WHAT WE ARE DOING
December 9th we - Joanie Levine and Yehudah Winter, of Portland, Oregon - are embarking on a 2 1/2 month journey through East Africa, beginning in Rwanda and Uganda. We have the good fortune to have connected with Theoneste Bizimana of The Center for Healing and Rebuilding Our Communities (HROC) in Rwanda through William Jacobsen, a Compassionate Listening Trainer, who, for the past several years has been traveling to Rwanda conducting Compassionate Listening (CL) trainings.
See: HROC
See: Compassionate LIstening and Global Citizen Liberia Trainings
We have been encouraged by Bill to meet with these same groups - who are healing from the wounds of the horrific 1994 genocide - and to continue the use of the heart-centered techniques of CL. Yehudah has been involved with CL since being part of delegations to Israel and Palestine in 2000, and to Syria and Lebanon in 2002. He and Joanie, an expressive arts educator, began a monthly CL practice group in Portland in 2009. The couple now feel ripe to move out to share this powerful practice and are excited that this opportunity has presented itself. Joanie’s expressive arts expertise will be combined with CL in the workshops. Joanie also plans to offer creative dance sessions for children and teens tagged on to the workshops.
We will also be offering introductory CL workshops to the Abayudaya Jewish Community in Mbale, Uganda. Joanie has been raising funds for the Abayudaya schools for three years now and this is what originally sparked our desire to travel to East Africa. Aaron Kintu Moses, the Headmaster of Hadassah Primary School, is excited that we will be bringing CL training to his school and community. (Primary photo shows Joanie and Yehudah with Aaron when he visited Portland last year.)
Click to learn about the Abayudaya on Kulanu's website.
FUNDRAISING NEEDS
Each Rwanda one-day workshop includes providing meals for the attendees, pay for a translator, renting a hall where the workshop takes place, lodging and transportation. The estimate is $300 per workshop, totaling $2100. We will offer 7 workshops in: Kigali (the capital) plus Kibuye, Butare, Gisenyi, Nyundo, Kabira and Musanze - rural villages all over Rwanda. Our stay in Mbale will cost $1200 for lodging and food. So our total need for our volunteer efforts is about $3300. Here we are starting by asking for $1500 to cover 5 workshops, but would love to raise the entire $3300!
Rwanda is one of the poorest countries in Africa, the most impoverished continent in the world. For many people, daily income is less than $1. That's why we feed people when they come to the trainings. In fact, coming to the training is a very huge sacrifice because they get something to eat when they have been able to work, for example, in their neighbor's garden, or washing clothes. They get paid a little money or just food to feed their families. That's life in the village. So, facilitators need to fund these workshops rather than being paid, as it would be in the United States.
We are inviting you to help. We’d love for you to come along with us, but since you probably can’t make this trip physically, you can join us by supporting our efforts.
And please pass this on to those you think might be interested!
Blessings,
Yehudah Winter and Joanie Levine
