The focus for the team this time is to put your generous donations to work by creating our second youth library in a YEGO youth centre in Kayonza District. Also during this trip, the team will distribute more than a thousand books to gradeschoolers at two rural schools in Muhanga District, Biti Elementary and Ecole Primaire Gitingati. We will also distribute more than 300 dictionaries and a dozens of donated soccer jerseys.

This library and these book donations were made possible by supporters who donated to our holiday fundraising campaigns, as well as local Rotary Clubs including Rotary Club of Langley Sunrise, which kindly provided a matching grant.

We’d also like to thank schools that raised money for books through Toonies for Change. Special thanks go to St. Helen’s School in Burnaby which donated $1,400 at the last minute from their Me to We Day, enabling us to donate 700 of the books!

On this trip, the Grace Rwanda team will include co-founder Elizabeth Johnson, UBC PhD student and volunteer videographer Jordan Levine, former Grace Rwanda board chair Franco Bordignon and his daughter, Stephanie, and Sechelt volunteer Elizabeth Dilasser.

In the photo above, Johnson (c) and Bordignon (r) are joined at the St. Helen’s School Me to We Day by Vancouver Canucks centre Mike Santorelli (l). It was fun for us to come full circle by meeting a Canucks team player — longtime supporters of Grace Rwanda will remember we had schoolchildren in Rwinkwavu cheering and waving Canucks flags in 2010! Wouldn’t it be great to get their team behind our team?

We’re excited about sharing our progress in bringing literacy to Rwandan youth with you in the coming weeks. Stay tuned!

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