The letter below was written to the staff at ASYV by Alain Munyaburanga who is responsible for Education and Training. Alain has been with ASYV since the construction phase of the village.

Many times we wonder if what we do in Agahozo-Shalom, with the kids, will have a lasting impact. Many times a kid or a family in Agahozo-Shalom does something that shows us that what we do does matter; more than we know or can witness.

We just finished one of those activities that proves to me what we do is paramount in the lives of the majority of our kids. Today was the voting day for Mister and Miss Core Value for each grade. During Thursday family time, we started with a discussion on core values. The kids discussed what the core values are and why they are important in their lives.

During Friday village time, a presentation was given to everyone in the village on the 7 core values of Agahozo-Shalom. Above and beyond good grades, having values is more important. Having values are what will allow you to have a job and keep it, to have a friend and keep her/him, to be respected in the community you live in and so on.

On Sunday every family elected their Mister or Miss Core Value based on how she/he lived with the other kids. Today each grade elected one Mister and Miss Core Value among those that had been selected in their respective families. The kids who were elected are those kids who really live the 7 core values.

The event had a dual purpose. The first purpose was to remind the kids of our core values and to acknowledge those live them every day. The second purpose was to educate the kids on the election process. In a country that has only voted democratically twice in its existence, there is a need for educating its citizens why you vote for a particular candidate or person.

It was a wonderful event. The group I was in, Urumuli grade, one kid asked the 8 candidates to identify the 7 ASYV core values and explain the reason the village has them in place. Listening to the candidates answer this question reminded me why we do what we do. One candidate said: “many of us never had a chance to inherit values from our parents. The village is our family and believes it is important for its kids to have values. This is why these values were put in place”.

It has been a month since we welcomed our fourth grade to ASYV. I know that it has been a hard month with people getting back into the day to day life in the village after two months away. But it has been a successful month as well. Many of us were scared of having 500 kids in the village and solving all the issues that come up on a daily basis; but we have done a marvelous job.

I would like to thank you all for what you do on a daily basis at ASYV. If you had any doubts about the impact you have in these kids’ lives, please remember the reason one of them gave above. I wish that we all achieve more with our kids during the month of February than we have achieved in January. Only by constantly improving on what we do, will we build a strong community of nation builders out of our kids in Agahozo-Shalom Youth Village.

Be blessed

This year, we  launched the advanced programs for Senior Five, beginning with the Professional Skills programs such as modern farming, photography and video editing, electricity and water system, cooking skills, art, traditional art, sewing, recording and guitar. Midway into the program, we began a new form of Tikkun Olam which was previously called Umuganda to be held the last Saturday of each month and is now running parallel with the Clubs for Senior Five kids.

Professional Skills
The kids of Senior Five began the year with the Professional Skills program which is advanced in nature as compared to the Enrichment Programs that are taught in Senior Four and Enrichment Year. These professional skills possess varying degrees of difficulty; the major issue was the lack of didactic materials and until now we continue to struggle with this issue. But overall, the kids enjoy these programs so much that they display their level of commitment, motivation and knowledge which is very important for their adult life after they leave the ASYV. 

Clubs
In June, the kids from Urumuri grade began participation in six new clubs. These clubs were created specifically for the Senior Five kids and each family has delegated four kids in two of the existing clubs. These students are delegated in order to help their younger brothers and sisters improve the quality activities performed in the clubs and to promote the leadership spirit among them. Clubs include the Tutoring club, Languages Development club, Centers Management club, Guest and Tourism club, IT club and Sport club. Senior Five’s club activities has brought new blood, new ideas, and innovation in the ASYV way of life.

Tikkun Olam…A New Approach
The year of 2011 gave birth to a new change in Umuganda activities that were normally held the last Saturday of each month in a location where the students regularly worked with local residents. Last year’s plan, was designed to have the kids from Senior Five teach Tikkun Olam at Rwamagana in order to spread spirit of Tikkun Olam everywhere.  After a period of discussions, the village staff offered another suggestion; instead of going to Rwamagana, the students can do advanced Tikkun Olam in the areas that are closest to home.   This idea of combining Umuganda and the Tikkun Olam is mainly due to the village’s economic condition resulting in the need for Senior Five to teach the Tikkun Olam in three different sectors.  We took eighteen (18) students and divided them into two shifts to teach an illiterate population from the Rubona sector.  One shift is staffed with nine kids from three learning sites, Karambi cell, Rugarama and Rubona center. Each learning site has six kids rotating in two shifts.  A second group of eighty-four (84) kids teach in two primary schools; forty-two kids teach at Bicumbi primary school and forty-two kids at the Byinza primary school. The students rotate their shifts in a small group of twenty-one kids.   The third group of twenty (20) kids teach technology skills to the Rubona secondary school students.  They also alternate into two shifts of ten (10) students and once a month, every student from the Urumuri grade does Tikkun Olam including Umuganda.  This group totals 158 in S3, but they would never have received the opportunity without our students giving them that chance.

This will be the first of several posts about a special project: a student club has adopted a piece of land and turned it into the Parike Y’Umutungo Kamere W’Agahozo.

Read the full Blog HERE!

Anne Heyman, founder of ASYV, is currently in the village and wrote this blog about her wonderful day at the village:

July 13,2011 Once again I find myself waking up at the crack of dawn – literally – and I lie in bed listening to the wind in the banana trees which sounds like rain but not really, because here in Rwanda it’s the dry season. With rain being highly unlikely, the sun peeking in your windows and all the birds chirping their early morning singing songs….you know it’s just another day in paradise. You may think that is an exaggeration, but if you haven’t been here yet, you cannot even imagine how beautiful it is. And if you are a nature lover….let me tell you about what I did today.

At lunch I was approached by Fidel, the head of the Environment Club, and he asked if it would be possible for some of the students in the environment club to take me on a walk through “the Park” – the newly designated conservation area which visitors to Agahozo-Shalom can now take a guided walk through. I am told that so far over 200 students have worked on or participated in the creation of the nature trail, which is still under construction and in doing so they have all been exposed to the importance of protecting our environment (as well as the fun you can have in doing so!) Starting at the back of the school, where 4 state of the art large greenhouses are sprouting all kinds of plants (it’s been a long time since I tasted such a delicious tomato) we followed the fence line until we saw the sign: Agahozo-Shalom Nature Park. The whole way leading up to the entrance I was learning about why caring for our environment is so important from the 5 members of the Environment Club who undertook to give me my tour! Turning left onto the trail I was shown a one page “map” of some of the plants, trees, birds and wildlife I could possibly encounter. I am pleased to report that were no pictures of lions or baboons on the page; although there was the chance of encountering an Ichneumon Mongoose (who I am told are good because they eat snakes….and we did in fact not encounter any snakes on the path!) Immediately after stepping onto the path we were surrounded by butterflies of all types, and it was explained to me how important they are for pollination. An acacia tree led to a discussion about the different types of acacia trees, and which ones were used traditionally for church gatherings under the shady trees.

Innocent, Paulina, Leonard, Fidel, and Anne-Marie followed in short succession; with a discussion of each types of plant, the Kinyarwanda name, the English name and the scientific name all being provided. Despite the fact that it was 2:30 in the afternoon we were treated to encounters with Speckled Mousebirds, Cinnamon-chested Bee-eaters, and a Bateleur Eagle, just a few of the over 125 species of birds which have been documented at the village by our resident bird expert and erstwhile volunteer, Jared. (For those of you who are serious bird watchers, we are proud to let you know that Agahozo-Shalom is one of the few places where you can regularly spot Sooty Chats, Cinnamon-chested Bee-eaters, and Yellow-throated Longclaws).

Yellow-throated Longclaw

Agahozo-Shalom is a village of hope, a village of learning, a village of promise and change. And it is a village filled with delightful surprises: Kids who have amazing voices, traditional poetry written by young people with old soles, wonderful murals painted by our resident artists, homemade potato chips (ok not that often but when we do get them…I have never tasted any potato chips so delicious)….and now there is one more….our very own very special nature preserve…..complete with a guided tour that I guarantee you will never forget.

ASYV started the day with over 50 students working on our new nature
park and trail and gave the inaugural tour to some visiting donors.
The nature park, Parike Y’Umutungo Kamere W’Agahozo, was envisioned by
students and features a 600 meter trail that showcases acacia, umuko,
and other native vegetation. Environment Club members marked the event
by planting four native acacia trees in the park.

After lunch, the club hosted an educational event. This event
attracted more than 250 village residents, including 220+ students and
over 30 staff/volunteers. We screened “Planet Earth: Freshwater,”
viewed a presentation about water conservation from our assistant
director, and heard from three students who spoke about trees.
Following the speeches, students and staff explored environmental
issues at an interactive idea marketplace. The club sponsored a tree
giveaway so that each family could plant a tree on Environment Day.

Finally, after the event, students planted a total of 30 trees in
their yards, including 7 acacia, 20 papaya, and 3 guava. Please enjoy
the pictures of our version of Earth Day!

Click here for more information and pictures!

Articles include:
“Women’s Corner”
“The Birds”
“Are they looking at the stars? Or becoming stars?”
and
Artists’ Corner

University of Pennsylvania:
http://upennhillel.blogspot.com/2011/05/tikkun-olam.html

Tufts University:
http://tufts-in-rwanda.blogspot.com/2011/05/one-day-to-go.html

University of Wisconsin:
http://uwhillelrwanda.wordpress.com/2011/05/02/bringing-it-back/

The Agahozo-Shalom Youth Village in Rwanda prides itself in installing in the children the idea that they, orphans of the genocide, are
worthy of helping those less fortunate than themselves. This concept of going outside the village to help others is not only to help them recognize how lucky they are to be in ASYV, but also to teach them that every person has something to give to the community and wider society.

Anne Heyman, the founder of ASYV, built the Village on Jewish values and thus, the Village sets aside one afternoon a week to do Tikun Olam, the Jewish notion of repairing the world. There are three options of Tikun Olam that the children can choose from: elementary school, social work, and HIV-AIDS clinic. I chose to go to the HIV-AIDS clinic with the children. As soon as we walked out of the Village, I immediately noticed the difference between those who are lucky enough to live in ASYV and those who live outside. The former are better dressed, well-nourished and speak impeccable English.

Arriving at the clinic was a big shock for me. The clinic was made up of a few dark and rundown buildings, some made of mud. There was nothing inside the clinic that resembled a medical center, no electrical medical equipment, no real waiting rooms and hardly any
medical supplies. We were given a tour around the clinic, but during the tour I couldn’t help but get distracted by the background noise. My eyes couldn’t focus on the doctor talking to us. All that my eyes were drawn to were the mothers outside trying to cradle their sick and crying babies. As we were told later, the babies scream with pain because they have not eaten or drunk water for days, often weeks. This for me was painful to be around but the children of ASYV didn’t seem fazed by it, and I couldn’t understand why. It was only until later that day that I realized why. The children of ASYV used to be like those children I saw in the clinic, stricken by poverty and often sickness, and it made me so grateful for the work that this Village does for the children. They have been given a life-changing opportunity: an education, medical treatment, support system and most importantly hope, and I am deeply honored to be a part of this.

This year (2010) the kids of the Agahozo-Shalom Youth Village started doing Tikkun Olam in social affairs, school, and clinic outside the village.

Some of the kids of ASYV went to the primary school in Rubona. Ours goal was to give English lesson and to create friendships with the school (both with the kids and their educators).

Before we started volunteering at the school, we went there to explain about Tikkun Olam and ask them what they wanted us to do to help them. The principal of the school told us that it would be good if we could teach English to the kids in Primary 4. So we agreed to start teaching their kids the English lessons.

There are 245 kids in P4. ASYV kids split up into ten groups. Each group had two students from Agahozo-Shalom and about 25 students from P4.

The methods used for teaching English were: showing the kids pictures and then giving them explanations of those pictures, reading stories to them, playing games, showing movies, and practicing conversation.

The kids in Rubona primary school were so happy to be with us. Since one of our goals was to create friendship with our neighbors, including those kids of primary school, we invited them to the village for a tour and explanation of our village.

At the end of each term we gave them an assessment test to see if they understood what we were teaching them.

We ended the year by asking the teachers of those kids if they have seen the improvement. The teachers said that there was a big improvement in speaking, reading, and even in writing English. The teachers also said that the Primary 4 students have developed self-confidence, which was a big achievement because before we started working with them the kids used to have a fear of speaking English.

This project was not only good for the kids of the primary school, but it was also good for kids from Agahozo-Shalom. They said that they too were able to learn many things from the kids of Rubona primary school.

We are very happy in the village because our farm has a new baby calf! The baby is small with brown skin. It is very young now, but after a few years it will be very important in our village. It will give us milk and money if we ever need to sell it. We want our farm to be organic and we feed the cow natural foods so that it is healthy. In Rwanda, according to our culture, cows are important in our life. If you want to marry, you must buy a cow to give to your girlfriend’s parents. I am not ready to get married now, so we can let the new baby grow up!

In Tikkun Olam there are different groups for the school, the clinic, and
social affairs. Social affairs is then divided into five groups of 16 each,
all from the *Urumuri* (seeds) grade, and there is one educator/counselor
who guides each group and reminds us to clean the tools and to work hard.

This year our group worked at two sites. In January we started to rebuild a
house for a poor widow who lives with her son. She was sick and unable to
work in order to earn money to rebuild her house. She didn’t have a door or
windows so the youth of ASYV took initiative to rebuild it. We also helped
to treat her for jiggers and left her with a system for collecting and
storing water, so that now she is in a better condition.

In the middle of June we began working in another place that was closer to
our village. We helped another poor family of old people who were in need of
a new kitchen. We helped them to rebuild their kitchen out of mud. We
were met with some difficulties in this project because we didn’t have
enough time to finish this project.

Students preparing the mud to rebuild a house

What we got from Tikkun Olam this year through building houses without any
help, was to be focused on our projects, to have time management, and to
feel someone else’s pain. This experience was also good because we have
learned how to handle special cases or problems of different people who
surround us, and to go the extra mile.

Choosing My Combination
By UWAMAHORO Marie Louise

I chose the combination H.E.G. of History, Economics, and Geography. I like to know history because I am interested in the past and the actions and progress of humans. Geography is a topic I find very hard, and I must study to succeed. I think it is important to know the physical and chemical features of our country and our continent and also our whole world. Economics is very interesting in my life because I need to study how I can be a future entrepreneur. Economics is my favorite subject in my combination, because it will really help me in the future. I am preparing to be a business woman. I need to work very hard and not expect other people to work for me. I have to create my own opportunities. When I have success I will be able to help other children in the world, even my kids in University. I will be able to create big projects with my knowledge of Economics.

Changing Our Country With Law or Engineering
By NGANIZI Augustin

For me, I chose P.C.B., the combination of Physics, Chemistry, and Biology. I want to be a scientist in Biology because I understand very well the sciences. In my future I need to be a good man who can help men who are poor and orphans. I want to be an engineer in water and electricity. In University I want to study pure physics. In my future I also know it is important to know the history of the past and so I would also study H.E.G. as my second choice. If I study H.E.G. I can become a lawyer and make a positive change in my country.

In Agahozo-Shalom we had a naming ceremony for our families. We did
the research to find heros in history. We learned about many people
and made our family decisions. Before the house naming ceremony we had
families 1,2,3… until 8. But now every house has a name. For example,
Family 8 is now Abraham Lincoln Family. Abraham Lincoln is a great
American President who did not want Africans to be in slavery in
America. Our naming ceremony was very nice for all the members of
Agahozo-Shalom, especially the kids of the grade we call “Imbutu”, or
fruits. We are the younger grade. I like that our families are named
for heros because it means we must live up to their example.

Family 1 is now Leopold Sedar Senghor Family
Family 2 is now Madame C.J. Walker Family
Family 3 is now Joan of Arc Family
Family 4 is now John F. Kennedy Family
Family 5 is now Leonardo da Vinchi Family
Family 6 is now David Ben-Gurion Family
Family 7 is now Patrice Lumumba Family
Family 8 is now Abraham Lincoln Family

Once again I find myself at the Village, where the school year is winding down. The kids are beginning to study for finals which start next week and we have the bitter sweet end of the tenure of one Village Director and the start of another. There is, as always, much work to be done, but then there is the pure job of seeing, being with and interacting with the kids. The highlight of my day today was the “chess final” after dinner. For the last month there has been a chess tournament in the village. First each of the houses had an intra-house tournament, then the houses in each grade played each other, then the final was between the winner in the first grade (the newer kids) and the winner in the second grade (the older kids). I was thrilled that the winner from the first grade was a girl; totally awesome. I am so proud of her. The tournament started at 8:30 and was very well attended – I think almost all of the kids in the Village were there. It was actually quite surreal. On the stage in the dining hall there was a table set with a table cloth, a chess set, two glasses of water and two stop watches. The kids who were playing came to the table, along with their “timers”. As they stepped up to their stools they were cheered like rock stars. (the whole time they were preparing to get started a slide show of the chess games leading up to this final game was being shown to music). There was tremendous energy in the room, and as each player made a move their respective cheering section would hoot and holler. In the end the young man from the second year was triumphant. It was not really a surprise to learn that he had played his first game of chess 6 weeks before. Most of the kids at the village had not seen or played chess before, but many practiced sometimes twice a day, and my understanding is that there are some players who are very very good. These kids never fail to amaze with what they are capable of learning and doing and their motivation is something that really has to be seen to be believed.

Just one of the many reasons that it is always a treat to be at Agahozo-Shalom

A generous donor has made it possible for us to build an administration and clinic building so that we can ready the houses for our new kids. These new buildings will also ready the village for next years kids.

You can read about their experiences at http://liquidnetinrwanda.blogspot.com/