Aaron and Isaie mapping out our trip to visit
Guardians of Hope Projects in rural Rwanda
Guardians of Hope
Matekaya AEBR Church, Gikongoro, Rwanda
Amasezerano Y'Imana
"The Promises of God" sung in Kinyarwanda
"The Promises of God
When you receive them
Just pray and wait
It WILL BE completed!
Wait it will happen
WAIT IT WILL HAPPEN!"
To listen to the women singing in Kinyarwandan
please follow the link to our audio podcast site at
Erica receiving a basket of grain seed
from Therese Kampundu, a Guardian of Hope
Walking the steep roads of Matekaya, in Gikongoro,
to visit the homes of several Guardians of Hope
The Original Rwandan Scooter!
One of our delights during this visit was to see small children riding home made scooters down the steep mountain roads that criss cross this region. Kids will be kids!
Therese and her husband, Frodonard, have four children as well as five AIDS orphans whom they are caring for in their small home. Therese has been living positively with HIV since 2006 when she joined the Guardians of Hope. "I was scared and without hope," she shared with us. "My heart was so sad. I was really poor and now I had the problem of sickness without drugs. With the help of the Church, I started treatment with others in the church. They accepted me! I started the hope for living!!"
The Guardians of Hope in Gikongoro has 5 cooperatives working together in 12 churches with over 400 Guardians. Together they are strengthening their communities through literacy projects, livestock, agro-forestry, home-based care, school scholarships and savings & loan programs.
Therese's family benefitted from a small loan to buy sheep and pigs. Through the loan program, she was able to repay the loans for her livestock and raised enough money to purchase materials to build a home with her husband. With the home loan now repaid, she has taken loans to purchase two cows. With healthy livestock and rain for their gardens, they are feeding their family and blessing orphans within their community.
Maize continues to be a food stable for much of Africa
Through the small loans used for livestock,
families like Therese's are building a better life!
Isaie, Manuel, and Aaron
stopping for a tea break at a road side cafe
Please be praying for our Rwandan partners as they encourage their churches and support the various programs and projects throughout the country. The roads they travel are not easy, nor are the challenges they face. Their sacrifice and dedication to caring for their neighbours is a testimony to the power of God's Spirit!
Erica and Kathleen Soucey, Kigali, Rwanda
We want to share a huge thanks to Bruno, Kathleen, Ben, and the entire AEBR development team for the support and wonderful hospitality that you have shown us this past week. As we move together into 2011, we are very excited about our shared plans and commitment to serving the Lord and His Church through outreach to people living with HIV and AIDS, caregivers, orphans, and vulnerable children.
We would encourage you to be praying for the Soucey family and the ministry of CBM in Rwanda. To learn more about the ministry in Rwanda or to contribute to the support of the Souceys, please check out the Canadian Baptist Ministries website at www.cbmin.org
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