RWANDA: Hope at `City of Joy’

“We are happy that so far, we’ve managed to graduate 80 students from our sewing school. Some of them have happily flown from this incubation nest to open their own shops and are now making a living for their families. It makes us happy,” he adds.

He says the school has enrolled 168 children in K2, K3, P1, P2, and they are currently building new classrooms and they hope to go full day classes by July. “We hope to one day expand those numbers. But we are dedicated to keeping classroom size around 20 students. We also offer a 12 month sewing program that usually has around 30 students.”

All the students need to do is pay RwF 5OO (about the price of a bottle of Coca Cola) and they can access education. That is how Jason Busingye, a nine-year old pupil from a low income family in Ngwa cell, Mukingo sector in Gatagara, Nyanza town, got the chance to receive quality education. Now, he says, he can hope for a better future.

For now the students come to the school by day and return to their homes in the evening but the Elingsons are sourcing for funds to build a boarding school.

To push their Christian values, Todd says that they are also in the process of building a church and hiring a pastor so that the students will also receive what he calls holistic spiritual guidance.

The City of Joy has a staff of 10 drawn from the local community; something Todd says is also important because what they earn supports their families.

Todd says the school is funded almost entirely through private donations.

“We try to get outside people to sponsor a student to pay for the operating costs. We also speak to groups when we visit the States and fundraise for projects. We are truly a ministry of faith and rely on people’s generosity,” he says.

He says they believe each and every child needs quality education, and the poorest children coming from the poorest families in the neighborhood need extra help to get it.

“We hope to create a model that gives special emphasis to those in greatest need and offers full day classes to emphasize the importance of lifelong learning. God loves all his children and wants them to succeed. City of Joy is committed to this end,” he says.

Todd says they feel contented and happy and feel like they have received so much more in return to what they give.

“We are grateful for our neighbours who have embraced us as one of their own,” he says.

He says that they have been encouraged by the kindness of the people.

“We’ve become Rwandans because all that we can miss are found here. There’s great love, there’s great environment, there’s great climate. This country has become our second home now, and we’re just absolutely happy to raise our children here,” he says.

Their biggest challenge so far? Mastering the Kinyarwanda language.

“Our biggest challenge is the language. We hired a language teacher last year and this helped us understand the grammar. Kinyarwanda is tough!”

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editor@independent.co.ug