During our trip to Rwanda, Africa in May of this year, we traveled to a very special place called the Sonrise School located in Musanze, Rwanda. What a treat to meet so many beautiful and loving children, most of them orphans. As we roamed around the new construction of the high school being built, Keith poked his head into one of the class rooms. A young man so warm and friendly politely introduced himself as Manzi! He asked Keith if he played basketball which he did back in the day. Manzi also shared a love for basketball so they quickly had something in common to share. I will never forget the way he introduced himself to me. With the most impressive passion coming from his deepest core, he says “My name is Manzi and I want to be a medical doctor. I want to change the world through medicine.” Now, this impressed me because so many of the young people we met shared the same passion to help others. With so very little themselves, I found it astonishing that they were more concerned about helping others before themselves. In the USA, a nation with so much emphasis on ourselves, I thought this was extremely remarkable and frankly, refreshing.
So there I stood with a young man who is facing the most significant obstacles to attend college and yet he convinced me with his eyes and conviction that he will become a medical doctor – somehow, someway. He is first in his class and studies very hard to get the best grades. Not only does he want to be a medical doctor but the first Neurosurgeon from Rwanda. His dream is getting bigger, I love that! For this to happen, Manzi has to pass specific exams and find scholarships to enable his dream to come true.
Please visit www.bridge2rwanda.org/donate to find the most information about the Sonrise School and how you can donate online by sponsoring a student or simply give to the general fund. All of their efforts will help Manzi and many others get the opportunities that they need to achieve success on their own.
