Youth perform a literacy skit at the 2014 Kayonza event.

We’re happy to share the news that Grace Rwanda has again been invited to participate in Rwanda Reads this September.

We’ll be participating a special Literacy Day Expo at our Kayonza YEGO Youth Centre community library on Sept. 29 to mark the end of the month-long national reading festival. The country-wide literacy festival kicked off on Sept. 8 on UNESCO’s International Literacy Day.

The Expo will include interactive stations where youth can read and write and create, as well as book stations and other activities. Last year’s event included two oral storytellers that wowed the crowd. Grace Rwanda also   provided book prizes to help further encourage youth to get involved in a culture of reading.

We’ll report back with pictures from this special event later this fall.

In the meantime, we’d also like to update you on our latest fundraising campaign. Grace Rwanda is actively working to send a shipping container full of books to Rwanda this fall to help stock several additional youth libraries.

Our Rwandan dinner fundraiser raised $3,000 and books are being collected with the help of the Rotary Club of Langley Sunrise. Now a new Langley Rotary Club District grant will help us create two more libraries in the coming year.

We’d like to sincerely thank our partners for their support and vision in making this next phase possible.

You can get regular updates on our work by following @GraceRwanda, liking us on Facebook, adding us in your Google+ circle, and watching our videos on YouTube.

Tis the season for giving … and giving back!

You can cross both off your list by giving yourself a beautiful Christmas tree that goes to support local charities.

Grace Rwanda and the Rotary Club of Langley Sunrise are hosting a Christmas tree sale this December in Walnut Grove. A full 100 per cent of the net proceeds go to support community service projects, Grace Rwanda’s literacy projects among them!

Come out to find your perfect Fraser fir or pine tree in the lot at 202nd Street and 89th Avenue. There’s free coffee and hot chocolate to sip while you seek. Plus, on Dec. 13th and 20th from noon until 2 p.m., Santa will be on site offering free photo opportunities with every tree purchased.

Visit us from Dec. 6 to Dec. 21 evenings Wednesdays to Fridays from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. and weekends from noon until 8 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays.

Wishing all our supporters a season that is merry and bright!

You can get regular updates by following @GraceRwanda, liking us on Facebook, adding us in your Google+ circle, and watching our videos on YouTube.

Come by and visit Grace Rwanda at the Walnut Grove Family Day Fair this Saturday June 21, 10-4 p.m. at Walnut Grove Community Park.

We’ll be sharing a booth with the Rotary Club of Langley Sunrise, who have been exceptional supporters of our cause. Stop by and check out our Rwandan crafts, chat with us about what’s new or learn how you can get involved.

The event promises to be a fun day of festive food, kid crafts and activities like hot air balloon rides and bouncy castles, plus a great live music lineup — including children’s entertainer Charlotte Diamond — all for just $2 admission for adults, $1 for children, or $5 per family.

Learn more at Wgba.ca/familyday. See you there!

Get your Christmas tree at our sale hosted with the Rotary Club of Langley Sunrise this season and the profits will go to buy books for Rwandan kids.

Our tree lot is stocked with your favourite fresh, local pines and firs — from Frasers to Nobles — at 202th Street and 89th Avenue in Walnut Grove, North Langley.

The sale runs Wednesdays and Thursdays from noon to 7 p.m. and Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. until Dec. 22.

Come out with your family on a snowy night to find your dream tree and fund the dream of literacy in Rwanda!

Keep in the loop by following @GraceRwanda, liking us on Facebook, adding us in your Google+ circle, and watching our videos on YouTube.