I am now in Byumba again at the internet cafe. Connection is very slow.

Sunday we had a great church service at Clementine's church in Karama. It is about 1 hour walk from Muhura and 15 minutes by car or motor bike. The service was long but wonderful. 5-6 different choirs sang. I even got to dance with one group. They were jamming in church and praising God. Awesome! I got up to speak and told the story of why I was there. I had met Clementine at Pastor Elson's house Saturday morning, but at church I met the rest of the family. They presented me with 2 beautiful baskets with beans. I had spotted the younest boy in the family beacuse he was wearing Erik's Dallas Cowboys sweat suit and Kristin's Barbie tennis shoes. The mom, dad and older children were wearing "Jungle Tracker" shirts from First Baptist Colleyville. Very exciting!

After the service I greeted and hugged all the ones that came to me. It was at least 100 people and the custom is 3 hugs and then a handshake. (I got 300+ hugs!!) Everyone were very happy I was there. It was the best service I have been to. These people really know how to praise and worship.

We were served lunch at the church A chicken was killed in my honor :-( . We also had goat meat (very good) with beans, rice, potatoes and cabbage. Coke and Fanta were served and I also got bottled water.

By the time lunch was over it was 3:30 and we drove to Clementine's old house. It was pretty bad. There were about 100 of their friends and neighbors acompanying us so it was hard to take pictures. I had also used up too much of the camcorder battery at the church service. We then went to the new house they built with the money I sent them. It is much bigger. 4 rooms (a living room and 3 bedrooms). The kitchen and toilet are always separate from the house. They are using a small hut for kitchen now, but are building a new big kitchen using the roof from their old house. It will be about 5-6 feet wide and 10-12 feet long. The toilet is an outhouse. I did not look closely at it. There were so many people in the house and felt a bit clostrophobic. Pastor Elson told me later I was the first white person that had been to Karama for as long as the local pastor knew.

Elson also introduced me to the neighbor family who are good Christians. They are extemely poor. I gave them some peanuts, granola bars and cheese crackers as well as about $30. Elson took a picture of us outside their hut.

As we were leaving we were surrounded by people and it was hard to get in Headmaster Pheneas' truck.

Back home we had a nice dinner and I loaded the photos to the laptop. I can't post them from here, but we are going to Kigali today so hopefully I will then be able to share pictures with you. We are meeting with some of Elson's friends. The wife is an attorney and a minister for President Kagame, the huband also works in the goverment. We will be spending the night at their home.

Yesterday I spoke to the Women's Union and to The Daughter's of Jesus. Many are widows and very poor. They have little means to put their children through school. I told them to pray that Global Family Resue will come to Muhura. July 17th GFR will be in Muhura to meet with the leaders and hopefully the meeting will go well and we can sponsor families there through that organization.

When I took a tour of the school I saw the kitchen used to prepare food for the 600 boarding students in the secondary school. There are 3 huge pots heated by wood. They cook beans with cabbage, rice and a paste made from corn meal. This is what the students eat for lunch and dinner every day. NO variety here. For breakfast they have hot cereal. The ones who have money can buy bananas or avocados (sweet treats). The students sit on the lawn to eat their food. I want to do a fund raiser for a new kitchen an dining hall. They sleep 4 to each twin size bunk bed. No siderails on top. I could not sleep like that for 6 years of school!! However the students know they are lucky to be able to attend school.

I do not feel like a stranger here. With Pastor Elson I feel like part of his family. We are more alike than we are different. The same for Pheneas and the teachers I have met. The villagers who are not educated are very different. They have no clue of the outside world. Their only hope is to get their children ecucated which costs money. They have none. Most people (85-90% of the country's population) do not have jobs. They try to cultivate the soil to sustain themselves, but it is not enough.

Most of the children have no shoes and their clothes are tattered and sometimes they wear an adult T-shirt all torn and dirty. I give money to some, but when there is a huge crowd I can't.

We went back to Clementine's house yesterday (Wed) hoping I could spend some quiet time with them, but there were still 30+ neighbors gathering. The living room was full and Elson told me not to ask them questions of what they need in front of everyone. They could be in danger he said. Instead they will come to his house on Saturday morning. I know they need matresses. They have one bed frame with a straw mat where the parents sleep. The children sleep on the floor which is just dirt. Elson will let me know what it will cost to pour conrete floor for them so I can send the money for it. I plan to buy matresses for them at the market in Muhura on Saturday.

All the people at the house were trying to tell me their needs. Elson did not translate everything. I told them I wish I could help them all, but I am not rich. Pray to God and maybe others in America can help them. Once I am able to post photos you will see the difference a few dollars make in Rwanda. I know many of you will want to help a whole family or a student.

On our way home we stopped by another family who recieved a shoebox and are being helped by Americans. I took a picture of them and their house. Elson will give me the address to the family sending them money and I will send them pictures.

In Muhura, close to Pastor Elson's house there are 3 women and a baby girl living in a hut. They have no husbands and Elson said the child was probably conceived by prostitution. There are no jobs for the women. I gave them the baby clothes from my processor Toni. Thank you Toni! I will also go back and give them some money. I was not able to bring with my all I wanted to bring. When I go to the market on Saturday I will see what they can buy here and how much it costs. Since shipping from the US is pretty expensive it may be better to send money instead of clothes and shoes.

I miss my children, but I am very happy here. If there was running water and electricy I could stay here a while.

Love from Rwanda!! I love you Kristin and Erik. Din Mamma OXOXOXOX :)

Hello there !
I am having a wonderful time in Rwanda. I am now at an internet cafe in Byumba. It took us 1 1/2 hours on motorbike and then a few minutes on a minibus. The landscape here is beautiful.

I had a nice flight and made a new friend on the plane. Her name is Jane and she was returning from visiting her siblings in the US. She helped me buy a simcard for the cell phone. Our plane arrived an hour early!! Pastor Elson picked me up at the airport and first we went to visit his uncle who is the director for Youth for Christ in Rwanda. I had a good meal and then we went to buy water and supplies.

The ride to Muhura was about 2 1/2 hours. I took Dramamine as I knew the roads were bumpy. I slept most of the way since I had only had 9 hours sleep total the last 2 nights. The roads are very bad. Like huge pot holes every 2 feet. No need for amusement parks here, just go for a ride. Kristin and Erik would love it. In Muhura I was greeted by the pastor's beautiful wife Chantal and their children. The girl Alliance warmed up to me quickly and would hug me a lot. It is great since I miss my childrens' hugs. :(.

Donat, who my friends at work sponsor, came to see me at the pastor's house. He was so happy to greet me and he brought me drawings for me and my 2 friends at work.

I got to take a bath in a small tub of water the size of a dish tub. I managed to get clean. The outdoor toilet is a real ceramic toilet that just goes down on the ground. I am not sure of the emptying process. The bath is in a seperate building and the cooking is done outside. They eat rice or pasta, beans, corn, cabbage, chicken. The food is very similar to what we are used to in the US. Electricty for 3 hours a night make it difficult to charge all my electonics.

Got to go now. Will continue more at my next opportunity.,
Love and blessings to you all. I love Kristin and Erik, din Mamma!

It's Jan here reporting for Kirsten.

She's having a great time.

There are no internet access where she is so she will write more in the log when she has access to the net again.

I am now in London at Gatwick airport. I thought my bags would be checked all the way through to Rwanda, but no such luck. Instead of going into London today I am spending the day at Gatwick. It has been great actually. They announced a chapel service right after I got here and the chaplain, Robin, invited us to the Bible study they have here every Thursday at 1:00. If you ever happen to be here on a Thursday look for him or Steve or Jonathan. I now have a new group praying for Muhura, GFR and myself. At the service I also met Kirsten from New York. She is returning from a mission trip to Berlin.
Thank you Kristin for your comment. I love you so and miss you so. Give Erik a big hug from me and tell him I love him and miss him too. I sent you each a card from London. Give TJ and Isis hugs from me too.
Thank you all my friends again for your prayers and support. I will soon be on the plane to Addis Ababa and by 5 AM Texas time Friday I will be in Kigali.
Love and God's blessings to you all!!

Butterflies in my stomach! In a few hours I will be on my way to London. I will have a 7 hour layover before flying to Rwanda with a stop in Ethiopia. I am going to miss my children sooo much, but they are in very good hands. My bags are loaded and I didn't get to take as much with me as I had liked. My friend Richard let me use his laptop so I hope to have plenty of time to update my blog. I am overwhelmed with my friends' support. Thank you all!!

Here are the first letters we received from Pastor Elson and Clementine.
Double click to enlarge.

Dear Friends, I am going to Africa!! I will be leaving Wednesday June 21st and arrive in Rwanda Friday (35 hours later). I will stay until Monday July 3rd when I fly to Norway to spend a few days with my mom before returning to Texas July 9th. The reason for my trip, for those who don't know, is to visit Clementine who received the shoebox gift we sent in 2004 through Operation Christmas Child. She wrote us with the help of her pastor last September and we have been in constant contact ever since.
Clementine and her family as well as most people in Rwanda live in extreme poverty and I am trying to get an organization call Global Family Rescue to help the families in her village be self sufficient. GFR teaches people over a 3 year period to run a small business and get out of poverty. Each family sponsorship is $60/month which covers health insurance, educational needs including books, supplies and uniforms, clean water, shelter improvements, food including meat, small business ventures, savings, family association membership. If you go to their website (www.globalfamilyrescue.org) you can read about the enormous difference the sponsorships make in the lives of these people.
I am asking for all of your prayers that I will have a safe journey. I am nervous about what to eat and not to eat. I will not be staying at a western hotel, but with Pastor Elson and his family. They have no running water and electricity only 3 hours a day when the diesel fueled school generator runs. If any of you have clothes/shoes ages 10 and up or 2 and under you would like to send, please let me know. If you would like to be part of helping the poor people I will encounter please consider contributing some money as I know I will be overwhelmed with my feelings of inadequacy once I am there and seeing the masses of starving children. $10 feeds a family for 1 month!
I will miss my children and friends, but I feel very blessed that God has given me this opportunity to do something truly worthwhile and life changing. Your prayers and support will be greatly appreciated. I will be able to check my gmail account while there: kirsten.arina@gmail.com if you would like to write me!
God's love and blessings to you all, Kirsten