She's My Sister Project... Desperately Needed

We just spent the last two days in Kibuye. It's an area in the western province of Rwanda right next to Lake Kivu bordering the DRC. We met with local church leaders who were involved in Saddleback's PEACE plan initiative. One of the pastors led us out to some of the rural (and I mean rural...) homes to meet with some of the people. We got a chance to speak with them about trauma needs in the area. They said genocide played a huge role in Kibuye, there were a lot of killings as opposed to the northern area where we were previously. So the needs are great. We also talked to a doctor in the mental health ward at the hospital there who said there were some services being offered by the government to address trauma and mental health, but the finances were not enough to really help people. He said there was one NGO from Belgium helping the country in this area, but that was it. I am realizing more and more how the She's My Sister project is not just another NGO program, but something desperately needed. People are really suffering, and they need trained professionals to come and help them. And this is Rwanda, where there has been relative peace for 16 years. You can just imagnie the needs in DRC, and the consequences that will occur 16 years later if not addressed. Mal will be leaving soon (sad face) and Bryan and I will be traveling to Uganda. Keep praying!