Excitement is building as plans fall into place for a July trip to Rwanda. In the midst of a ravaged country, hope shines in the form of a vegetable garden, a simple treadle sewing machine, or a place to call home.
A team of five women, led by Leigh Buchan, had their first opportunity to show their flexibility and willingness to ‘go with the flow,’ as plans to visit Burundi were abruptly canceled due to political unrest in that part of the country. Reacting swiftly, Leigh called an emergency meeting of the group; they created a new plan on the fly and will now spend close to three weeks in Rwanda.
Topping the list is the originally planned visit to Steven Turikunkiko and his family, whose work with a village of widows and orphans has enabled them to begin building a self-sustaining life. The team will visit the villages and a newly established shop where several women, with sewing machines, in part provided by G2M funding, are creating and selling garments. In addition to sewing, women are planting gardens and seeking creative ways to provide a future for themselves and their children.
In a scenario repeated all over Rwanda, large groups of kids orphaned by the 1994 genocide are raising themselves and living in abject poverty. A soccer field near Steven is home to 80 of these teenagers, ages around 15 –18. Over a third of them are HIV positive. It is an unimaginable situation for most of us. How can 80 children possibly live on their own, in small huts located around a soccer field, with no adults, no conveniences, no jobs, and little or no access to education?
Our goal is to hear their stories, build relationships and communicate their needs via words and pictures. This is the core of a meaningful travel experience – a trip that promises to enrich those of us traveling, and those who we meet along the way.
