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So I got this email from Maxine- who was my ex-passenger- who I meet up with in Rwanda and it explains everything that went on. She can also be contacted if you want to see some pictures- I will upload some when I get to Dar- Es- Salaam but right here in Arusha time is short and the connection a bit slow! Thereis also details of how to donate some cash if you missed out! That last trip was so good it was unreal. The group just gelled so well and im so pleased The feedback questionaires were all excellent in every department. As a crew me Jimmy & Dougie are pretty good and life on the road is sweet- even though I have got another 4 Canadians! Check the Email- personally my favorite memory which will stay with me forever was The Little Old lady who looks after all the kids everyday for nothing, her face when she walked into her bedroom after I had put some shelves up. She smiled and gave my a big hug. Hi everyone Well Chris and I are back safe and sound and have had the most amazing adventure! After a lot of stress about the weight of the parcels and the fear of customs we arrived in Kigali (Capital of Rwanda) Saturday morning looking forward to a lay down and a good cup of coffee (the coffee bit has been a topic of conversation every day!) We meet up in Musanze (also known as Ruhengeri) with Greg and Egide who run Amahoro tours and have been our contact for the last few months, helping us to get this project up and running, and decided that we would see the children the next morning and give out their packages before deciding what we would spend our money on. I must say I was very nervous before seeing the children, I wonder how they would react? Had I forgotten anyone? Or in fact was this not a good idea and money would have been a better option? My fears disappeared the moment I saw them, quite a few remembered me from the last visit and were delighted with the photos I had taken of them back in February! After a little organisation we had them all sat down, while I explained why Chris and I had come and what we wanted to achieve while we were here. I talked about their news friends in England and the lovely gifts they had been sent. Each child was called up by name and given their bag, red for the girls and black for the boys, we did have a couple of hairy moments when a couple of the names were incorrect and a boy ended with a red bag and a visa versa for a girl, luckily they were the same age and we could just swap them. There was no mad frenzy to open the parcels, all children waited until they had all received their gifts and then taking out one item at a time they investigated their bags. Chris has some amazing photos. I do think the children must have thought the British are obsessed with pants!! They were all very grateful and wanted lots of photos taken with their new presents. For all those of you who sent a parcel to a child thank you once again, they loved your gifts and I have some letters of thanks from some of the older children and photos for all. The next day the Dragoman truck rocked up with Jon and Jimmy (group leader and co-driver) Jon had talked about the orphanage to his group and they were up for some painting! With a load of paint, brushes, buckets and power tools the Dragoman team worked hard for two days and left the orphanage a brighter cleaner home with some excellently made shelves by Jon! Thank you guys, you all worked so hard and I hope you will keep in touch with our progress as you have already made a difference! It was now time to spend some money! Your donations helped us to achieve the following: - connections to mains water - new doors and windows - new school uniforms for all the children over 6 - new mattresses and blankets - a mirror Connection to mains water - previously water was obtained from a well 4kms away and haphazard collection of rainwater. Clean water will now be available on site - but usage will have to be paid for as in the UK. New doors and windows. Most of the windows were covered with pieces of wood or battered out tin cans. The two external doors were of a similar construction and not secure. Now every window is glazed and new doors have been fitted. This will be particularly important in the winter months, when the nights are very cold. New school uniforms. These were made up by local seamstresses and the costs were covered by a donation from Alex and Jo specifically earmarked for this purpose. New mattresses and blankets. There are bunk beds the orphanage, but not all had mattresses and blankets - until we bought them. A pig. We bought a weaner that will be capable of producing a litter of 8-10 pigs every 6 months. This will provide a source of income from the orphanage (called Chris) A cow. This will provide milk for the kids and additional income from occasional calves. Paint. Whilst we were there the Dragoman truck (overland truck) rocked up and the passengers were cajoled into two days of decorating. Most of the paint and equipment was provided by a separate fund raised by the dragoman driver. We provided additional paint as required. A mirror. Just for fun for the younger kids. They loved it All purchases were made locally - and we always took a local with us to ensure we paid the right price. It has to be said that Rwanda isn't a cheap country - most goods have to be imported - but we are really pleased with what we were able to do with your money. I'm sure we got value for money and everything we purchased was in the order of priority indicated by the social worker running the orphanage. Chris and I covered all our travelling expenses, so every penny went into the local community for the benefit of the orphans. Chris and I spent a lot of time with the children and developed some strong relationships, I can't tell you how wonderful these children are, and after meeting the local officials we learnt that there are over 761 orphans in the Musanze area, and the aim of the district is to try and house them with foster families and send them to school, however funding is tight and although the government pays 1/2 the other has to be found else where. This brings me onto the future, Chris is going to take responsibility for fund raising primarily for the building and structure of the centre, Honeycroft will develop its ties to the children, through fund raising, maintaining friendships and sending necessary supplies, and I would like to produce a format, similar to that of the orphanages in Uganda to introduce "Sponsor a child" this would mean that once set up and put in place anyone around the World could sign up and sponsor a child from the Musanze area, which would pay for their schooling, books, further education or apprenticeship and a small amount of finance for the foster family. (approximately £15.00 per month) I will be working with Greg, Egide and Roz (Greg's new assistant) to develop this proposal, that hopefully will lead to someone in Musanze co ordinating it for me. I will keep you all updated with my progress and if anyone has any useful contacts or advise please let me know. We have some wonderful photos and stories to tell, I will be hosting a slide show and talk at Honeycroft on Monday 6th October at 7pm if anyone would like to attend? I will be charging you £5.00 however refreshments will be provided and all money made will be going to the Orphanage fund. Please e mail if you would like to attend it would be lovely to see you and if you sent a package I will have photos of your children ready to hand out with their letters (not all children sent letters) Once again thank you for all your support! We really have made a difference! Love Max x Honeycroft Children's Centre - Monday 6th October 7-9pm Sackville Road Hove Bank account - Chris West Rwanda Account Sort Code - 209748 Number - 93462145
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