The blog for GrassRoots Rwanda

Fresh appeals for fundraising

ultimateproof@blueyonder.co.uk (Kelly Owen) — Sat, 09 Nov 2024 11:59:13 GMT

Last month, Pete Muir, Trustee at GrassRoots Rwanda, shared two new areas of fundraising focus in the Shyogwe Diocese in his home church, St Michael and All Angels, Bishop's Cleeve, Cheltenham UK. St Micheal's Church is a Mission Partner of the charity.

Watch Pete's short talk above or click here >> Grassroots Rwanda update talk on 27th Oct 2024 - YouTube

Pete also shares an update below, with links to project fundraising pages.

Building work SOS

It was a good and interesting visit on my recent trip to the Diocese although I’m sure these visits are getting more arduous - perhaps I’m just getting older! As with many of the visits, it is a bittersweet experience. You see lots of beautiful vistas and talk to lots of beautiful people. You go to church services that last for hours. But the flip side of course is always there. The grinding poverty; the very few opportunities for people to better themselves and some are living in unacceptably poor accommodation.

We visited one archdeacon who was living in a house built by the original missionaries in the 1920s, it is structurally good but needs a complete makeover estimated at around £6,000. I’ve opened a JustGiving page to collect £2,500 to cover just the bathroom (which interestingly has a bath in it - obviously, with such a shortage of water this needs to be converted to a shower) and the kitchen, which has one old wood-burning stove and no means to prepare food except on the ground. The room was constantly full of smoke.

This is the link for donations to this work, any donation most gratefully received and all used towards this project: justgiving.com/page/peter-muir-1729605397804

Training for young women

We also met a group of girls who had been subjected to sexual violence. We have previously given them training and a sewing machine so they can make their own clothes, and also make clothes to sell, giving them independence from their abusers. But the Diocese is concerned that without a formal qualification from a training centre they may not be able to sell their clothes to the public. It is a three-month residential course which would cost £250 for each of the girls, so I’ve set up a second JustGiving page for these girls where I hope to raise £2,500 to give all 10 of them a qualification to ensure that they can continue to sell goods and thereby keep themselves safe.

This is the link for donations to this work, any donation most gratefully received and all used towards this project:

justgiving.com/page/peter-muir-1729846773707

Thank you for your continued support and prayers.

COVID-19 Update and Pastor Training Appeal

Sun, 01 Aug 2021 20:49:38 GMT

Bishop Jared shares his latest update (July 2021)

“Warm greetings in Jesus name. I am now in my office meditating and praying for the situation in Rwanda, in Africa and in the entire world. For Rwanda, COVID is intensely coming back with a big number of sick people.

"Each day there are around 900 new cases and 5 deaths which may not sound as severe as other countries but their lockdown is severe with reduced numbers in those churches that are allowed to open and restrictions on movement. Only 4% of the population are vaccinated
and the supply of vaccines is severely limited throughout the country (particularly rural areas).

"Please pray for us to get more vaccines (only governments can supply vaccines).”

Since the Bishop wrote, the number of COVID cases has increased exponentially to almost 3,000 per day.

'Feed the Hungry' practical needs

“Teachers and pastors are severely economically affected ... therefore, the survival support to purchase food for pastors and teachers would be
appreciated.”

GrassRoots Rwanda says: With churches and schools closed, pastors live by offering and many teachers do not receive salaries from the Government; parents are unable to pay school fees and students are unable to go home.

The living conditions of Rwandans have been affected where businesses and jobs have been restricted by lockdowns and many have no
income at all, particularly in urban areas.

“The situation in remote rural areas in hard but people do they best they can to survive” [as farming activities have continued to some
extent].

“Some cases are critical like girls who are victims of early pregnancy and aged people in villages.”

GrassRoots Rwanda says: Pastors are finding it hard to support the most vulnerable without income themselves. Some churches in remote areas do not have permits to open at all as they are unable to afford ‘required’ protection like hand-washing water via tanks and soap. The Trust has already sent £8,000 to the Bishop, to distributed to pastors and communities where he sees the greatest needs.

Train the Pastors Theological training

“Training of pastors remains a main priority of Shyogwe Diocese.

“We were lucky to get half of the funds from UEM, J Wesley organisation, for our 32 students studying in Anglican Theological College at Kigali and in the Protestant University of Butare. We need your support to pay for the rest we owe to those two institutions. Please pray and intervene as you can in that matter."

GrassRoots Rwanda says: By 2023, Rwanda government requirements specify that those without a government-approved degree will not be allowed to preach. Few of the current pastors have such a qualifications and large numbers are retiring, hence the urgency of funding this
training. A considerable number of churches would be unable to function.

Donate

If you wish to support either of the current initiatives, JustGiving links can be found at
Train the pastors: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/peter-muir21
Feed the hungry: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/peter-muir20

The Dufatanye project continues helping the poorest giving emergency food, a place to grow crops, some housing and breakfast.
We act on funds raised for this project via an alternative fund raising budget as it lies just outside Shyogwe Diocese in Nyanza Diocese.
To support this project, go to: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/peter-muir18

The Trustees continue to thank God for you, our faithful supporters. All of the donations go to the cause that you specify as the Trustees pay for all the administrative costs in running the charity.

Good news project updates

Gasharu Health Post - This now completed (thanks to a very generous donation to the Trust): “Every day more than a hundred patients are coming for treatment. Good news indeed.” However, people are finding it really hard to pay the ‘NI’ subscription for the very basic health care the Government offers. These subscriptions do not cover COVID help.

Nyarungenge Church - Repair and improvement work on the building is nearing completion follow the severe storm damage of 30 months ago. “Thank the Lord for the efforts made by Christians in several parishes in order to fulfil the government requirements for opening churches for prayer and worship.”

Rugendabari VTC - Continues to give professional skills to young people in sewing, building, carpentry (and welding once electricity is connected); albeit government-approved teaching certificates require a further 3 months' training at an ‘accredited’ college. More skilled teachers are required for subjects other than sewing.

Prayer points

Please continue to pray for the Rwandan people, in particular for:

A vaccination programme for all and the resuming of their normal way of life alongside spiritual and medical support for those who become ill.
Theological training to enable pastors to fulfil their important role within the communities.
Teachers and schools to be able to continue their valuable work for the future of the next generation and beyond.
Spiritual faith and practical help for those who are hungry, without income, in the most need and who may be in despair.

I remain grateful for your prayers and your love and commitment to your brothers and sisters in Shyogwe, on our side we continue to remember you all in our prayers.

May the Lord bless you and bless your beloved ones.
In Christ,
Bishop Jered.

Shaki opens its doors for business!

Fri, 22 Mar 2019 23:17:17 GMT

After a long, and at times tortuous wait, the maternity unit at Shaki is finally open.

Shaki is in a remote part of the diocese, and we can't underscore often enough how important this is. I last visited in 2015 at a time when the unit was still closed. I asked what would happen if a woman had complications during birth, and was told that they would call an ambulance to take her the 3-hour drive to the nearest hospital at Kabgay. Now, I know the state of ambulances in rural Rwanda - and they are not all parked up, nearby and ready! So I asked what would happen if the ambulance was not available, then they said it would a Rwandan ambulance - 4 men and a stretcher - that would walk to the hospital, a trip lasting 8 hours. The woman sometimes didn't make it. So, to have a maternity unit there manned by trained midwives is a real blessing to that rural community.

We want to give heartfelt thanks to the generous sponsors to made this possible. They have literally been a life saver.

We have also taken funds from general funds to pay for equipment, and taken out knitted clothes for the first babies to be born.

The maternity unit has been built beside a small health post - not much more than a dispensary really - and the plan is to have a fully functioning health centre there in the fullness of time. But there are plenty of limiting factors we have to work through: we need the funds to send out, they need to organise the resources there to get the building done, and work with the government oversight of plans and build quality.

But of course, if we never start, we will never finish!

Every blessing,

Pete

Chairman

Encouraging news from Rugendabri

ultimateproof@blueyonder.co.uk (Kelly Owen) — Mon, 14 Jan 2019 14:25:13 GMT

We have recently received news from Rugendabari that they are rejoicing as three good things are happening there.

Firstly is the rebuilding of the pastor's house which is progressing apace. We sent over £2,400 for repairing the children's bedrooms in April, but we find that they have decided to rebuild the whole house! This was unexpectedly good news!

We have also sent over some money to help bring churches up to the new government standard, and the church floor has been completed (it was only partly cemented when we were there last), and the church painted. It is not clear whether it was our money that was used for this church repair, but we rejoice with them. It is good to see a picture of the church filled!

And finally, as a trust we have been supporting the Healthy Mum project for some time, and we sent over some money to help them open one at Rugendabari. This has blossomed, and the one group we started has grown to 5 groups, each with 20 members! The groups help the young mums develop a saving habit and to keep their children healthy. They have bought different domestic animals like hens, rabbits, goats and also health insurance.

This is a good start but the area still needs help and support. One continuing problem is in education where children drop out of primary schools because of poverty in their family. It is also a wider problem as the church is hampered from having few educated people. We have considered asking Compassion to start a project here which will help the children who are from the poorest families. This project needs to be sponsored by the church, and we have written to the Bishop to ask him his opinion on whether it would be appropriate to start a Compassion project at Rugendabari.

Please keep this small, rural and poor parish in your prayers.

Sapling project proves growing success in Rwanda

ultimateproof@blueyonder.co.uk (Kelly Owen) — Sat, 22 Dec 2018 22:02:38 GMT

The tree nursery started up in March 2018 to grow and give away 10,000 avocado saplings. Later, passion fruits were introduced and 8,000 passion fruits were grown.

Some avocados were grafted early in July 2018 and these were ready to be planted out from September 2018 and there has been a steady giving away of the saplings.

Since then, approaching 5,000 avocado and passion fruit saplings were distributed in and around Shyogwe and Kagarama parishes to many households, but this only scratches the surface of the need. The saplings provide a welcome boost to household incomes and improves the family diet, as well as helping to stop soil erosion - you will understand this if you visit in the rainy season!

Saplings are transported around the Diocese by truck - kindly provided by Orbus Software . This gift of the truck makes projects like this feasible. And of course, your kind donations of £1 per sapling makes it possible! It's still not too late to fund more saplings - go to https://www.justgiving.com/GrassRootsRwanda or https://www.grassrootsrwanda.com/current-health-projects

The grafted avocado is the least stressful form of farming; the lifespan of a grafted avocado tree is more than 50 years. By the 10th year, one tree can produce 1,750 avocados and, after a year or two, 40-50kg of fruit per passion fruit tree, but these trees (more like vines in appearance) have a limited lifespan of no more than 6 to 10 years.

Alongside giving away the plants, families are taught the basic knowledge about horticulture: how to prepare a field, organic manure and how to control diseases and parasites.

Let's celebrate and support this great success story!

Mission Trip to Shyogwe Rwanda

kelly@ultimateproof.co.uk (Kelly Owen) — Fri, 30 Nov 2018 11:25:26 GMT

Supporting the work of the Anglican Church in Shyogwe Diocese

Sarah Parkes shares her story:
On 16th April, six of us from St Michael's in Bishops Cleeve including me, Joseph aged 11 and Fran aged 14 left for Shywoge in Rwanda, which is supported by the David Dale Shyogwe Trust. Whilst there we will offered encouragement, prayer, practical support, shared fellowship and financial assistance.

The Trust supports the work of the Anglican Church in Shyogwe Diocese. Projects to relieve financial hardship due to poverty include pre-school education, building work on churches, hospitals and training centres, supporting health programmes and vocational training. Always seeking a more sustainable future whilst 'helping the man in front of you.'
Any donation you can give will be much appreciated and every penny will be used for life-enhancing causes in Shyogwe.

We raised over £1,700 for the Trust through our JustGiving page before we left and took with us case fulls of children's clothing!

Shyogwe Six share memories of Rwanda

kelly@ultimateproof.co.uk (Kelly Owen) — Sat, 24 Jun 2017 22:34:11 GMT

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 the 11.3 million population. 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.