SISTER COMMUNITY
We are grateful that it is possible to have regular contact with the sisters via social media. They are doing well, so far none of the sisters have become infected with the coronavirus! However, they notice that there is a lot of need in their environment, because people do not have a job and therefore no income. Because donations came in from various sides, they were able to help many people with food.
SCHOOLS OPEN AGAIN
Unfortunately, all schools in Rwanda went into lockdown, also the primaryschool, which opened last year, the kindergarten and technical school,. There was no question of homeschooling, because most pupils at home do not have a computer and often even no electricity. Fortunately, the schools are now open again and work can be done to make up for the backlog.
EXPANSION SCHOOL
When primary school opened in February last year, the sisters said that this building did not contain all the necessary spaces and that expansion was therefore urgently needed. Especially the lack of a kitchen and dining room was a problem. Moreover, the former orphan village that serves as a kindergarten no longer meets the requirements. In this way, a plan was made for a new building on the site of the orphan village. Much to the delight of the sisters, the funding soon came to an end, so that hopefully construction can start this year!
RUBENGERA TECHNICAL SECONDARY SCHOOL
The technical school is also back in full operation. Last year, a dorm for girls could be put into use. For the boys this is also urgently needed, they now live in a house that is far too small.
Since January, Sr. Emilienne is leader of the school. For the time being, she will continue to take care of the children of the orphan village. With great commitment and ingenuity she combines these tasks: when for a boy from the orphan village was bought a cottage, she had the furniture made by students of the technical school, who earned their school fees in this way!
BABY PROJECT
The baby project was also stopped for a while because of the lockdown, but now the mothers can come again, while respecting the rules: face masks and distance. Sr. Marthe is happy to be helping the mothers and their babies again! Especially now that poverty has increased so much, this aid is literally vital for the little ones.
WATER PROJECT
Last year, construction began on site of its own water source for the sister community and buildings on site. That was quite difficult, because the ground turned out to be so hard that a few times the drill gave out. Finally a depth of 7 meters could be reached, where – as it stands – there is enough water to be found.
Now the final phase has yet to be carried out: the construction of 800 meters of pipe from the source to the grounds of the sisters! Once that is done, hopefully enough water will flow to provide the mother house, the guest house and the schools!
AGRICULTURAL PROJECT
Improvements have been made to the irrigation system in the field of the agricultural project, so that harvesting can be carried out more frequently. Church in Action regularly calls attention to this project. On their website there is a lot of information about it; it's worth taking a look at it.
We would like to draw your attention to the website, which is faithfully maintained by volunteer Rachel Pekkeriet. Together we try to keep the site as up-to-date as possible. You can also order postcards made by the sisters via the site.
On behalf of the board of the St. Friends of Sisters in Rwanda, I warmly greet you and wish you God's blessing!
Zr. Dorien Peet
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