OUR PROJECTS: Transition House:
We support 12 teenage boys who are either orphans or vulnerable children. They all live in a house together. We provide for all their needs and send them to a private school. It costs $100 to support each boy for a month and that includes everything in the house and in school.
Single mother or Widows Program:
The Ministry sponsors 5 families in the community. Each family is fully supported for their rent, food, school fees, health care, clothing, daily living costs and incidentals. The Ministry is the main source of income and support for these families. Families are encouraged to work towards self sufficiency and contribute to their cost of living as they are able. The goal for the future is to move these families into the new building once it is constructed so they can live in a safe and mutually supportive environment. To sponser a child in a single mother/widows family is $60/month.
Student Sponsorship/ School fees Program:
We strongly believe that education is essential to enhancing the lives of children and their families in Rwanda and the Ministry sponsors some neighborhood children to go to school. To sponser a child in the school fees program is $25/ month for an elementary student and $45/ month for secondary student.
Crisis Intervention/Medical Care Program:
Many of the people we work with are victims of trauma having been impacted by the Genocide and its aftermath. Post traumatic stress is ongoing within communities and leaves families vulnerable to stressors and crisis regularly. The Ministry is often called upon to meditate and mitigate these crises and support families in times of need. We also fund the health care of families through medical fees, diagnostics, prescriptions and follow up care. Many of the women whom we support are HIV+ and have symptoms that impact their families and their ability to provide and care for them, so we attempt to assist when ever the need arises and it is feasible for the ministry.
Youth Mentor:
The Youth Mentor position was created in November 2007 to assist the young boys and girls who are sponsored by Narrow Road Ministries to receive support, life skills education, and guidance through spiritual and practical counseling. The mentors offer guidance to the youth in the program and act as a adviser to help guide them into productive and healthy lives and lifestyles through supportive and trusting relationships. They offer comfort and help and encourage the youth to engage in activities that will help to improve their lives.
RWANDA BUILDING PROJECT: {This is not included in the financial goal.}
The building project is to have permanent housing for the families we assist so that we not longer need to rent houses for them and have them move around as rent increases. It will be located close to the boy's transition house. We are hopeful that we can integrate these programs so that the boys can assist with the building and receive some family support and engagement from the widows or single mothers who will be living there.
ABOUT US:
It began in 2002 when we [Mona Hempelmann Kwizera and Ezra Kwizera] both volunteered at a newly opened and poorly equipped orphanage outside of Kigali for 100 street or orphaned boys. We were not married then but we felt called to minister to the orphans of the civil war to hopefully prevent them from becoming another army seeking revenge and committing another violent conflict or genocide.
In 2004 we began to help the older boy’s from the same orphanage that had either gone back to the streets or were too old to remain at the orphanage and had not received enough life skills to sustain themselves. So we started a transition house and put them through job training for two years. We are now on our second group of teenage boys and there are 9 of them, they are either in primary, secondary or trade school. Our goal is of course for them to become self sustaining and contributing members of society who are also a positive influence on other youth.
In 2005 we also started to assist widow’s families where the mother was either HIV positive or mentally traumatized from the Genocide and they could not work or go to school. We provide for all of their needs as a mercy ministry.
Matt. 7: 13 + 14, "Enter though the narrow gate.... small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life and only a few will find it."
Our Vision is to help as many people as possible find the 'narrow road' partly by improving their standard of living in the developing nation of Rwanda.