12-09T10:46:00.000-08:00

We began the day extremely early as we realized that we had numerous tasks to complete as a team to ensure that our projects were a success. There were a million thoughts and emotions going through our minds that morning as we prepared for such an important day. How will the people react to the unveiling of the computer lab? How will they react to the ceremony at their new basketball court? Will the projects be a success after we leave? How will we be able to say goodbye to these people that we have become so attached too? The plan was to divide and conquer. There was a team that was focused on ensuring that the final donations were given to the community leaders with an explanation that we wanted those most in need to receive them. I never knew giving could be such a difficult task to perform. We had many donations given to us by our friends and family, but it was not enough for every person in the Gashora community. It is extremely difficult to say no to these people as they all need so much but we recognized that it was a necessary action.
The second team was focused on the final touches of the computer lab. Late the night before we were able to get the satellite installed at the computer lab and we got the internet up and running. It was a major milestone and one that we had been waiting for since the day we arrived. In just a few hours we had to teach the teachers how to start up the satellite and get the internet up and how to troubleshoot connectivity issues. We also wanted to give a lesson on how to use the internet. They picked everything up very quickly and took incredible notes for the future. Once we had the people up and running and surfing the web it was miraculous! They were amazed by how much information was at their fingertips! The principle Janvier was able to follow his favorite football teams online! Martin was saving pages of lessons that he found for computer training in Kinyarwandan by searching on Google Rwanda and Dancille was reading the news on BBC. I soon realized that we took the internet for granted in North America. What we had given these people is a window to a world of information that they have never had. The opportunity for learning, for communicating and for personal development was endless. We had given these people hope for a bright future! What a great feeling!

This blog post will continue as the power keeps shutting down in our Kigali hotel!

October 21st 2009, the day the Internet arrived in Gashora!

2009-12-09T10:41:00.000-08:00

After several "guarantees" of installation and a couple different companies, the satellite installation truck rolled into the primary school grounds midday. Think of the satellite dishes that we had in the 80's. Very big, and it had to be pointed in the right direction to pick up the signal. Looks don't matter here. After 6 hours of installation, the Gashora Primary School was connected. It's hard to comprehend how much the Internet will change the school and the community, but it's going to be significant. The community doesn't have electricity, so the lab is running off a generator until electricity arrives (supposedly by the end of 2009). T
To put it into perspective, our meeting this afternoon with community leaders ran long. The sun set 30 minutes earlier and the only light was coming from cell phones. We have been riding our bikes to and from work everyday. The unpaved, weather eroded roads are tricky to nagivate during the day. Without light, it's impossible. To get back to our hotel, we had a motorcycle and truck escort that provided light while we rode our bikes. Oh yea, it took us about 30 minutes to figure out how we were going to get home.. Have you tried riding your bike in the dark?

Tomorrow is our last day in Gashora. To celebrate the completion of the computer lab and the sports facilities, we invited print and tv media to the festivities, or so we thought. Peter and I worked with Lama this afternoon putting together a media release. Considering it was everyone's first attempt at a media release, I thought we did a good job.
When we finished the release, we talked about who we were going to send it to, and how. We only have access to Internet and power a few hours a day at night when the generator is running. It's tough to send out a media release midday when you don't have the Internet. It turns out that even if we had access to power and the Internet, the media outlets don't. :-)

It's going to be tough to leave, but we have done some incredible work. Our last update from Gashora.. :-(

-Ryan Douglas

October 21, 2009
The day the Internet arrived in Gashora!

October 21, 2009
The day we finished the basket ball court.

October 21, 2009
opening day!

October 21, 2009: Shopping in Kagili

2009-12-09T10:40:00.002-08:00

Yesterday I went to Kagili (the capital city) in order to get some things we needed for the project. This proved to be an adventure.
The capital city is about 45 minutes drive away but as you all know our mode of transport has been our bikes so we needed to find some other way to get to Kagili. We rode the public transportation which is basically a big van that squeezes 18 people in (including the driver) and stops at every town along the way. There is no such thing as personal space in Rwanda. When I got on the public transportation everyone was staring. I asked Lama, my guide why I was so interesting and he indicated the people have probably never seen a white woman on the bus. Softchoice Cares is all about changing perceptions!
When we got to Kagali 2 hours later (it is normally a 45 minute drive when not traveling by public transportation) we started on our list. We found it difficult to change money as no exchange place will take bills that were made before 2006. You also can't pay by credit card and no one has heard of an ATM here. After visiting 4 exchange places we found a bank that would take the US cash and let us change it to Rwandan Francs.
Kagili is a big city and one of the best ways to get around is a boatabota (a small motor bike). Of course these individuals want to get to the destination as quickly as possible so they weave in and out of traffic. I almost lost my lunch.
After visiting over 30 stores in a super busy city which has streets full of people we were able to get all our shopping done in order to complete our project. With our bags full of paint, brushes, batteries and glue we boarded the van to go home to our rural village in Gashora. I couldn't help but feel I was kind of going back to my African home.

-Sheila Kivlichan
DWC Volunteer Participant Rwanda

October 21, 2009: Music Is Universal

2009-12-09T10:40:00.001-08:00

As Mel mentioned in her last blog, yesterday on the worksite we had tons of fun. What really stood out for me was the fact that we are now working as a cohesive unit with these 40+ men (and one woman) on the worksite. We invested in an old fashioned boom box and had it running on batteries for about 8 out of the 11 hours we were working. There was one gentleman in particular who was really enjoying the Ugandan dance CD that we were playing. They even recognized some of the songs. Once the batteries burned out we were treated to local song and dance while lugging concrete trays. It was so amazing, we hardly even noticed when it started to rain and worked right through that light storm. Nick got a video so hopefully we’ll be able to share that with you when we get home. Over the last 3 days, we have determined that our huge language barrier is no longer an issue. What an incredible connection we’ve made with this village.

-Cate
DWC Volunteer Participant Rwanda

October 20, 2009: the taste of success

2009-12-09T10:38:00.000-08:00

So today we learnt that the slogan of our favourite Rwandan beer, Mutzig, is "The Taste of Success" and.....drum roll please.....we finished the basketball court today!!!!!
Yes, after passing thousands of pans of cement down an assembly line of Softchoice Muzungus and local Gashora men (each pan of cement about 30-40 pounds each) we pan by pan filled the entire court! It was a crazy long day starting at 7am and ending when the sun went down. But we had a goal to have it done, and the entire crew wouldn't give up until we reached it.
One success is finishing the basketball court, but another success happened in the computer lab today as well. It was the first that that we had kids come into the lab and the teachers starting teaching them how to use the computers. These teachers had never even seen a computer in their lives before last week, and now, after our 1 week with them, they are starting to teach kids. The principal of the school came up to us today and said that he had finished the course schedule for next term....and for the first time ever in Gashora Primary history there is a new class that is being offered next term.....COMPUTER SCIENCE!! So from teaching the teachers, to the teachers now teaching the students, we've helped to bridge the digital divide in this small town and hopeful given these kids a leg up for the future.
So talking about success, and the "taste" of it. Today there were a couple moments that defined success for me. The first being when a man from the town came up to us to thank us for what we are doing. He mentioned that he was so impressed that we were "one of them" He said that he appreciated that we were working side by side by them, and were part of their community. We spent over 10hrs in the heat today. Sweating along with them. Singing along with them. Dancing along with them. Getting covered in cement along with them. Carrying tons and tons of cement with them. Lama one of our local team leaders mentioned that Africa does not need Aid. And what we are doing is "service". We are working side by side in the same conditions and doing the same work. We are helping the community and not giving them a handout. That is what makes all the difference.
At the end of the day Felciane, one of the local workers turned to me and said "We will never forget you. Please never forget us". I know that we have had a big impact on their lives, but i don't think they realize what a big impact they have had on ours.

~mel alvares
DWC Volunteer Participant Rwanda

October 19, 2009: The Blinding Bush

2009-12-09T10:37:00.001-08:00

We learned early on about a very common ‘hedge’ of sorts in Rwanda. We are told that it is similar to aloe in that if you break the leaf it will spill a milky liquid on you. This liquid is told to cause blindness if rubbed in your eyes. Yikes! Therefore, we have taken to calling it the "blinding bush." You may think this would be very easy to avoid…you’d be wrong though. Unfortunately, our sweaty work days involve a great deal of rubbing our eyes on the inside and outside of our sleeves. As we bike to and from the worksite each day we ride dangerously close to the B.B. It is used to line all properties and the edge of the entire road from the hotel to the work sites. Thankfully, we haven’t had any casualties yet but have noticed that the goats and cows graze heartily on the blinding bush and that clean laundry is often dried upon it.

We have sent a lot of our laundry out though the hotel to be cleaned in town. It comes back smelling of clean air. Let’s hope the blinding bush isn’t their method of drying.

Cate
DWC Volunteer Participant Rwanda

October 18, 2009: Mizungus in the Mist

2009-12-09T10:35:00.000-08:00

It is 6:30 at night and we are driving back to Gashora - it is dark and as we drive the people walking along the side of the highway appear out of nowhere. With no street lights driving takes an extra challenge. We started the morning at 7 am. We had a 15 minute hike up through the villages and farms that led to the Volcano National Park. When we entered the park our guide was joined by several forest rangers with rifles and machetes. One of the guys holding a machete was Simon. It seemed like a good idea to do what Simon said!

Once we entered the park the going got a bit tougher. It was raining quite hard at times and the ground was quite soaked. At times we were almost crawling through the jungle growth. My backpack kept getting caught and the vines were grabbing at my arms. Where were the guys with the machetes?

We hiked for another hour through the park - feet sinking ankle deep in the mud and because we were at 3800 meters elevation the breathing was tougher than normal.

Finally, we reached a small opening where the guides pointed out a large Gorilla dropping. As we made our way through the next few steps we waded hip deep into a field of nettles. I got stung so many times that my legs were on fire! We came around a bush and were 7 meters from a female gorilla! It was amazing to be thinking about getting my camera focused when my brain was shouting ouch as a result of the burning around my knees!

We spent an hour with our family of gorillas. The silverback was named Charles. He was a majestic fellow but looked a bit bedraggled with all the rain. There were two females with young and a young male that we saw. For the most part Charles ignored us but he grunted some warnings that our guides mimicked. We later learned that his grunts were meant to signal to his family that all was ok. The guides grunting back was their way of building trust and agreeing that all is OK.

After taking hundreds of pixtures we had to leave. Charles rolled on his back and lifted his arms. What a stench! It was a strange bitter smell that pushed back the Eucalyptus-like smell the various flowers and bushes combined to create.

Rwanda has the highest population density in Africa - which has pushed the gorillas into the mountains and it means every part of the country is used for agriculture. The land of a tousand hills is beautiful. Hard to imagine a genocide in such a beautiful land.

Nick Foster
DWC Team Leader

October 17, 2009: Working for the weekend

2009-12-09T10:33:00.000-08:00

Greetings from Volcano National Park! On our drive from Gashora to Kigali, we stopped at the Rwanda Genocide Museum. It was a great opportunity to learn more about what happened in 1994, as well as other genocides throughtout history. Its truly amazing how much progress Rwanda has made in 15 years. Tomorrow we are trekking
looking for the endangered mountain gorillas in Volacano National Park. A great way to spend the weekend after a rewarding week of very hard work.
As the first week came to a close, the team finished laying stones on the basketball court. The next step is pouring of concrete, and them the ribbon cutting! The backboards and rims are being restored and painted. We will begin work on the volleyball court on Monday. We also spent Friday digging trenches for the new Covaga Weaving
Cooperative. Its tough work! The computer classes with the teachers at the primary school are going well. The local carpenter is putting the finishing touches on the new desks for the lab. We did have a hiccup with the Internet. MTN came out to do the installation, but despite the site survey, they said it wasn't worth the expense and hassle for the performance. They recommended using a satellite service, which will hopefully be installed on Monday.
Its off to dinner, but the days since the last update have been unforgetable. They people so friendly, the country so beautiful (no garbage anywhere), and the smiles so big.

DWC Team Rwanda

October 15, 2009: Thursday in Rwanda

2009-12-09T10:32:00.000-08:00

Good evening from Rwanda! Today was another incredible day in The Land of 1,000 Hills. We have been in Gashora for 4 days now, but every time we ride into town (twice a day), the kids coming running from their houses to the side of the road yelling "Muzungu!" In Kinyarwanda, it means white person. I suspect we have ridden past the same kids several times, but it never gets old for them or us. 5 of us spent the day in the classroom, myself included. We continued teaching the teachers how to use Word and Excel. The math teachers and the principal were particularly interested in Excel. The thought of using "tables" to document students "marks" and to maintain budgets is fascinating to them. Who would have thought we would be using a true slate chalkboard to demonstrate tables and formulas for Excel.

Oh yeah, the teachers don't speak a lot of English. Their main language is Kinyarwanda, a few speak French. It's difficult teaching technology in English, but when you share a limited common language, it adds another level of excitement! The other 6 members of the group spent the day at the construction site working on the "foundation" for the basketball court. We will hopefully mix the concrete tomorrow, meaning the court will be ready for a grand opening next Thursday. In Africa, pouring the concrete doesn't mean backing in a big cement truck mixer. It's all by hand, every last bit. It will be a fun and exciting experience!

The lights in the dining area are starting to flicker, so our time with electricity and Internet is running out. Till next time!

DWC Volunteer Participant
Ryan Douglas

October 14, 2009: Wednesday in Rwanda

2009-12-09T10:30:00.000-08:00

Well, it is just about time for dinner and our resort has power for us for an hour in the morning and 3 hours every night - wireless internet has been installed here but it only works when there is power so I'll tap out this note quickly. They have to run the generator so it makes sense to keep it to a minimum. Power poles have been installed in the local village and apparently power will be turned on in the next month. That means hopefully by Christmas.

Because there is no power at the Gashora School we have had to buy a generator. It finally arrived today - until now we have been packing up the laptops and bringing them back to the hotel so that we can get a full charge in the evening so that the teachers can be taught during the day. The internet service provider wouldn't come until we had power so now we can put the full court press on MTN to get out and get us access. We have decided to focus our training on the teachers. If they don't feel confident then they just won't use the computers because they don't want to look stupid in front of the students. The kids of course will pick up computers quickly because they have no fear. The teachers are doing quite well and we are looking to pick one who will be our local school champion.

One of the ladies who went to Ghana with me last year is a teacher volunteering in Rwanda. We met for coffee and she another teacher friend were astonished that this primary school would end up with computers, internet access and power. They said that this school would end up being THE place to be. The school has already decided to open the classroom in the evenings to use as an internet cafe so that they can raise a bit of money to make the whole project more sustainable.

Jone Panavas, one of the founders of Softchoice has donated the money to allow us to rebuild a basketball court and a volleyball court. This will end up being the centre of the village for the kids. Each day 30 or so men show up to volunteer and I can tell you even though we don't share a common language we have quite a bit of fun! I guess you can't order gravel because trucks keep showing up with large stones and the men have to use hammers to break the rocks down to small enough pieces to lay down for the foundation of the court. It is very hard work. Today, one of the local guys hit a rock and a piece flew off and cut through his ankle. It looked quite serious so we did a bit of field first aid and then we put him on the back of my bike and I drove him off to the local health centre. The conditions there were so dingy but three ragged stitches later The Tiger (that's what he calls himself!) was bandaged up, drugs in hand and instructions on returning the next day. It cost me 300 Rwanda Francs...about 60 cents - quite a bargain.

The people here have so little but they have such grace and such warmth. They are always ready with a smile. As we ride our bikes through town kids come running to the road to wave or give us a high five as we drive by. It is humbling - we are just average people sent here as representatives of our company. We all love it though - we smile, we say hello we yell out Meriwe (good afternoon), Muraho (how are you?) or any other phrase we have learned - they love it and yell back!

Have a great Day!
Nick and the Team

October 12, 2009

2009-12-09T10:28:00.000-08:00

Today the team's work over the past year finally got to the action in Africa stage! We had some meetings with the local mayor, with the Gashora Primary School Principal and with the Gashora Women's Cooperative. When we arrrived at the Gashora Primary School the roar that went up from the classrooms was incredible! We felt like rock stars. And then, the kids all came rushing out of their classrooms to swarm us! This is an experience that can't be explained.
We started work on the Basketball and the Volleyball Courts! The first stage was to rip up the existing brick structure. We had many local boys and men to help us in the morning but when we came back after lunch it was just the 5 of our guys and a few 10 year olds. After about an hour 10-12 women came along and formed a line to pass the broken bricks! It was efficient and a good lesson for us on teamwork.
The rest of the team spent the afternoon sorting through the many donations - getting all of the medical supplies together, all of the sporting goods together and getting our laptops loaded with Microsoft Office. Thanks to everyone who donated items - they will be much appreciated!
It is 6:30 in the evening here and it has been dark for an hour already. The power went out a while ago and I am typing this update in the dark. We are so lucky! We get three meals a day, running water, the occasional hot shower, electricity, a bed and a roof over our heads. This puts us at a living standard with the top few percent of people in Rwanda. We take so much for granted in North America!
Tomorrow will be time in the classroom with the teachers and more construction. The Information Technology Teacher in our school has never used a computer so our work is cut out for us!

Till the next update!

October 10, 2009

2009-12-09T10:26:00.000-08:00

we arrived!

It's 4am in Rwanda. We're all in Kigali safe and sound...hitting the showers and then bed. Spending the night in Kigali, then have orientation tomorrow morning. Will hit the city for last minute supplies and then head to the village of Gashora which will be our home base for the next 2 weeks.

October 9, 2009

2009-12-09T10:25:00.000-08:00

and we're off!

The entire crew are all departing from their home towns this evening. We all meet up at around 7am tomorrow in London, England. A few hours at Heathrow and then we board a 8hr flight to Kenya. Then from Kenya we board a smaller plane for our flight to Kigali, Rwanda! Looking forward to meeting up with Nick who is already there and will be a smiling familiar face once we finish our epic journey.

Hope everyone home in Canada has a Happy Thanksgiving. We'll be missing you!

RWANDA: Introducing Team Softchoice Cares 2009

2009-12-09T10:22:00.000-08:00

The 2009 Softchoice Cares Board is ecstatic to announce that the team will have the opportunity to build the foundation for a successful community in rural Rwanda this upcoming October.

The 2009 Softchoice Cares volunteer mission is to complete the building of a new facility and teach computer skills in Gashora, Rwanda. Gashora is a town of approximately 5,500 residents in the Bugesera District and it is roughly 45 minutes from Kigali, the capital of Rwanda. The primary employers in Gashora are the local government and the army barracks and there is a small commercial centre with a variety of shops. However by far the majority of residents are subsistence farmers who earn about 5000 francs (Can. $10.00) per week. It’s difficult to determine the unemployment rate, but it’s estimated around 60 – 80%. The lab we will be helping to set up is in one classroom of about 5 rooms in a new wing of the local school. In total there are about 20 classrooms serving over 1000 children.

Quick Facts:
Population 7,954,013
Capital City: Kigali
Size in Area 26,338 km² (Roughly the Size of Maryland)
Internet Users: 25,000

Partnering with Developing World Connections (www.developingworldconnections.org), the team will spend the majority of two weeks in teams of two which will simultaneously teach children how to use computers and help build a new facility. We have picked Gashora because it is in a rural area of Rwanda that will not be part of the Rwanda’s Ministry of Education’s ambitious Information and Communication Technology campaign that focuses on urban areas. We feel strongly that this facility will help to create an equal opportunity for children in the rural community like Gashora, compared to the urban centers like Kigali that will benefit from the Governments work. This will ensure that rural areas stay above the poverty line.
A program like this will literally change the lives of children, families and educators in Gashora. Those who learn the skills will have opportunities to attend university and eventually get well paying work in Kigali. They will also have improved opportunities to develop their own enterprises in Gashora and provide advanced levels of service and learning to their community. This would not have been dreamt of a year ago and would make Gashora a go-to community for others from the Bugesera district.
As great as the benefit of computer education is for the people of Rwanda, the benefit of international visitors reaching out a hand and opening relationships may be even greater. This could be more so in Rwanda than in most countries because of the dual swords of national shame they carry over the genocide and the international community’s failure to respond when the need was so great.
This volunteer mission is poised to be successful for a few reasons; the experience and ability to execute of the individuals and organizations involved and the sustainability of the project. The Softchoice Cares personnel bring passion, skills in education and information technology and strong teamwork to the job on the ground at Gashora. Building Bridges Rwanda will provide the local support necessary to ensure that the team has everything they need to execute properly on the ground and help in local communication. Developing World Connections brings with them a history of organizing successful projects focused primarily on building education facilities.
In today’s difficult economic climate, many organizations have either slimmed down their philanthropic efforts or have terminated them completely. This reality has had quite an impact on programs in the developing world that provide hope for a better life. Softchoice continues to be a leader in the business community by continuing to extend its hand to those in need. Recognizing the current business climate, Softchoice has also been able to continue to give back in a responsible manner. This mission will be partly subsidized by personal as well as charitable sponsorship. In addition, the board was able to plan this important mission in the most cost effective way possible. This all results in Softchoice being able to continue to give back in a way that can make us all proud. We are getting it done differently in 2009.

CHANGE YOURSELF TO MAKE YOUR DIFFERENCE IN THE WORLD

2009-12-09T10:08:00.000-08:00

Shalen Curle travelled with a Team of Developing World Connections volunteers to Kazo, Rwanda in September 2009. She has previously traveled to Cambodia with Developing World Connections is 2008, and will be a DWC Team Leader leading a group going to Peru in 2010.

It’s hard to explain this type of experience to you. It’s something that is really difficult to put words to. Imagine throwing your favorite colours on a blank canvas to which you turn your head for one split second and when you look back your favorite colours are no longer the same colours anymore.

In our lives we see through a paradigm, a personal reality that has been created by the things we have done, learnt and seen in our lifetime. Throwing yourself into this environment will challenge what you thought you knew and expand your paradigm or perhaps shift it to include more. And although the learning may take place through challenge, sweat, anger and tears; it is for the greater good. And this good is not what I can do for others but the good is truly how I can help myself. Because only through an understanding of oneself can anyone ever attempt to understand one another. And only through a mutual understanding of one another will we ever reach a point where we truly can make a difference in the world.

Now, my belief is that this understanding; which will enable me to truly help others, is gained first through an understanding of oneself. So, challenge yourself to be the best person you can be. Don’t be afraid to make mistakes and take the time to put yourself in uncomfortable situations. Because these uncomfortable moments are the times when we stretch and grow as human beings.

Now, I have never washed my hair out of a grungy plastic tub, or had a sponge bath, or prayed for the chilly water to “be on” when I arrived home… I have never witnessed hundreds of pairs of dark eyes staring at me in interest… I have never seen a soccer ball blown up with a condom… I have never travelled so tightly in a mini van … I have never witnessed crops being cultivated on mountain sides… I have never been asked to “come to school” and be more excited about the unknown… I have never imagined that a third world country could be so clean… I have never seen a community who volunteers to help each other every third Saturday of each month… I have never yearned for a chocolate bar more… I have never been asked to carry a tree trunk on my shoulders or seen how useful a banana leaf can be... I have never seen a child share a crumb of bread with her two younger siblings… I have never seen the best and the worst in myself and others come out all at the same time… I have never appreciated my close friends more…
Now I have… Now I do… Now I will…

See the colours on my canvas didn’t change… my paradigm changed… I changed.

DWC Participant
Shalen Curle
RWD0909

Arrived and really busy!

2009-05-27T08:55:00.000-07:00

A quick post to let everyone know that the student group from UBC has arrived safely and has been exceptionally busy building a medical outpost in the community Kazo.

The foundation has been poured and when there is more news, there will be more posts.

RWANDA: Inaugural trip is a UBC Student Group

2009-04-15T14:48:00.001-07:00

Leaving in May, the group will be arriving to work with host partner, Building Bridges with Rwanda.

Return for updates and photos as Team Leader, Steve Peat reports from Rwanda.