Corn Grinder for refugees in Uganda

Faziri Ndahiro is organizing our small group of volunteers from Rochester, New York to help raise funds for refugees in Nakivale Refugee Camp in Uganda. Our goal is to raise funds for desperately needed goods and supplies for those in the camp. We planned to be in Uganda by 2016 but we were not able to make it because we have not reached our goal yet plus a delay of immigration travel document. we would request you to help us reach this goal of Summer 2017 let us do it together and the monies raised will provide the following assistance:

·        School uniforms/supplies
·        Shoes
·        Books
·        Clothes for orphans and widows
·        Food
·        Mill/grinder for grains (a staple in camp diet)

If we raise enough money will use some money for micro-finance projects such as buy and sell food products. And throughout our visit will be engaged in community activities and in building peace and loving communities.

These simple items and resources to start businesses will give individuals a sense of hope, purpose, job opportunities and direction which is nonexistent for many. Faziri Ndahiro is the organizer of this incredible vision, and his story will help you understand the dire need for these resources; and the amazing power of hope in a dark place. Your support will help us to spread the light, and share the truth of God's love and vision for his people in Nakivale Resettlement Camp.

Below is a short video about Nakivale. This is a separate project by the UNHCR, but it gives a realistic snapshot of what daily life is like for those living in the camp. 

Faziri Ndahiro is 24 years old. He is third of (now) eight children. Born in Mulenge, South Kivu, Democratic Republic of Congo, his early years were spent there with his family before life changed drastically in the 90s. Following the atrocities of the Rwandan genocide, similar events took place in DRC. In a very abridged version of the history of events, the government organized a war in order to eliminate the minority Banyamulenge people. This is Faziri's tribe. The Banyamulenge people are descended from a long line of farmers who migrated throughout Africa over many years, resulting in a mixed ethnic background. Many settled in DRC. Naturally, they have a different language (direct) than other Congolese groups but they also speak some Congolese directs.  Violence and instability increased steadily and disrupted the ability to carry out our daily life free from fear and persecution. Years passed, and unable to maintain a peaceful life any longer, the family fled to Uganda in 2005.

Fleeing from his home with no certainty of what tomorrow would bring, or if there was a tomorrow, Faziri spent two months living in the bush while moving places during the nights trying to find a safe place hide. In his words, it was here where he saw death and darkness. One has to become desensitized to what is around them in order to simply survive. Every day he woke up only to see death and suffering all around, struggling to press on, move forward, and get out. Many of Banyamulenge that left the country during that torture and killing to Burundi in Gatumba refugee camp were burnt alive in their tents, shot and cut with machetes but no justice have been practiced yet to Agato Rwasa and his armed labels who claimed to be the cause of the massacre.

After this, Faziri's struggle to survive became physical, mental, and spiritual. He cried for three months. How could this be life? To wake up to a stable place with nowhere to grow. No road ahead of him. No progress or change to see. Only death, hunger, and pain. At this point, he was done trying to finish high school. He figured it might be useful to try to learn more English. (He currently speaks six languages at least proficiently.) 

Making it to Nakivale Camp was a feat in itself, but the struggle was far from over. While life was stagnant in many ways, still the family grew when Faziri's mother gave birth in the camp.  Giving birth in these circumstances is extremely risky since there is a serious lack of medical care and attention. The family grew, but tragedy struck again when Faziri's other little sister passed away in Nakivale after a three months struggle with an intense sickness. She passed away when she was twelve years old in 2008. 

After this, Faziri's struggle to survive became physical, mental, spiritual. He cried for three months. How could this be life? To wake up to a stable place with nowhere to grow. No road ahead of him. No progress or change to see. Only death, hunger, and pain. At this point, he was done trying to finish high school. He figured it might be useful to try to learn more English. (He currently speaks six languages at least proficiently.)

"Life is: take whatever comes..."


Until this point, the family was kept stable by an uncle in Uganda who sold cows and sent the money to them for food and whatever other daily needs it could cover. Faziri remembers having one set of clothes at any given time. "You wear the shirt on your back during the day. At night you take it off and wash it, and wear it again the next day." 


Accepting that God was working in some way he did not understand, Faziri pressed on in his pursuit of English classes, but saw the increased need for finances when his three surviving sisters had a need for more funding to continue their education if they were to finish out school. He looked for volunteering opportunities which would lead to work. He found a chance to interpret in the Camp for Swahili, Kirundi, English, and Kinyarwanda. This got him per dime job of $10,000 Ugandan shillings per day, or $2.9 USD to support his family. Having work made a difference. Faziri says he loved helping people and working, but it was still not enough to make a progress. "Even if I was making $10k shillings, that was still not enough for three days' worth of food for a family ." 

After some time, Mbarara university of Science and Technology came to Nakivale Camp to provide a PTSD training for three months. Participants were paid if they agreed to be part of the survey to study the results, so Faziri signed up. Halfway through the survey, His life shifted again when he found out that his family was chosen to begin the resettlement process. Refugees spend their existence in camps only dreaming about... resettlement because of their life situations in the camp. 
 
Faziri remembers seeing his name on the list of people chosen to resettle in the USA. This was based on the family's level of safety within the camp. While a refugee camp is to be a place to run to from war and violence, there are a number of dangers in everyday life, especially for women and young girls. After losing so much, his own education, his sister and extended family, his home and livestock, the hope of a tomorrow were becoming real. "I thought, maybe this is the place I can build my future. I was excited!"
  
The resettlement process took almost two years and a half to be granted a resettlement. Evaluations of all kinds, medical exams, screening, USCIS interviews among others and plans for living in their new home were being made. In the meantime Faziri came upon another opportunity he knew he had to fight for. A competitive job as a food distribution Clerk for the whole camp. This was the highest paying job in the camp, working for the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) office at $160,000 shillings, or approximately $46 USD per month, 126 people applied. Among 126 participants 25 were shortlisted, and only 5 was selected. If God gave him this job, he thought, he would use it how He wanted him to. He went to the UN and told them that he needed a job and that he most definitely would be going to this interview. 


"I had to fight!" The thought of how much more he could provide for his sisters pushed him to sit in line with the 25 candidates out of 126 only for 5 job openings, who asked him what he was doing there. A friend gave him a suit to wear, and there he sat. On the bench and his name wasn't even on the interviewee list. Miraculously, he was chosen. 

Faziri got the job with 14 others and there were responsible for passing out food to 56,000  people which are now over 70, 000 refugees currently living in Nakivale after Burundi and south Sudan's crisis.
This gave him valuable experience working with numbers, people, and above all, a sense of purpose as he took care of others. This went on for a year and a half as he also volunteered at the hospital in the camp. Carrying our many nurse responsibilities, Faziri helped in feeding the sick, taking care of their personal hygiene, and breaking some rules as he prayed with them, when leadership found out about it later, they agreed that an exception would be made for him after they saw the difference it was making for the patients in their recovery. 
"Once you have a promise from God, nothing can change it..."

Eventually, the time came for Faziri's family to come to the US. September 27, 2011. A day he can't forget. Life started again. Many refugees describe this life change as being born all over again...a fresh start. Everything must be re-learned. For the first time in so long, life had the potential to be dynamic. To change and grow and see progress. 


After about four years, Faziri is working in refugee community to help with transportation as they resettle. He is also a full-time student of Human Services and will graduate in May, 2015. He is the founder of Rochester Global Refugee Services Inc. an organization which helps bring about "awareness of culture, language, and identity of Africans to the new generation and helping refugees to be self-sufficient," and help students in realizing their education goals. He also coordinated a World Refugee Day event in Rochester, NY, this past year, and continues to provide services to refugees including resumes writing, job placement, service referrals, helping the to apply for  DHS benefits, Green Cards, and interpreting. It is his vision and dreams to see others have the chance he was given and to share with them the joy and love that comes from knowing God.