Shyogwe Six share memories of Rwanda

Wednesday, 14 June saw around 50 people attend a presentation by our Mission group - the 'Shyogwe Six' - recounting their recent fortnight trip to Shyogwe in Rwanda. The 'Six' consisted of: Peter Muir and his wife, Jill - Trustees; Sarah Parkes and her son, Joseph; and Maria Line and her daughter, Fran - all members of St Michael's.

The evening was opened by Peter, Treasurer of the David Dale Shyogwe Trust, the charity set up to fund initiatives in the area. Peter gave us an interesting insight into the history of Rwanda, particularly since the 1994 Genocide that saw up to 1 million Tutsis and Hutus killed over a 10-week period of slaughter. As a result, the country's population is made up of mostly young people - with those age 15 and under making up 43% of the11.3 millionpopulation. This is important to know because it has impacted the futures of the people who, without elders, have lost basic knowledge and skills such as farming, building and even parenting. So much of what we take for granted is desperately needed by the Rwandan people, yet they are a hopeful community that sings and worships and strives for a better future.

Maternal Care
Jill explained the work of the Mothers' Union, a vital group that teaches women parenting and life skills, and the spin-off group, Healthy Mums Project, which operates in the poorer areas to support young mothers. The Mission group took out bundles of knitted clothes and blankets which they distributed to groups like these, and they were gratefully received. "It was moving to see how much they appreciated being remembered by people in the West," said Jill.

Education
Sarah spoke about the Zion Education Centre, a private school run by the church. Private schools in Rwanda are the opposite to the ones in the UK, with minimal equipment and no books. The school is funded by the parents, who are themselves poor; the government-supported schools can afford to have a little (although not much) more. The team donated footballs and ruler calculators to the children, and were particularly humbled by the 'Victorian' conditions at the school and the hard work and dedication of the eight teachers there. "We only had enough calculator rulers for one between two children, which back here would no doubt cause an argument, but they were just so happy to be given something that they happily shared them."

Thanks to fundraising before their trip, the team had £3,000 to donate to the Trust, which they decided to give to Zion Education Centre, to pay for textbooks. The next priority is to rebuild toilet facilities (which are far more basic than anything we know), which will cost £2,000 in total.

Football
Next, Joseph, age 11, gave an entertaining talk about football in Shyogwe and how he replaced the children's 'rubbish balls' (literally made of rubbish and string) with brand-new footballs. It's no surprise that he was very popular while he was out there!

Compassion Project
Fran, age 14, then told us about the work of the Compassion Project, which is a Christian-run organisation which helps to sponsor children to give them an opportunity to gain an education and work skills. If you'd like to sponsor a child in Rwanda, or anywhere in the world, see the Compassion Project website.

Special Needs
Maria moved everyone with her recount of visiting the special school for disabled children. The school was rarely visited by parents or others, the children almost forgotten and, while the teachers cared deeply for their pupils, the conditions were pitiful. When shown the children's dormitory, Maria described seeing the 50 bunk beds crammed into a room which was overpoweringly smelly, the mattresses all stained and soiled. By writing a post on Facebook about this the same day, people back home following their mission offered to donate the cost of a mattress (£25 each) and, within 36 hours, £2,500 was raised! It was quite something and the team were delighted to be able to tell the Headmistress that they had the money to replace every child's mattress.

Agriculture
Maria went on to describe the work of Amos, the area's Rural Dean, who is setting up organic tree plantations to help provide food, nutritious soil and skills to help reeducate farmers in the area. This is vital work towards helping to build a sustainable future for the people in Shyogwe and each sapling costs £1, and this is another area that the Trust would like to support with fundraising (see below).

It's natural to assume that only part of donated money goes to the actual people who need it. However, with the David Dale Shyogwe Trust, all the administration, travel and expenses are self-funded by the eight trustees, who take it in turns to visit the area (around two visits per year). They also closely monitor all the spending, ensure it is prioritised and visit areas to see how the money has been used.

This was a moving and thought-provoking presentation, and there was an opportunity to buy crafts that the team had brought back from Rwanda, which included everything from trinkets to handbags and ornaments. Thanks to the generous support of the attendees, another £275 was raised towards the work of the Trust.

If you would like to find out more about the Trust, please see this website: www. daviddaleshyogwetrust.org

If you would like to buy a sapling for the tree plantation, please donate to this Justgiving page: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Peter-Muir6

If you would like to support work on the toilets at Zion Hill Education Centre, please donate to this Justgiving page.

The Mission Team would like to thank everyone for their contributions and support, seeing the money in action was a useful way to connect the pounds with the people (mostly young) who will benefit from it.