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The is counsellor and charity worker is proving a real inspiration to the people of Rwanda – and is gaining invaluable help from a group of young volunteers from Hackney
FOLLOWING ON from a peace march during the May bank holiday earlier this year against gun and knife crime, youth from the Hackney Seventh-day Adventist Church, based in Haggerston, now have Rwanda set firmly in their sights.
It was on a fateful day in March 2018 that lightning struck the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Nyaruguru, Rwanda, causing the deaths of 21 people.
It is a day Michaela Mathieu-Marius, who was living and working in Rwanda at the time, remembers with sadness. “While working across 28 schools in Rwanda, we lost one of our Year 5 students in the lightning strike,” she recalls.
“It was a tragic experience that shifted my outlook on life, making me more reflective on my own purpose for being here.” Michaela, 33, had been in Rwanda having taken up a six-month secondment from the charity ADRA-UK, to provide management and technical support to the UK Government’s Department for International Development (DFID) girls’ education programme, which aims to improve the learning outcomes for 25,000 marginalised girls and boys.
PREPARATION: Members of the Reach Rwanda team get ready for their trip
While experiencing the beauty of the culture, language and people, Michaela was also clearly struck by the severity of the poverty and quality of life in some of the most rural areas of Nyaruguru, in Rwanda. This exposure was further compounded with the tragedy which took place in the church, leaving many as widows and orphans.
EXPERIENCE
“The time I spent in Rwanda had exposed me to both the beauty and the struggles of the country. It was because of the latter that a strong desire had been birthed in me to return to the country to do more to help those in need.”
It was after sharing her experience with family, friends and her local church that a group of young people Michaela worked with decided to do something about it.
“Young people from both the church and community felt impressed to help out their peers in Rwanda who had suffered, and from this vision our Reach Rwanda mission evolved.”
A group of 17 young people from Hackney will be travelling to the east African country.
They arrive on August 22 and will stay there until September 1, spending part of their summer break renovating two classrooms at Ngoma Primary School; purchasing and distributing yearly health insurance for 1,000 people in the Nyaruguru district – costing just £3 each, while also reaching out to young people, orphans and genocide survivors within the urban and rural communities in Rwanda.
HELPING THOSE IN NEED: Michaela was struck by the severity of the poverty and poor quality of life in some of the country most rural areas
Michaela, who is also a counsellor, said she was heartened by the young people’s response to the call to reach out to their peers who are suffering across the world.
Travelling to somewhere like Rwanda is something she feels every young person should have an opportunity to experience at least once, as it opens their eyes to alternative ways of living and learning, which can be life-changing.
She says: “While the primary purpose of this trip is to make a positive difference in the lives of those suffering in another part of the world, it also seeks to give a real first-hand picture of the beauty and richness of Africa which most of our volunteers would not have seen in the media.
BEAUTY
“Additionally, it provides an opportunity for the young people to make connections with their peers, learn from another culture and hear personal accounts from amazingly resilient people who have overcome great hardship.”
Michaela feels that the trip also gives the young people a chance to utilise the gifts and talents which often lay dormant within them due to a lack of opportunity and belief in their own capabilities. “Every person – young or old – has a purpose, gift and talent which if unearthed and used correctly can make a profound difference in the lives of others.
“True value is found in both purposeful living and giving. It is hoped that every young person on this trip will come to realise this truth for themselves.”
PROTECTION
At the time of going to press, the young people are well on their way to meeting their ambitious £7,000 goal which will assist in the classroom renovations and health insurance for 1,000 people.
If they exceed their target the money will also contribute to the installation of a lightning rod in the roof of the church to ensure the protection of the people should lightning strike again.
COMMUNITY: The Reach Rwanda project is aiming to renovate two classrooms at Ngoma Primary School
“Since promoting the project to our community, we have been inundated with donations and support. Over £4,000 has been raised on our GoFundMe page so far and we thank everyone for their generosity. Let’s keep it coming!” Michaela adds. “We even received £800 from one generous donor who felt inspired to sponsor the parents of the deceased student as well.”
The young people hosted a series of fund-raising activities during the weekend of August 10 and 11 which included a music and poetry evening as well as a summer fitness fun day.
And among the various food and drink on sale and stalls on display, was Eliah Mathieu-Marius, an eight-year old budding entrepreneur and dedicated Reach Rwanda supporter, selling Lily’s Lip Balms - her homemade organic lip balm selection. But with just a short time to go until they leave the UK for Africa, there is still much more the community can do to help, says Michaela.
“While everyone cannot make the trip to Rwanda, everyone can support the cause through their prayers, encouragement and, of course, donations. It costs just £3 to give an individual health insurance for a whole year and £15 for a family of five... in other words, that’s a Costa coffee,” adds Michaela.
INTENT
From a peace march in Hackney against gun and knife crime earlier in the year to a mission trip which helps victims of genocide and calamity in Rwanda, this group of youngsters along with their project leader, Michaela Mathieu-Marius, are intent on making a difference in the lives of their community both near and far.
If you would like to support Hackney’s Reach Rwanda Mission Trip, you can do so by searching Reach Rwanda Mission Trip on the GoFundMe website (gofundme.com), finding @ReachRwandad2019 on Instagram or @Tripreach on Twitter.