Gishyita is one of the communities in the Karongi area in western Rwanda that Comfort International supports in partnership with Good News International. The whole of Karongi suffered intensely during and after the 1994 Genocide Against the Tutsi, as an area which formed the only organised resistance to the genocide (in Bisesero), and was subsequently given hope and let down by western nations. This left an undeniable mark on the people of this area, resulting in emotional trauma, deep distrust of outsiders, and practical issues including large numbers of widows and orphans, lack of housing and education and high levels of poverty. GNI have been working in the Gishyita community to build trust, build community links, instigate income-generating activities, build houses and counsel hearts broken by the trauma of the genocide.
In 2020, Comfort International launched a project jointly with GNI and funded with the support of Bishopbriggs Community Church and Sandyhills Parish Church to build 20 homes (10 duplex houses). This was largely in response to the need in the community which was exacerbated by flooding in 2019 which destroyed many houses. Originally, the plan was to build the houses in partnership with the Rwandan Government, who did contribute to the cost of some of the houses, although their participation ended up being less than originally intended. In the last four years, the churches and supporters have been fundraising hard, and we are delighted that the 20 homes are now built and the project has been completed. In total, Comfort International has sent £34,440.76 for the building of the houses in Gishyita.
During this and last Summer, teams from Comfort International visiting Karongi had the opportunity to meet and hear from some of the individuals and families who have been chosen by community leaders to receive one of the houses. There is a common thread running through the stories – families who lived in fear and instability, now home-owners and secure in the knowledge that they have a safe place to live that will not be taken away from them – but each story paints the picture of a life transformed and a new future begun. We’d love to share some of their stories with you now.
Marie told us, “I have 4 children. I want to tell you that before we had this home we had no house. We were living in a very old house and it was raining in the night and the house fell down. I spent two weeks in hospital. My oldest son was buried under the rubble and he was the most injured. We told the umudugudu leader who was making a list for this village and we were chosen. Every time when we pray we pray for you. When I prayed I always used to pray for a small home – even if I could only put my head in a house I would be happy – but now I have a home for my whole body.”
Antoinette spoke to us with her voice quivering. She has an oldest daughter, Nadia (14), as well as Clementine (11), Louise (9) and Paul (6). She says, “I thank God for this miracle for us. I don’t live with my husband as he was not good to us. We lived here and there as we were very, very poor. The government tried to support us with rent, but it didn’t always come and we would be sent away until we got the house in this village. The children didn’t go to school but when we began to live here they started to go to school. Because now we have the house, we are able to get some work and earn some money. We praise God we are safe and no-one will ask me to leave my home. Thank you very much.”
There are many more stories of lives changed through the houses:
Francois says, “Thank you. We are very happy. We have three children so we are five and we are very happy to have this house. We always pray for you. We are very happy you always come and visit us – you are very welcome. My husband is Jean de Dieu. Before we came here I was living at the main road. We had no house because we could not pay rent. Every month we would get chased away from any house we were staying in; we were moving all the time. Today we praise God because God has brought you to this area to support us. Now we don’t move from place to place and our lives are stable. We don’t have anything to give you except to pray blessings on you.”
Emelda adds, “We thank our village (umudugudu) leader (Agnes) as she knew all our problems. We changed house every month as we had no rent money and we were chased from every house. The leader said ‘please be patient – God will provide at the right time’. When we moved here that is when I started feeling peace in my heart. For some months the house was not finished but we lived there, but now it is finished it is even better! My heart is full of joy, thank you very much for all your support. My heart and my children’s hearts are all peaceful and very happy. When we know you are coming we are very happy (and we would like to visit you too!).”
The houses have made an incredible difference to the lives of the individuals and families who have received them, but they are not the only ones to benefit from the houses being built. The whole community is changed, and community leader Agnes explains how this has generational ramifications:
“We are very happy you have come back to see us. We praise God as all those people were in a very bad situation. We knew they were struggling but we had nothing to give them. The contribution of those houses does not just help the parents but now the children who can go to school. They come from different places but they live in peace with each other. Thank you very much for all you did to finish those houses. Now they are settled they can work for their families. Thank you very much, God bless you.”
We would like to take this opportunity to thank our supporters and especially Bishopbriggs Community Church and Sandyhills Parish Church for their unwavering support of the Gishyita community in Karongi and specifically for raising the funds for twenty life-changing homes there. If you would like your church to partner with Comfort International, changing lives across central Africa, please get in touch with us today.