2012: A Letter from the Executive Director

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INSIDE
THIS ISS UE:
Sharing the
2
Love
From Imba-
3
bazi to Independence
Imbabazi
4
Spotlight
FUNdraising
4
Contact us
5
Fresh from
5
Imbabazi!
V O L U M E
3 ,
I S S U E
1
A P R I L - J U N E
2 0 1 2
2012: A Letter from the Executive Director
Greetings from Imbabazi! It is already July and so far 2012 is proving to be an exciting and pivotal
year for Imbabazi. During the first half of the year, we have reached several goals and made significant accomplishments that we would like to highlight here:
The orphanage now has 51 resident children and supports several others that have been placed with
families. Since the beginning of the year, 4 children have been reunited with family members; 6 children have been placed in improved educational environments; 20 children have found jobs and transitioned to independence; and finally, 1 child began his university studies. The government has
praised Imbabazi for our programs designed to help children transition to independence and, in turn,
the children’s success in this transition.
Imbabazi is more than an orphanage; we are a sign of hope to the community. Imbabazi operates a
working farm and has recently created a tourism project to share Roz’s legacy with visitors in
Rwanda. Our farm employs numerous people from the community and has expanded its land under
cultivation by 4 acres. We have also revived Roz’s tradition of hosting Rwandan intore dancing in the
gardens. They will perform for visitors at Imbabazi starting on July 29th. Income generated from both
of these activities help us become more financially self-sustainable. For more information on our
community outreach initiatives, read “Sharing the Love” on page 2.
We expect the second half the year to be just as busy and productive as the first! Our goals for the
rest of this year include expanding our specialty vegetable business to include mushrooms, continuing to help our children locate family members and completing the Roz Carr Cultural Center Museum.
Next month we will celebrate a very special event: August 28th is the anniversary of Roz’s 100th birthday. To celebrate Roz’s life, I would like to briefly mention some of her lifetime accomplishments. Roz
came to Rwanda in 1949 and fell in love with the community of people living around her plantation.
Early on, she began running a small clinic from her back door and paying school fees for children in
the community. At the age of 82, she returned to her home in Rwanda after the genocide in 1994.
With determination and tenacity, she chose not only to rebuild her personal life but to also build a
home for lost and orphaned children. Roz was awarded the 2001 Hublot Prize in Switzerland for her
humanitarian work with the children of Rwanda as well as a Volvo for Life Award in 2004.
The future is looking very bright for Imbabazi and you are part of its past, present and future success.
I would like to thank everyone for their continued support – you are truly the heart of Imbabazi. Your
contributions help us remain in operation, allowing us to help the children of Rwanda and continue
Roz’s legacy.
Sincerely,
Devon Kuntzman
Executive Director
Imbabazi
PAGE
2
Sharing the Love: Community Involvement @ Imbabazi
Thanks to the generosity of visitors and
friends of Imbabazi Orphanage, we have been
able to accomplish so much over the
past year – 7 children are currently
enrolled in university, our computer
technology center has been upgraded
and all of our children have food,
clothes, education, and a safe place
to call home, just to name a few.
Valerie and the
Headmistress of
Kanyundo Primary
School organizing
the new library
Devon delivering
“goodie bags” full of
donations for our
staff and their families
The children at Imbabazi are extremely fortunate to have such amazing resources and opportunities in their lives, and
we strive to ensure that these resources
reach the surrounding community as well. We
have several initiatives to benefit the community and plan to expand these significantly
over the next two years.
One of the biggest benefits we offer the surrounding community is employment. We currently provide full-time employment for
nearly 30 people from the local community in
addition to 40-50 seasonal positions during
times of planting and harvest. Most recently
we hired an additional 16 local community
members as part of a traditional dance/drum
troupe that will perform for visitors in our
garden. We also provide all staff members
with weekly English classes as well as “goodie
bags” several times a year
which include clothes, toys
and household items that
our children have outgrown
or of which we have a surplus. As we continue to develop our tourism project,
as well as several other potential income-generating
activities at the orphanage,
we hope the number of people employed from the local
community will also continue to grow.
In addition to our own staff, we also host
weekly English classes for 15-20 local government leaders led by our Peace Corps Volunteer. Because the official language of Rwanda
was recently changed from French to English,
it is an opportunity for us to provide a valu-
IMBABAZI
INSIDER
able service to leaders and officials in our district. We hope to expand such classes to include English, computer and music lessons for
all members of the community, with a special
emphasis on young people and students.
We currently assist students through our alliance with neighboring Kanyundo Primary
School – last year we partnered with Otterbein
University in Ohio to donate brand new textbooks, and more recently we donated desks,
cupboards and several boxes of reading books
to start a small English-language library in the
school office. We will continue adding to this
Weekly English lessons for staff and
local leaders at Imbabazi led by our
Peace Corps Volunteer Ashley
library as we receive more books, and hope it
will nurture a love of reading among young
people in the area.
Finally, the children of Imbabazi participate in
several community service programs to help
the wider community. For example, our girls
crochet hats during their free time which are
donated to the local health clinic and other
orphanages in the area. To date, we have donated nearly 500 hats! We also use donated
pillowcases to make dresses for girls and
women in need.
These are just some of the ways in which Imbabazi shares the love, and we hope to do even
more – stay tuned! Again, a big THANK YOU to
all of our supporters without whom these initiatives would never be possible.
VOLUME
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ISSUE
1
PAGE
From Imbabazi to Independence
When you hear the word “orphanage,” what do you picture? For many of us, it might
bring to mind babies sleeping in cribs lined up against a wall, or perhaps small children
chasing a soccer ball across a play yard. Many visitors to Imbabazi are surprised to
learn that we, in fact, don’t have any of the babies or small children they imagined
they would see within the walls of a Rwandan orphanage. Although we do have several
young children and primary-aged boys, we also have several older children who, in
other cultures, would be considered “adults” ready for
independent living.
However, because of the 1994 genocide in Rwanda,
many children experienced interruptions in their education and personal development. This has resulted in
a generation of young men and women who are a little
behind in terms of their ability to live healthy and successful independent lives – for example, it’s not that
uncommon to find “children” between the ages of 18Djafari and Haruna at a mechan- 21 in Rwanda who are still in middle or high school.
ics’ internship in Musanze
That is why our care and support don’t end just because
a child reaches a certain age; rather, they extend until
their education is complete and they are ready to stand on their own two feet.
We continue to care for children within the orphanage as long as they are in school and
Devota and Mbabazi at La
continuing their education. Once their education is complete, they enter into a one-year
Palme Resort in Gisenyi
program we established
called Gucutsa
(meaning “to be ready to live on one’s own” in Kinyarwanda) designed to support our children as they adapt
to life outside of the orphanage and transition to independence. The program includes help finding an internship and/or job, advice from our coordinators and financial assistance to get them up and running on their own.
Gucutsa is a huge part of our commitment to the kids of
Imbabazi – not only do we provide them with material
needs such as food and shelter, but we aim to prepare
them for meaningful lives as citizens of Rwanda and of
the world.
Baruta and her family: husband Eric,
Today we are
happy to say
Bakunzi (left) and Twagira (right) working at Volcana Pizza that many
Lounge in Musanze
young adults
from the Imbabazi family are leading successful lives outside of the orphanage – some are going to university, some are working in the tourism industry at hotels and restaurants while others have gone on to start their own businesses and/or their own
families. These young adults in turn serve as role models and inspiration to our
younger kids still here at the orphanage. We will continue to provide support to
the children of Imbabazi every step of the way as they continue their studies and
eventually make the transition from Imbabazi to Independence!
a secondary school teacher, and
baby Teta!
3
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4
Imbabazi Spotlight
adia
h
S
&
Nadia & e
ng
e
s
i
y
u
T
Tuyisenge Janvier is one of
the youngest children at
the orphanage, and the
youngest of 3 brothers
that all live here together
(older brothers are Mbarusha and Justin).
Double vision! Our only set of twins, Nirere Nadia
and Nikuze Shadia are 16 years old and in Secondary 3 (S3) at Mugongo Secondary School. These
girls are very alike both in looks and aspirations
for the future – their favorite subjects are geography and math, and after they complete their secondary studies they would like to study law at
university and become attorneys.
He is 11 years old and in
grade P3 at nearby
Kanyundo Primary School.
His favorite subjects are
math and English, and
following his studies he wants to go to university and study to become an engineer. In his
free time, Tuyisenge likes to play soccer, hang
out with our dogs and improve his typing
skills in the computer lab.
In her free time, Nadia enjoys playing checkers
and crocheting. Shadia likes to play ping pong,
jump rope and watch English films. They are both
members of a study group at their school and
have excellent English language skills!
FUNdraising for Imbabazi
This May, Executive
Director Devon Kuntzman represented Imbabazi at the first annual
Get Milkshake fundraiser event in Greenwich, Connecticut. Recently featured in the
Huffington Post, Get Milkshake is an organization that
showcases people, organizations and companies that are
making a positive social impact across the world.
IMBABAZI
INSIDER
Events like this help increase
Imbabazi’s profile by giving
people the opportunity to
learn about Roz Carr and the
work that Imbabazi does to
continue her legacy of helping
the children of Rwanda. There
are many different ways in
which supporters of all ages
can make a significant contribution to Imbabazi, and one
great way is by hosting a fundraiser.
Events can be as simple as
hosting an afternoon tea
party with friends, including
Roz’s memoir in your book
club, or even organizing a
speaking event for someone
from Imbabazi. We are
happy to provide materials
such as brochures, slideshows and items from our
gift shop handmade by the
children of Imbabazi. For
more information, please
see contact info on page 5.

Imbabazi
P.O. Box 98
Gisenyi, Rwanda
Africa
www.imbabazi.org • imbabazi.blogspot.com

General Inquiries: [email protected]
Executive Director: [email protected]


Increase the number of children in improved educational
environments
Expand learning and technology centers, including more
tools and enhanced instruction
Complete a water project to benefit the children and local community
Continue all basic areas of support — medical, food,
clothing, etc.
Board Treasurer: [email protected]
We now have online donations!
About the Imbabazi
The Imbabazi Orphanage was founded by an American woman,
Rosamond (Roz) Carr, at the age of 82 in the wake of the 1994
genocide in Rwanda. Imbabazi became a symbol of love and
safety for lost and orphaned children. Over the past 18 years,
more than 400 children have called Imbabazi their home. Today,
we have 51 residents and provide support for several other
children that have been placed with families. Our emphasis is on
education, including English, computer and life skills. It is our
hope that each and every child will become a productive
member of society and lead a meaningful life following their
transition to independent living.
Today Imbabazi is much more than an orphanage. We are a
working farm that provides jobs to people in the community as
well as a historical landmark and tourist destination in Rwanda.
As our children gradually embark on adulthood, Imbabazi will
expand its community outreach projects as we strive to carry
on Roz’s vision and legacy. Imbabazi is able to continue to
provide hope to children in Rwanda thanks to donations from
kind and generous supporters like you.
How Can I
Help??
Contributions to Imbabazi Orphanage are tax-deductible
and can be made through Partners In Conservation, a registered 501(3)(C) organization. Donations can be made online
at www.imbabazi.org/donate, or by sending a check payable
to “Partners In Conservation” (indicate Imbabazi Orphanage on your check) to:
Partners In Conservation
Columbus Zoo & Aquarium
P.O. Box 440
Powell, OH 43065 USA
We’re on the web!
www.imbabazi.org
Fresh from Imbabazi!
As many of you know, Roz began selling weekly flower bouquets to hotels, restaurants and homes throughout Rwanda and Goma
shortly after her arrival in Rwanda in the 1950s. These bouquets were made of freshly-cut flowers from her beautiful gardens, the
proceeds from which often kept her afloat during times of financial difficulty. This is a tradition that we continue today at Imbabazi,
and thanks to our wonderful customers in Kigali, Gisenyi, Ruhengeri, Goma and beyond, we are able to employ 10 full-time gardeners to maintain Roz’s gardens and keep them looking beautiful for generations to come.
Recently, we have expanded our weekly deliveries to include specialty produce items fresh from our garden such as artichokes and
rhubarb (mushrooms coming soon!). Business is booming – we’ve already had to enlarge our produce patch in order to keep up
with the demand! As all proceeds from these sales go directly to the orphanage, it is another way in which Imbabazi is becoming
more self-sustainable. If you or someone you know is living in Rwanda or Goma and is interested in weekly flower and/or produce
deliveries, please contact us at [email protected].