As the horrific events of April 1994 recede into the past for the rest of the world, Rwanda still remembers the Genocide every day. Such evil has rarely engulfed a nation. It cannot help but scar the soul of a people. Rwanda is on the long road back from that hellish time.
For International Child Care Ministries, our tragic date is 2001, the year we had to suspend sponsorship of two thousand children in Rwanda. The decision was painful for all involved, but unavoidable, as the leaders of the Free Methodist Church at that time proved untrustworthy. Many sponsors suffered; certainly many children and their parents suffered. It was our own “worst case scenario.”
Since 2008, we have been working with new leaders in Rwanda. Our new approach began with several initiatives. They include expanding the “cow project” begun in 2001 and still going strong in some areas; providing life-saving water filters for families; and offering a very limited sponsorship opportunity —the children of the Amizero Project, a ministry to mentally challenged kids, are being enrolled.
In a land where reconciliation is seen as the greatest need, it seems fitting to restore our own relationship with our sister Church there, being agents of reconciliation and bearers of hope together. If Rwanda is on your heart, turn the page to see how you can help the children there.
Thank you!