Tarzan Boy

Q returned from his Rwanda trip about a month ago...It was very moving to hear all about his experience there...so, I wanted to share this on the blog too:

I recently returned from Rwanda, Africa. What a place! As I arrived my eyes were fixed on the beauty of the country- rolling hills as far as I could see, lush vegetation, and clear blue skies. There’s no question I have never been to a more stunning country. When I began to meet the people of Rwanda I was captivated by their fantastic spirit. However, my heart broke as I heard countless horrific stories from the 1994 genocide that killed nearly 1,000,000 people. In fact, I didn’t meet 1 person who wasn’t radically impacted by the genocide, many of them had lost all or most of their family members.
Despite the tremendous challenges of recent years, Rwanda has a bright future. HOPE’s work through Urwego Microfinance Bank is inspiring. As I traveled throughout the country nearly everyone knew of Urwego and the great work happening through the more than 34,000 microloan and savings clients. Rwanda has the chance to be the model of development in Africa. One woman who inspired this reflection is Marie Jeanne Urwinna.
Marie Jeanne is on the team leading HOPE’s newest outreach to some of the very poorest in Rwanda through savings led microfinance. I had the chance to hear Marie Jeanne’s story of how the genocide changed her life forever. Marie Jeanne watched as most of her family was brutally murdered. She lost her husband, 1 child, her parents, and all of her siblings. Marie Jeanne and her 2 sons miraculously survived the genocide that happened over 13 years ago, but the pain from the loss of family is still as real today as when it happened. As Marie Jeanne shared with me and the team from the U.S., there were no dry eyes, her story gripped all of our emotions. Only in my worst nightmare could I imagine such a story.
In spite of pain from the recent past, Marie Jeanne has a smile and look of determination that inspires confidence. She plays a key role in HOPE’s dream to reach more than 750,000 people with savings led microfinance in the next 3-5 years. Marie Jeanne’s resolve to see her country released from physical and spiritual poverty is infectious. My prayer is that the dreams she has for her sons and her country will be realized.
On behalf of Marie Jeanne, many thanks to you who are supporting this work that really is making a significant temporal and eternal impact in the lives of many poor people living in the most challenging places on earth.

With Gratitude,
Q