Chrissie Chapman Burundi, Central Africa
CRIB (Children Rescued in Burundi)
During the genocide in Burundi in the 90’s Chrissie Chapman began a work to rescue children who had suffered unimaginable hardship and lost their parents in the crisis that took place then. Her commitment to these children has gone way beyond the call of duty, as she has adopted three of them Lydia, Hannah and Ben (see photo).
Today there are more than fifty children in the CRIB work, who also go to The King’s School, a Christian school where they are educated in English, along with other children from the city. Twenty of them are in secondary school, and others have gone on to futher education or work.
In the summer of 2009 a team of young people from Living Waters Church went out to Burundi to lead a 5-day holiday club called Time Twisters for the CRIB kids and also children of staff who care for them. The focus of the club was to understand God’s plan for each person, and they spent time praying for the children that God would use them to impact the future of their country. The team were amazed to see how content and happy the children were with their lives, how they never stopped laughing, and the huge dreams they have for their futures.
visit CRIB's web-site www.burundichildren.com
Chrissie's latest Newsletter - December 2011
Dear Friends,
Well, here we are once again, with Christmas just around the corner and another New Year rapidly approaching. December is of course the month for all of us to take time to look back and reflect on all the events of the past year, while at the same time looking ahead with the wonder of what the next year will hold for us.
An Update on Family News…..
In September Lydia flew off to LA to begin the six month course with YWAM that she has wanted to do for many years, and for sure it is turning out to be a dream come true for her – she loves it. She has already made a trip to Mexico with a team and in the New Year she is off to Nepal and India. Her course ends in March 2012 and up to now she does not know what will be next for her – so we wait and pray with her to know where she should be after YWAM.
Hannah is living in Cheam and working in a coffee shop in Sutton High Street. The coffee shop is connected to our church and Hannah is really enjoying working there. She has made a lot of new friends and settled well in the UK. She has applied to several universities for next September and is waiting to hear back so she can then decide where would be the best place for her. Hannah is coming home to Burundi for a month over Christmas which is wonderful.
Benjamin has once again had to face quite a few changes. He did in fact start back at the College in Woking in September to do his A level course but we just could not find any suitable accommodation within commuting distance from the college so in the end we managed to get a place for him at The Beacon Sixth Form College in Banstead, Surrey. He is living just a short distance from the college with a family from my home church who have taken Ben into their family.
It is such a blessing to see both Ben and Hannah settled and happy in the families they are with at this time. Ben is still not really settled at the new college and misses his friends from Woking but he is doing well with his studies. Ben is also coming back home to Burundi with Hannah for a month this Christmas; for me, the best Christmas present ever to have at least two out of three of my children with me at this special time of the year.
In September I was able to fly back to the UK with Ben and Hannah and help to get them settled and sort out all the changes with college etc. for Ben. This was really a big challenge at the time, but the blessing in the middle of all that was that some very good friends allowed me to house sit for them while they were away for seven weeks. It was just the most perfect timing and I don’t quite know what we would have done otherwise as I really needed to be there for my kids at that time and it meant I also got a week with Lydia before she left for LA. I feel blessed beyond measure to have such wonderful friends who have opened their homes and their hearts to me and my children, truly we are blessed.
The summer months here in Burundi went well but by the end of August we were getting power cuts several times every day and all night every night. At the same time the water was being turned off for several hours every day as well – a big challenge with so many young people and workers on one compound but we quickly learned how much water we needed to store each day when the water was on and have got well into the routine of doing laundry when the water is on and quickly getting the ironing done when the power is on! Things are not too bad now as the rains have come and we have more water which is good and the power is pretty regular 24hrs on followed by 24hrs off – so at least one can plan a bit better when you know the power is about to go, for example don’t put a cake in the oven !!!
My plans to start the bakery project are going slowly rather than full steam ahead, mostly due to the power and water situation, but I have now invested in a gas oven and am still very keen to begin this project in the New Year.
The CRIB kids are all doing well. We had three who took IGCSE’s last year and two out of the three have now started the 2-year A level course at the Kings School. The A level courses have just started for the first time this September at the Kings School, so just at the right time for our kids. Grace and Budusy are now one term into their A levels and Pacifique is repeating his IGCSE’s for better grades in the hope of starting his A levels next year.
We have had one young man, Moise (see picture), who has been struggling with the A level course in Uganda. We decided that it was best if Moise left that school in Uganda and started again with his A levels here at the Kings School in Burundi, which he did and he is now doing very well. Our kids do find it hard to leave to go to the boarding schools in Uganda as the changes in diet as well as the very strict regime is hard for them, so we are happy that they now have the opportunity to stay in Burundi to do A levels. The subject choices are quite limited but enough for those wanting and able to go on with further education.
Our oldest boy, Murungwa, finished his gap year in the UK and is now at University in Uganda.
Gentil, another one of our older boys, is also in Uganda doing a one year course in agriculture.
Both the boys will be back for the Christmas holidays so we will have a great time catching up with everyone’s news.
I take this opportunity to thank all of you for your continued love and support to me, my family and all the children and people I am working with here. This year in September I celebrated twenty-one years of being here in Burundi.
This Christmas will also be a special time as I celebrate my 60th birthday…. Where does the time go?? I don’t think I feel that old but I am not sure how one is supposed to feel when one reaches what is supposed to be retirement age. Are you kidding??? I can’t see me ever retiring at this rate !!
Anyway, I wish you all a very Happy and Blessed Christmas and New Year.
Love from Chrissie."
The Cow Project -
We also are supporting a project to help hill farmers acquire cows and grow food so that they are well nourished and give good milk yields. This project is managed by Evariste (left) and our support helps to buy cows, which are given to hill farmers who are also supplied with seed to enable them to grow suitable food for fodder. Once the cow has calved and the milk begins to flow the farmer is able to use some of the milk for his own personal needs, sell the remainder back to the project, and in time pay for the cow that was donated.
These cows are a real life line for villages and farmers. Their families not only get better nutrition and are consequently healthier, but they have a sustainable income too. The milk is also taken by the project and sold in the towns.
We are also contributing towards a machine which pasteurises the milk so that it keeps longer and is in better condition than it would be in its raw state.
As the farmers are able to buy their own cows and repay the loans this is then reinvested in the scheme to help other farmers obtain cows.
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