Foundation Rwanda

This is very different from what I usually write about. The podcast Rwanda Rising (link) is an ode to humanity and resilience, hope and even joy in the face of unspeakable evil. Agatha (Agathe) is a genocide survivor who witnessed the murder of her family, endured repeated rapes and a brutal machete attack by her neighbor that knocked out her teeth. The first episode is the story of her powerful journey of healing and reclaiming her smile and dignity, while also navigating her loving yet complex relationship with her daughter, Agnes, born of that violence.

I first heard the story of Agathe from @foundstion Rwanda co-founder and Executive Director @jules shell’s TEDx talk (link). When Agathe got her teeth and her smile back, she said that she wanted to smile at the man who did this to her. Hope, deep humanity, faith and an unstoppable urge to create a better future for their children are the forces that have propelled thousands of women raped during the genocide (it is estimated that 20,000 children were born of rape) to not just survive but live their lives. The trauma is still present, even more so during the period of commemoration of the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi, but the will to move forward is unwavering.

Since 2007, Foundation Rwanda has been supporting education and counseling for more than 800 children and their mothers -education being the number one wish these mothers had for their children.

Take a moment to listen listen here to this moving 19-minute episode.

Disclosure: I am not unbiased when it comes to Jules Shell. I am pretty sure we own a house together and, also, we have two children.

@sara solf, @nancy brady, @tom brady, @lisa om, @rachel burnside, @melinda French gates, @trevor mundel, @stefano Bertozzi, @bertrand badre, @vivek Badrinath, @guillaume picard, @patrick hafner, @alph bingham