Wednesday, May 12, 2010

"I like so much the work of the Americans. When you interfere, it is very interesting to me." -V

In early March all of the volunteers in my education group received an email from a USAID representative regarding books for primary school students. She said that USAID had decided to fund an entire shipment of books from Books for Africa and wanted us to have the opportunity to put our schools’ names on the list to receive some of them. Of course I responded immediately, as I work for a poor school with absolutely no library or books to speak of.

A few weeks later I was told that my supervisor was working with USAID to choose a school for the official “Handing Over Ceremony” and that my school was on the short list. About a week after that I was informed that because my school is a 9-year basic education school, has no library system, and is severely lacking in teaching resources in general, we were chosen to host the ceremony! All of our students were absolutely thrilled to receive the United States Ambassador to Rwanda on our campus, along with other guests from USAID and the local media. We received over 600 books, and students and teachers alike are showing an incredible eagerness to visit our new library.

I spend most of my time now between and after classes working to create an entire library system from scratch. I’ve stamped all the books with our official school seal and am trying to establish a catalogue system, timetables and rules, and most importantly, training programs that establish a reading culture and show teachers and students how to use library books most effectively. It’s a daunting task but one that I am ecstatic to take on.

I have to acknowledge, though, that my school and me were extremely fortunate to have been given these books at absolutely no cost. Books for Africa is an amazing organization that sends books from the United States to Africa after you raise 25% of the shipping costs in your African community and the other 75% from donors in the States. However, for this particular shipment, USAID and the U.S. Embassy covered 100% of the costs!

This won’t happen again, though, which is why we need your help! I’m working with a group of volunteers to get another shipment of books here to Rwanda so that our libraries can continue to grow. This time, though, we’ll have to raise the money ourselves. If you’re interested in donating to our book project through Books for Africa, please let me know so I can get you the information. Our students are so eager to learn and read, and the more books we have in our new library for them to explore the grander their ideas about their futures become. You should see their faces when they see pictures and read about things they’ve never even heard of - dolphins, space ships, even snow!!

Here a couple of excerpts I particularly enjoyed from thank-you letters I had my students write after we received the books:

…is the first time we have library at G.S. Mukamira. When they are in those books what you sent to us I’ll know more. I’ll read the books to increase my experiances and I’ll teach my brothers and my sister those experiances.

…because those books are help me to known English. God Bress you for those books. Rwanda is in East African Community so English is very good for me. When I finish university I will go in America and know very well English.

…because every day you think to me and you send books for help me know English also English is my favorite language.

I tried for an HOUR to upload a picture of kids with books. I'll try again next time!

On a totally unrelated note, thanks so much to all of you for your sweet birthday wishes! I celebrated with friends in Kigali and couldn’t have asked for a better birthday in Rwanda.

Love and miss you all.