Dear friends
There it was again: our village birthday party. It gets more beautiful every year. Why more beautiful? Because it gains in depth and commitment from year to year. I would like to report on this with a few brief thoughts, snapshots and quotes from our protégés.
From childhood to maturity: the gift of community
What I mean by the depth and commitment of our annual rituals is the following: Children are children. That is their happiness and their gift. Curious and open-minded, they discover the world with all their senses. In the early years, this usually happens in an environment protected by their parents. Fortunately, this was also the case for our protégés.
Over the years, children become teenagers, their radius expands and they look for boundaries that they can cross. This often causes tension. And that’s a good thing. Because tension creates energy, which is vital. But a protective, loving look from their parents is also important for teenagers. Even if they think they have it all figured out.
A few more years later, teenagers become young adults. Then they sometimes realize that perhaps they didn’t understand everything when they were teenagers. This valuable experience helps them to mature. They often develop depth, new skills and sharpen their sense of values. I was recently so deeply moved and delighted by all of this in Kids of Africa.
For example, Benjamin (21), our promising law student, wrote to me that he wanted to use all the money that Kids of Africa gave him for a better Africa. He wrote that if he succeeded, we should always consider it his “love letter to Kids of Africa”. Do you see what I mean?
Run for Fun
But don’t get me wrong: at Kids of Africa, the children are still in the majority. Kids of Africa is a children’s village – even though I was so touched by the maturity of our eldest children. Because it shows me that our youngest protégés are on the right path. It has to do with love, values, education and also with our sporting lifestyle.
Speaking of which: the day after our birthday party, we also organized our annual “Run for Fun”. This year’s motto was “Run for hygiene and water safety”. Our protégé Reagan, who is learning IT and graphic design at the school, took lots of pictures and produced the following video of our run. Take a look for yourself:
A few snapshots
I have attached a few snapshots and personal quotes from our protégés.
“Dignity, self-confidence and education:
when we give this to our students, we strengthen the future of us all”
Teacher Christine, our teacher and founder of a school for Sudanese refugees who cannot read, write or speak English
«Yes, I can. Yes, you can. Yes, we can.»
Runner Paul – our secret multi-talent
«Love from Betty and the powerful girls!»
Betty – our author and women’s rights activist
«United we stand for a better future, for a bright Uganda.»
These words, which our protégés gave me for you, made me happy. I hope you feel the same way. I send you my warmest greetings and thank you for your support. Kids of Africa would not exist without you. Thank you! We need you.
Always yours
Burkhard Varnholt
