“My name is Justine, and I am 11 years old. I am part of the Gasanze Street Kids Rescue Project, which takes full care of me and three of my siblings.
Our parents passed away a few years ago—my mother died during childbirth in 2019, and my father sadly passed away in 2021 due to illness. After losing both of them, we were left in the care of our older brother. However, he was too poor to support all five of us, along with his own family. Eventually, we ended up wandering the streets, feeling hopeless and without support.
Thankfully, local authorities found us and informed the district officers, who then connected us with Comfort Rwanda. That’s how we joined the Gasanze Street Project. Since then, our lives have changed for the better.
We are now living in a better house, fully supported by Comfort Rwanda, where we are safe and able to access basic needs like food, clothing, and education. Among my siblings are a pair of lovely twins, and I’m so happy that we are all together again as a family. You can see me in one of the photos wearing a dress, another one with me and the twins, and one more showing my twin brothers standing with David Gasana.
We believe that once the Comfort Transformation Centre is completed, it will become a true home—not just for us, but for many other children who have nowhere else to go. It will be a safe, loving, and supportive environment where we can grow and thrive.
I am especially thankful for the way we are cared for by our project mother and all the Comfort Rwanda staff. May God bless Comfort International for all the good work they are doing for us.”
Sponsorship has changed Justine’s life and that of her siblings. Last year, she wrote to her sponsors about how her life had changed since she was on the streets:
“My life has been going good because I am living with my siblings and we have been having the best time. We are also going to school. I am so grateful because we are all alive and well and have not been sick for the whole year. I’m in Primary three and have been enjoying school this year and working really hard, especially at my favourite subject English […] I have a plan to work hard at school to get good grades so that I can be a doctor one day. I want to do this so I can take care of others and help them, just like how I help my two brothers. I love my brothers very much and my favourite thing about them is the way we care for each other. The funniest thing about my brothers is I like it when they’re silly and can’t pronounce words right. Some things about me are that I like playing tennis, dancing and playing with my friends.”