Looking Back at an Incredible Year!!!

It's amazing to me that my life path led me to Agahozo Shalom Youth Village. It's definitely not something that I had planned but I believe if you allow things to happen that sometimes they will surprise you in life changing ways. This year has definitely been life changing as any experience like this should, but Agahozo Shalom is more than that. I see people that are just there one day and see the impact that it has on them. Imagine kids who were not expecting to have such a bright future...that is truly life changing. I could go on and on with stories of the incredible impact that Agahozo Shalom has on its students and everyone who is involved with the project. Throughout my blog you can find many of those stories.
It cost over $4000 per student to get a great education, have 3 meals per day, access to many activities, and a safe home to go to each night. Please help support these kids have a brighter future. Any amount can help in the effort to educate orphan students in Rwanda.
Please help in the effort. I have a goal of raising $500 this holiday season. You can visit http://www.asyv.org/ to donate and help support these teens. Please email me at amyprice33@gmail.com if you plan to donate so I can send you a personal thank you and tell you how you're helping support an amazing organization.

A Day to Party

We started the day with a friendly football (soocer for those of you living in the US) game between the farm workers and landscaping workers. When I showed up to the field, all the workers were dressed in their finest clothes. I was surprised because I thought we were there to play football. They all looked so nice. Soon after I arrived, they all had on different attire and were ready to play. I even played in the beginning but gave up my spot to one of the workers. I became the referee. Some of the players have some great talent and others were funny to watch. In the end, the farm workers won!!! Go Team!!!

After the game there was a cook out planned. We were suppose to eat at 12 but it was 4 by the time we ate. It was fun waiting around with all the workers. We took lots of pictures. It was a great day to take a day off and party!

Coming to the End

Things are winding down at Agahozo Shalom. The kids left on Saturday morning, I've been been cleaning my room, and finishing up on my reports of the year. It's sad to see the kids go but I feel happy to be able to see them again next year. It's strange to be in the village without all of them. The kids are what really makes this place...the beautiful songs coming from the music center, the cheering from the sports field, and the laughter coming from the homes. This is what makes a village, the people that are apart of it. Today we have a party for the farm workers. I'm sure I have lots to say about it in my next blog. What I want to write about today is 2 events from last Thursday. There hasn't been internet so here's my time to write about it.

I wasn't feeling well last Thursday morning but heard there was a soccer game so I decided to see what was happening. I arrived at the field and saw house mothers and counselors facing off. We are working in the village to empower the females. I kept thinking to myself, what better ways to empower them than to see there mothers and counselors playing sports. I was very surprised by the strenghth and toughness of some of the house mothers. They really rocked the field. I was excited when I passed to one of the moms and she scored! What a great match. In the end, it was tied 1-1. Next year I hope to see more activities like this. I'd love to see a game of female staff against the female students!

On Thursday night, Micaela and I planned an end of the year celebration for our girls. We decided on a spa night. We hard nail polish, oatmeal face masks, magazines, lotion for hand massages, music and m&m to enjoy. We started the spa night talking about inner beauty and that each have given us so much this year. We had papers around the room with each person's name and it said is special because... All the girls signed each others. The night was a big success with each of the girls having a great time. At the end, they thanked Micaela and I and gave each of us a gift.