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Core Values
Alain Munyaburanga
VillagePhilosophy, Education and TrainingThe letter below was written to the staff at ASYV by Alain Munyaburanga who is responsible for Education and Training. Alain has been with ASYV since the construction phase of the village.
Many times we wonder if what we do in Agahozo-Shalom, with the kids, will have a lasting impact. Many times a kid or a family in Agahozo-Shalom does something that shows us that what we do does matter; more than we know or can witness.
We just finished one of those activities that proves to me what we do is paramount in the lives of the majority of our kids. Today was the voting day for Mister and Miss Core Value for each grade. During Thursday family time, we started with a discussion on core values. The kids discussed what the core values are and why they are important in their lives.
During Friday village time, a presentation was given to everyone in the village on the 7 core values of Agahozo-Shalom. Above and beyond good grades, having values is more important. Having values are what will allow you to have a job and keep it, to have a friend and keep her/him, to be respected in the community you live in and so on.
On Sunday every family elected their Mister or Miss Core Value based on how she/he lived with the other kids. Today each grade elected one Mister and Miss Core Value among those that had been selected in their respective families. The kids who were elected are those kids who really live the 7 core values.
The event had a dual purpose. The first purpose was to remind the kids of our core values and to acknowledge those live them every day. The second purpose was to educate the kids on the election process. In a country that has only voted democratically twice in its existence, there is a need for educating its citizens why you vote for a particular candidate or person.
It was a wonderful event. The group I was in, Urumuli grade, one kid asked the 8 candidates to identify the 7 ASYV core values and explain the reason the village has them in place. Listening to the candidates answer this question reminded me why we do what we do. One candidate said: “many of us never had a chance to inherit values from our parents. The village is our family and believes it is important for its kids to have values. This is why these values were put in place”.
It has been a month since we welcomed our fourth grade to ASYV. I know that it has been a hard month with people getting back into the day to day life in the village after two months away. But it has been a successful month as well. Many of us were scared of having 500 kids in the village and solving all the issues that come up on a daily basis; but we have done a marvelous job.
I would like to thank you all for what you do on a daily basis at ASYV. If you had any doubts about the impact you have in these kids’ lives, please remember the reason one of them gave above. I wish that we all achieve more with our kids during the month of February than we have achieved in January. Only by constantly improving on what we do, will we build a strong community of nation builders out of our kids in Agahozo-Shalom Youth Village.
Be blessed
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Fall, a Welcomed Season of Pride at the Village
By Anne Heyman, Founder ASYV
It is October again, and that means the end of another school year at Agahozo-Shalom. As usual at this time of year the management team from New York meets with the management of the Village to review the past year, examine where we are and look at what needs to happen for us to move forward next year. We are fortunate enough to be joined once again by an amazing team of volunteers from Liquidnet Holdings, Inc. who not only help facilitate our meetings but also will also work with their counterparts in Village to strengthen the skills and practices in the various departments. Today was our first full day of working sessions in the Village, and it was a good one. But the greatest part of the day was, as always, a completely unexpected gift: Today happened to be the day that one of the tikkun olam groups were giving the keys of a house they had built to the poor widow whom they had built it for, and if we wanted to come along for the small ceremony.
We arrived at the widow’s house which, like many homes in Rwanda is down a windy dirt path which passes for a road.
The usual group of little kids arrived as if out of nowhere, gleefully laughing and pointing at the “muzungu”. I always enjoy interacting with these kids, whose joy at the littlest things is really infectious. I felt especially privileged to be here today as I had been lucky enough to be at the Village in July when this group began working on the house, and I had accompanied them on one of their tikkun olam (community service) visits then. I learned from them how to make mud bricks, and as always counted myself lucky to have shared in the experience. The widow was lying on a straw mat beside her current home, if you can call it that, and was clearly not feeling very well. Nevertheless she was very happy with what these amazing kids have done for her, and told us how pleased she was that she would no longer have to feel the rainwater dripping onto her through the banana leaves which pass for a roof. The kids explained to the visitors how they had gone about the process of making the bricks and building the house, which has a door which can lock as well as a tin roof with a rain gutter. They also told us how, after the widow moves into her house they will knock down the little round hut she now calls home and help her plant a vegetable garden, assuring that she will be able to eat in the months ahead. 
I am so proud of these kids, and they should truly be so proud of themselves. What an amazing thing it is to know that as long as you have the desire and you are willing to put some hard work you are truly capable of changing someone’s life.
Tomorrow its back to the “work” of running the village – more meetings, more training sessions, more strategic planning. It is so much easier when you are reminded about the results of your efforts in such an incredible way. We set out to change the lives of children who, through no fault of their own, were facing incredibly bleak futures. We knew that our methodology would help to heal them and open passages for them that they could never contemplate before. But we couldn’t imagine how they would transform the lives of so many others long before they left the village. I want to thank the children of Agahozo-Shalom for taking me on this incredible journey with them. -
New Innovation for Advanced Programs
By Berthe ABAHUJINKINDIThis year, we launched the advanced programs for Senior Five, beginning with the Professional Skills programs such as modern farming, photography and video editing, electricity and water system, cooking skills, art, traditional art, sewing, recording and guitar. Midway into the program, we began a new form of Tikkun Olam which was previously called Umuganda to be held the last Saturday of each month and is now running parallel with the Clubs for Senior Five kids.
Professional Skills
The kids of Senior Five began the year with the Professional Skills program which is advanced in nature as compared to the Enrichment Programs that are taught in Senior Four and Enrichment Year. These professional skills possess varying degrees of difficulty; the major issue was the lack of didactic materials and until now we continue to struggle with this issue. But overall, the kids enjoy these programs so much that they display their level of commitment, motivation and knowledge which is very important for their adult life after they leave the ASYV.Clubs
In June, the kids from Urumuri grade began participation in six new clubs. These clubs were created specifically for the Senior Five kids and each family has delegated four kids in two of the existing clubs. These students are delegated in order to help their younger brothers and sisters improve the quality activities performed in the clubs and to promote the leadership spirit among them. Clubs include the Tutoring club, Languages Development club, Centers Management club, Guest and Tourism club, IT club and Sport club. Senior Five’s club activities has brought new blood, new ideas, and innovation in the ASYV way of life.Tikkun Olam…A New Approach
The year of 2011 gave birth to a new change in Umuganda activities that were normally held the last Saturday of each month in a location where the students regularly worked with local residents. Last year’s plan, was designed to have the kids from Senior Five teach Tikkun Olam at Rwamagana in order to spread spirit of Tikkun Olam everywhere. After a period of discussions, the village staff offered another suggestion; instead of going to Rwamagana, the students can do advanced Tikkun Olam in the areas that are closest to home. This idea of combining Umuganda and the Tikkun Olam is mainly due to the village’s economic condition
resulting in the need for Senior Five to teach the Tikkun Olam in three different sectors. We took eighteen (18) students and divided them into two shifts to teach an illiterate population from the Rubona sector. One shift is staffed with nine kids from three learning sites, Karambi cell, Rugarama and Rubona center. Each learning site has six kids rotating in two shifts. A second group of eighty-four (84) kids teach in two primary schools; forty-two kids teach at Bicumbi primary school and forty-two kids at the Byinza primary school. The students rotate their shifts in a small group of twenty-one kids. The third group of twenty (20) kids teach technology skills to the Rubona secondary school students. They also alternate into two shifts of ten (10) students and once a month, every student from the Urumuri grade does Tikkun Olam including Umuganda. This group totals 158 in S3, but they would never have received the opportunity without our students giving them that chance. -
Welcome to Agahozo-Shalom Nature Park!
Murakaza neza ku Parike Y’Umutungo Kamere W’Agahozo! What in the world does that mean? It means that you are about to enter a brand new nature park.This will be the first of several posts about a special project: a student club has adopted a piece of land and turned it into the Parike Y’Umutungo Kamere W’Agahozo.
Read the full Blog HERE!
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Agahozo-Shalom Nature Park
By Anne Heyman, Founder ASYV
Anne Heyman, founder of ASYV, is currently in the village and wrote this blog about her wonderful day at the village:
July 13,2011 Once again I find myself waking up at the crack of dawn – literally – and I lie in bed listening to the wind in the banana trees which sounds like rain but not really, because here in Rwanda it’s the dry season. With rain being highly unlikely, the sun peeking in your windows and all the birds chirping their early morning singing songs….you know it’s just another day in paradise. You may think that is an exaggeration, but if you haven’t been here yet, you cannot even imagine how beautiful it is. And if you are a nature lover….let me tell you about what I did today.
At lunch I was approached by Fidel, the head of the Environment Club, and he asked if it would be possible for some of the students in the environment club to take me on a walk through “the Park” – the newly designated conservation area which visitors to Agahozo-Shalom can now take a guided walk through. I am told that so far over 200 students have worked on or participated in the creation of the nature trail, which is still under construction and in doing so they have all been exposed to the importance of protecting our environment (as well as the fun you can have in doing so!) Starting at the back of the school, where 4 state of the art large greenhouses are sprouting all kinds of plants (it’s been a long time since I tasted such a delicious tomato) we followed the fence line until we saw the sign: Agahozo-Shalom Nature Park. The whole way leading up to the entrance I was learning about why caring for our environment is so important from the 5 members of the Environment Club who undertook to give me my tour! Turning left onto the trail I was shown a one page “map” of some of the plants, trees, birds and wildlife I could possibly encounter. I am pleased to report that were no pictures of lions or baboons on the page; although there was the chance of encountering an Ichneumon Mongoose (who I am told are good because they eat snakes….and we did in fact not encounter any snakes on the path!) Immediately after stepping onto the path we were surrounded by butterflies of all types, and it was explained to me how important they are for pollination. An acacia tree led to a discussion about the different types of acacia trees, and which ones were used traditionally for church gatherings under the shady trees.
Innocent, Paulina, Leonard, Fidel, and Anne-Marie followed in short succession; with a discussion of each types of plant, the Kinyarwanda name, the English name and the scientific name all being provided. Despite the fact that it was 2:30 in the afternoon we were treated to encounters with Speckled Mousebirds, Cinnamon-chested Bee-eaters, and a Bateleur Eagle, just a few of the over 125 species of birds which have been documented at the village by our resident bird expert and erstwhile volunteer, Jared. (For those of you who are serious bird watchers, we are proud to let you know that Agahozo-Shalom is one of the few places where you can regularly spot Sooty Chats, Cinnamon-chested Bee-eaters, and Yellow-throated Longclaws).
Yellow-throated Longclaw
Agahozo-Shalom is a village of hope, a village of learning, a village of promise and change. And it is a village filled with delightful surprises: Kids who have amazing voices, traditional poetry written by young people with old soles, wonderful murals painted by our resident artists, homemade potato chips (ok not that often but when we do get them…I have never tasted any potato chips so delicious)….and now there is one more….our very own very special nature preserve…..complete with a guided tour that I guarantee you will never forget.
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Happy Environment Day from Rwanda!
This past Saturday, Agahozo-Shalom Youth Village celebrated Rwanda’s Environment Day. The student Environment Club and its two staff/volunteer sponsors coordinated the day’s events, which included tree plantings, speeches, and an environmental film.ASYV started the day with over 50 students working on our new nature
park and trail and gave the inaugural tour to some visiting donors.
The nature park, Parike Y’Umutungo Kamere W’Agahozo, was envisioned by
students and features a 600 meter trail that showcases acacia, umuko,
and other native vegetation. Environment Club members marked the event
by planting four native acacia trees in the park.After lunch, the club hosted an educational event. This event
attracted more than 250 village residents, including 220+ students and
over 30 staff/volunteers. We screened “Planet Earth: Freshwater,”
viewed a presentation about water conservation from our assistant
director, and heard from three students who spoke about trees.
Following the speeches, students and staff explored environmental
issues at an interactive idea marketplace. The club sponsored a tree
giveaway so that each family could plant a tree on Environment Day.Finally, after the event, students planted a total of 30 trees in
their yards, including 7 acacia, 20 papaya, and 3 guava. Please enjoy
the pictures of our version of Earth Day! -
The Village Times: Volume 2, Issue 1
Click here to read the latest newsletter!
Articles include:
“Women’s Corner”
“The Birds”
“Are they looking at the stars? Or becoming stars?”
and
Artists’ Corner
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Follow the journeys of students visiting the Village on service-learning trips
Follow the journeys of students visiting the Village on service-learning trips:
University of Pennsylvania:
http://upennhillel.blogspot.com/2011/05/tikkun-olam.htmlTufts University:
http://tufts-in-rwanda.blogspot.com/2011/05/one-day-to-go.htmlUniversity of Wisconsin:
http://uwhillelrwanda.wordpress.com/2011/05/02/bringing-it-back/ -
Reach Out Rwanda
Learn more about Rwanda!
Read the blog here! -
Tikkun Olam at ASYV
Talya Curtis, London, England
The Agahozo-Shalom Youth Village in Rwanda prides itself in installing in the children the idea that they, orphans of the genocide, are
worthy of helping those less fortunate than themselves. This concept of going outside the village to help others is not only to help them recognize how lucky they are to be in ASYV, but also to teach them that every person has something to give to the community and wider society.Anne Heyman, the founder of ASYV, built the Village on Jewish values and thus, the Village sets aside one afternoon a week to do Tikun Olam, the Jewish notion of repairing the world. There are three options of Tikun Olam that the children can choose from: elementary school, social work, and HIV-AIDS clinic. I chose to go to the HIV-AIDS clinic with the children. As soon as we walked out of the Village, I immediately noticed the difference between those who are lucky enough to live in ASYV and those who live outside. The former are better dressed, well-nourished and speak impeccable English.
Arriving at the clinic was a big shock for me. The clinic was made up of a few dark and rundown buildings, some made of mud. There was nothing inside the clinic that resembled a medical center, no electrical medical equipment, no real waiting rooms and hardly any
medical supplies. We were given a tour around the clinic, but during the tour I couldn’t help but get distracted by the background noise. My eyes couldn’t focus on the doctor talking to us. All that my eyes were drawn to were the mothers outside trying to cradle their sick and crying babies. As we were told later, the babies scream with pain because they have not eaten or drunk water for days, often weeks. This for me was painful to be around but the children of ASYV didn’t seem fazed by it, and I couldn’t understand why. It was only until later that day that I realized why. The children of ASYV used to be like those children I saw in the clinic, stricken by poverty and often sickness, and it made me so grateful for the work that this Village does for the children. They have been given a life-changing opportunity: an education, medical treatment, support system and most importantly hope, and I am deeply honored to be a part of this.
