I can’t even express in words what this campaign means to me. While this post is a long while in the coming, I still wanted to share this story with you. Today i’m going to focus on the Vocational boys story. Look for the primary boys story in the near future.
So…I met Hello Somebody at Catalyst Dallas in May and since then we’ve been dreaming and building together to create a new model for how they operate. Many of you know about the Light The Streets campaign that I worked on together with Africa New Life last year. Their first year they had 100 street boys (50 vocational / 50 primary) students enrolled in school, mentoring and meal programs. As I began to hear Hello Somebody’s heart in feeding children I began a discussion with them on how this might be the perfect organization for them to partner with. While feeding programs are great….I believe it’s food programs + education that helps a child succeed. Every child should have the chance to learn and get a degree. With that degree they can get a job and one day feed themselves and their families. I’ve gotten to know many of these boys in the current program and the difference i’m seeing in their life is unbelievable. They are no longer calling themselves street boys…they are washing their clothes daily and full of life.
Meet Joe Fils – He is studying electrical engineering at one of the best vocational schools i’ve seen in Africa. He has big dreams and is an unbelievable singer. When I asked him why he likes to go to school. His reply, “why I like to go to school? Because I like to eat!” The incentive to the food program is that the boys have to attend school everyday. You better believe they are there, on time, and ready to go.
There are 100 new boys coming into the class of 2012 and it is Hello Somebody’s goal to raise funds to cover the entire cost of food, education and education for 1 year for each of them. Along with my sister, Anna, and my friend, Natalie, we captured 100 story profiles. We had so much stinking fun shooting the photos. If you take some time and read these stories you won’t believe the life that these boys have lived. Many of their parents were killed in the 2004 Rwandan Genocide and haven’t had much hope in life till they met Jesus and came to Africa New Life. They have hope again and are looking to a brighter future. I can’t wait to see where they go. Street Children to Leaders!
Martin Tuyishimire
My name is Martin Tuyishimire and I am 21 years old. I’ve been coming to Africa New Life Ministries since 2006. I heard about it by other street children. I thank God that I have not died. I know many kids that have died by getting hit by cars and falling from dump trucks. I live with my mom and my dad pass away when I was 7 years old. I have one younger sister. Life at home was not easy; there were many days and nights without food. I went to the streets to see if I could make money to help my mother and buy them food. I am so grateful that Africa New Life teaches me God’s word, which has transformed my mind and my life. My dream would be to study electronics at the Vocational Training school, complete high school, and then go to university and law school. Then when I become a lawyer, I will advocate for other people and give my extra money away to help children. I like being in peace and seeing people in peace. I worry about grudges because it results in fighting and death. I see the watches as a way for me to achieve my goals. I am so thankful. My favorite color watch is orange.
Emmanuel Shyiraker
My name is Emmanuel Shyiraker, and I am 18 years old. I have been coming to Africa New Life Ministries for 4 years. Some street kids told me about the programs they had. I thank God that I’m still alive now. My dad died in 2000, but I still have my mom and young sisters. I got sick and my mother couldn’t take care of me anymore so someone else took me to a hospital in Uganda. After I got better, I was abandoned in Kigali. Although my mother lives here, she cannot support me, so I feel I have to support myself. I have a friend who is a watchman who let’s me sleep in his office. I would like to be a defense minister in the government in Kigali one day. I would also love to study welding at the Vocational Training school. I fear seeing people kill each other again. I have been in jail several times, but God has helped me stop my bad habits and I no longer get in trouble. Having my name known somewhere would be amazing. That means so much to me because it makes me feel valued. If I get to go back to school, it would be so wonderful for my life. My favorite color watch is white.
Fils Twizeyimana
My name is Fils Twizeyimana, and I am 19 years old. I’ve been coming to Africa New Life Ministries since 2004. I learned about it from a former staff member who invited me to the Dream Center. I am thankful that I learned the word of God there. Once I knew God’s word, I was able to depend on Him and ask Him to help me go off drugs on the street. I sniffed glue for 9 years, and I have been clean for 2 years now. My dream is to finish school and be a counselor. I want to help rehabilitate children from drugs and street life. I desire to be a strong man and to have a family I can support. I want to be a leader and an example of breaking the chain of poverty through education. My parents died in the 1994 genocide and I live in their house. The court gave me the house after they died. I would be very grateful if someone bought the watch knew my name. I had no hope and no one to talk with about my life. I took drugs to take my mind off my struggles. Now that I know Jesus, I have God to talk with, and I know God cares for me. God has shown me His love through people, especially at Africa New Life. My favorite color watch is dark blue.
Kasim Ndayishimiye has 12 fingers! He asked me to tell the world about him and how God gifted him. And let me tell you, he definitely knows how special and amazing he is. So here I am telling you. Read his story. What a special boy.
My name is Kasim Ndayishimiye, and I am 18 years old. I don’t remember when I started coming to Africa New Life Ministries, but it’s been a long time. My neighbors went to the devotional and told me to come because I didn’t go to school. I want to study electricity at the Vocational Training School. I thank God for making me unique, and giving me 2 extra fingers. I lost both of my parents so I sleep at my Grandmothers, we both carry stones for money, and we can sometimes eat twice a day. I really enjoyed having my photo taken today! To be able to be crazy in front of the camera is a different experience for me that I have never had before. I dream about visiting the cross where Jesus died, and seeing Him face to face. I want people on the other side of the world to know that I have 6 fingers on each hand, and that I love hip hop music! My favorite color watch is white.
So so goofy. I just asked them to express themselves – to show me who they are. We had so many laughs together.
Please take some time to read their stories. These are the conditions that most of the boys live in. Their lives are being changed dramatically!
Lastly here is what I want you to do. GO BUY A WATCH! Tell your friends about the watches.
70 watches = one child in a school for a year! Help me put these boys that I care so much about back in school.
If you want to look at more photos of the Africa New Life street children program, click HERE.
Sabbaticals – Everybody needs them…I knew I did.. But I guess I didn’t just know how badly I needed it.
I didn’t tweet, I didn’t facebook. I just enjoyed nature and beauty. Along with Cari and Heidi, I went to a cabin in the mountains of Colorado and listened to the still voice within me. I prayed, read, painted, cooked, knit a scarf, drew out my entire year on paper and I went on the most beautiful snowy walks that kept reminding me of Narnia ( I looked for Mr. Tumnus all around).
Before this trip, I honestly felt that I was nearing the empty bottle of my creativity. I had poured out so much and hadn’t stopped to refill. I traveled non-stop this year (over 200,000 miles) …… life on the road has become a blur. I truly care so much about each and every person I do a story on and I needed to remember them. So I sat and wrote down all the stories that I could remember. Thinking and praying for those men, women and children I had the privilege to meet and wondering where they are. I had a lot of thoughts. Are their lives really being impacted by the story I did? Do they remember me? Do my lady friends have more babies? Are they still drinking clean water? Have they had sicknesses? I wish I could just go find each and every person and ask them about life again.
I did a lot of thinking about what I do throughout the year. ..more thoughts.. Maybe it’s too much, maybe it’s not enough….Do I really have a direction i’m headed? What’s next in my calling? How can I have a greater impact? How do I make this more about them and not about me? How can I SEE people more clearly and past the surface of who they are? How do I draw them out of themselves? How can I be more creative and do more projects that nobody has ever done. I love dreaming outside the box.
The thing is that each of us have a calling…Even if you are not feeling it at the moment, you do. You are called to impact lives wherever you are. You don’t have to fly to China or Timbuktu to do that. You have people around you every single day that need a smile, a sweet word, a prayer, a coffee or just someone to spend time with them. Think about all the people in your life now that we are not pouring into! People long to be cared and valued…They long to be known and beautiful. And we are each called to do this where we are. It’s time to invest more in relationships and people….time to see people around us and take in the beauty that they are. Just like I search to find the beauty in poverty…. how can we draw out the beauty of the everyday life here. now. right before us. Drink in the beauty of life. We have today, this moment. The question is what will we do with?
Pastor Charles, founder of Africa New Life, is such an inspiration to me. He is a family man with great dreams who walks in faith to the direction God leads him. The first time I heard him share his story I was floored. I just wanted everybody to hear it. Well, now they can!
His new book: THE NOBLE DREAM! was just released on Amazon. If you need a new read, check it out:
took me 30 minutes of playing with 6 yards of fabric and watching countless you tube videos to finally figure out how to put on a sari again. whew. still not sure i did that right.
Did you know…..we are some of the richest people in the World! A lot of people think they don’t make enough to support organizations or GIVE. This might make us think again……
If you make $25,000 per year……you are in the top 10% richest people in the world
If you make $35,000 per year…….you are in the top 5% richest people in the world
If you make $50,000 per year……you are in top 1% richest people in the world
Some decisions change your life forever. Small choices, that pass by without a notice, set a path for your life. A path with no return. So it was in 1978, when Barry Alan Havens, from a small town in Illinois decided to visit a friend in The Hague, Holland. Little did he know that the decision to visit his friend and Europe’s great cathedrals would change his life. He had many hopes and dreams. Visit India or live on a kibbutz. Travel the world. Make music. But the decision to get on that plane, fly to Europe and visit his friend would ultimately take him on a unforgettable journey. A journey through the colors of the seventies, the smells of a farm, the bliss of bible school, and even truckers life. Dreams and decisions can change your life forever.
Barry sat in awe of the majestic organ in front of him as his fingers moved across the keys. His heart followed the deep echoing sound that transformed the enormous church into a small part of heaven. When he finished playing, he stepped outside with shaking legs and squinted his eyes. Cold rain drops fell on his round glasses as he walked to the train station. Thankfully the sun made its way through the dreary clouds. Barry had an hour to spare before the train would leave. He sat down on a crude wooden bench and opened his favorite book: “Hitchhikers guide through Europe.” With one hand in his bushy beard and the other turning the pages, he read the wondrous pages again and again. Paris, caught his eye. That is where he wanted to go. Hitchhiking though France. That would be amazing. He wanted to visit every cathedral in Europe and follow the music throughout the world. But first he had to catch the train and visit his friend in The Hague.
Two hours later he walked towards his friends house and rang the doorbell. Many loud footsteps alerted him that the party was already on its way. Within moments he made his way up the steep narrow stairs and walked into the dimly lit room. The floor was covered with colorful cushions and carpets. Several people were lying on the pillows. What they were talking about he couldn’t understand. His friend came over and dragged him to a group of laughing people. A woman sat in a corner. She had short hair. Her face was small, but her legs were long. What a beauty! He talked to her throughout the night. They agreed to meet the next day on the beach…. and from that moment his life changed forever.
Within the next few months he traveled with this beauty named Barbara throughout Europe. It didn’t matter that she had two children, life was exciting and she followed him in his dreams. India was the place where they wanted to go. So they sold all their stuff, took the kids out of school, gave away their car keys to a stranger at the train station and went on a journey to America. Together with two kids, two cats and a dog they traveled throughout America and Mexico in an orange Volkswagen camper bus. A hippie’s dream come true.
But problems arose when they had to arrange their visa’s. So they went to a courthouse and got married. Instead of taking the boat to India, they returned to America and moved to Wisconsin. They bought a farmhouse which was the second greatest Hippie dream. Now they had to grow their own food, take care of animals and live on a beautiful piece of land. Barry milked cows everyday and still followed the music. He played at local churches and taught piano. In the meantime a new baby boy was born. They called him Joshua and the first thing they noticed when he was born, was the long fingers he had…perfect for playing piano. As one dream was fulfilled, it made place for another. The Midwife who delivered Joshua shared with Barry and Barbara about a man named Jesus. They both gave their lives to Him and began the journey of reading the bible and following Christ daily. Barry wanted to learn more about God. So from Wisconsin, they made their way to Christ for the Nations Bible school in Dallas, Texas. . . He began to look a lot like Ned Flanders while there. Maybe it was the glasses. He took a job as a truck driver and moved people across the country so he could provide for three more children who were born. Life was no longer a path of personal decisions, but instead responsibility took over and past decisions led the way. Barry filled his life with adventure and dreams. He kept life exciting by taking his children on camping trips (to almost every State Park in Texas and Arkansas), cooking dinners from different cultures each night and enrolling them in everything from Piano lessons to German folk dancing. Even though many of his personal dreams were not fulfilled, he and his wife Barbara installed in their children a powerful life driving force. They taught them how to dream.
Perhaps this is part of the reason that his son Josh, is now the lead singer of a band called The Afters with #1 hits across the country, his daughter Esther is an incredible humanitarian photographer who travels the world non-stop, his stepdaughter Jennifer is a biblical archaeologist and children’s book writer. His step son Jeff is building a beautiful family and managing a company. His son Jonny is a one of a kind musician who writes music deep from within his soul, and his daughter Anna is the first of his biological children to attend University and is studying fashion merchandise. Each of them are working on fulfilling their own dreams.
BTW. For all of you who live in Austin. Bows + Arrows on South Lamar started carrying the whole Warby Parker line to try on. Go check them out. You will love it.
And recently Warby Parker launched their DO GOOD site with photo stories I worked on in India in August. Lane Wood did an amazing job writing them. It was incredible to meet the people who get their vision back because we buy sunglasses and opticals!
Yes, that is a gun pointed at me. Found this frame when I was going back through some old edits today. Ram Rati is such a jokester.. she decided to pull a rifle on me. I screamed at the top of my lungs….but somehow managed to snap this. I’m pretty sure that was loaded. She was laughing so hard she could hardly catch her breathe. What a woman.
