Ubaka U Rwanda

Another year is upon us. Last February found ourselves getting back into the groove in Rwanda again. And so we find ourselves looking to the land of a thousand hills again. Many of you reading this already can figure most of it out because we have been so fortunate to have had your support and friendship for so many years now. Please allow me to share the details for this year. I’ll share a link here for our blog which will get more in depth too.

http://www.ubakaurwanda.org/blog/2024/4/3/run-the-1-2024

UBAKA U RWANDA

Ubaka is a home for street children in Rwanda. It is also the home for Evode and Becky Usabyamahoro and their kids too. Everyone is one big family under the same roof. The kids are given everything every child deserves. The hurdles of abandonment, abuse, drug habits, and more are worked through with love and patience. Children that have nowhere to go are safe with us. Children who can be reintegrated with family are supported to do so. Ultimately, these kids are supported to have a successful transition to independence and adulthood one day.

THE FUNDRAISER

The fundraiser has always been about running in solidarity and to raise money for the kids’ school fees and overall living expenses. Over the years, countless friends and family have run together and afar for the cause. It has been 13 years now and we are still going strong. However, we have adapted. The running happens in Rwanda now primarily. The kids join in when they get home from school and it’s a lovely family affair.

WHEN - 4/23/24 Tuesday

WHERE - Kigali, Rwanda

WHAT - I will run a marathon. Evode and others may join me during spurts. I will save the last handful of miles for when the kids get home from school. The lot of us will enjoy the city lights at the local stadium and enjoy a nice walk back home.

WHY - Because it’s the least we can do in honor of so many peoples’ support this year and so many before.

HOW YOU CAN HELP

The easiest, best, and least romantic thing you can do is donate here. We are trying to raise $15,000 so we will have enough money to pay the children’s school fees in September and have enough to keep the lights on for the rest of the year and more if possible. The truth is we could use a lot more than 15k. However, rarely have we hit that amount before. The truth is that anything helps and we make the most use of it. Your donations will never go towards anyone but the children and home. We do not use donations for our travels. I have literally lost count of how many times I have been to Rwanda (13?). We don’t take a penny. Other ways you can help is sharing of course. If you feel like running with us, please do so and share a picture or something! Consider joining us next year in Rwanda. We suspect April/May time. But, yes, we need donations, and I truly despise to ask every year, but I also know the kids need it and are the most deserving out there.

MISC

While we are there, you can bet on us spending quality time with the kids, playing pitiful soccer, laughing at ourselves, and attempting to help cook and clean with the best of them. We have plans to visit our alumni who we now have many scattered over the country and beyond. Our last weekend, we plan to have a celebration inviting all of our “children” and their families. We really want to put a scope on the full circle we have achieved over the years. Look forward to that with us!

THANK YOU

If you made it this far, above all else, there is always gratitude. Thank you for being a part of this journey with us. Please know you are supporting some truly amazing kids and I will do my best to make sure you see that. Please, never hesitate to reach out if you’d like more stories, information, or anything.

BLOG LINK - http://www.ubakaurwanda.org/blog/2024/4/3/run-the-1-2024

KOMERA - Be Strong

Shaun Sullivan

Hello! for those who have followed Run the 1 for all these years and know most of what is going on, this year is the most different since it's beginning. Run the 1 started as a yearly running event in California that spanned multiple days with runners punching in ultra marathons, marathons, half marathons, a mile here, and a mile there. It was a community of wildland firefighters, friends, and family. It was glorious. Alas, times change and things have to adapt. For a few years now, I have been trying to figure out how to evolve the event and continue to support the kids in Rwanda. I think this year is the beginning of taking what used to be and turning it into something new and special. It's not trying to be better and certainly not worse, but something we can hopefully do that will be just as special in a sustainable way. If you are interested in more of the history of Run the 1, I will be writing a blog on our charity website in the coming weeks going over the years. For now, check out the website for all the info you could ask for on the charity and kids. Www.ubakaurwanda.org

This year, I will be running in Rwanda for the very first time! I will not be alone either. Over the years, some folks have reached out to me about coming to Rwanda. Beyond that, as we have contributed to the kids and the growth of our land, and building of our home, I have yearned to share that with those who have supported us. It is one thing to read about it, but to experience it is another. This year I will be joined by seven other people, all supporters who have reached out in their own way about wanting to come to Rwanda. I am more than excited for them to see the kids so the kids can see there are more people behind this than just me. I also can't wait to see this become more real for our supporters and hopefully for their friends and family who have no doubt supported as well over all these years.

Truth be told, I am not making any of them run unless they wish to. And I am doing it while the kids are in school in the middle of the week. Which I know isn't as flashy, but I am not wasting one minute of my time with the kids running unless we are playing soccer! I don't have months to spend with them like before unfortunately.

The goals for this trip are to see everyone again first and foremost. I had been to Rwanda 12 consecutive years prior to the pandemic. Now it has been three years since I have seen everyone! And now I am bringing a group of visitors as well. I hope the trip leaves lasting impressions on the kids and visitors alike. We plan on bringing lots of donations for the kids, teaching classes, understanding their current circumstances better, sharing our experiences, and we plan on bringing them on a special field trip outside of the city that many of them have never or barely ever left. I also will run a marathon on Thursday 2/9/23. The run will be in honor of all our years of running and will be another statement of my commitment to the kids. I may be joined, I may not. I surely am not expecting it.

So if you got through all of that, here are the details.

My Rwanda Trip -

2/3/23 through 2/12/23

Marathon on 2/9/23 tentatively

Goal - $15,000

Donations go towards - Running costs and school fees for 2023 and 2024. Running costs take care of everything such as food, utilities, supplies, medical expenses, etc.

Who are the kids? - We have a home for street kids in Rwanda. Some are orphans and others have family that are not capable of taking care of them. Regardless, the kids are taken care of as if they are Evode and Becky's own. Evode and Becky are married and live at home with kids serving as the father and mother figures.

HOW CAN YOU HELP?

Monetary donations are the most helpful as much as it isn't fun to admit. But if you can or you can't, sharing this link to as many people as you think would want to help is a 2nd best. Please reach out to me with any questions you may have. I love talking about the kids when folks want to open up. As always, I like to say that anything is everything when it comes to helping.

Lastly, are you looking to join us one day in Rwanda? This trip is hopefully a starting point to continuing Run the 1 like this for years to come. After the trip, I will write about how it all went and will hopefully set a future date that folks can set their calendars to and plan for accordingly if they want to join me.

Lastly, lastly,

if you are still here, Thank you so much and much love and gratitude. More than I can ever properly display. And if I didn't state it above, these kids are amazing and I could never allow them to have to go back to the streets without an effort. Thanks for caring for them.

KOMERA (Be Strong)

Shaun Sullivan (Sully)

Hey everyone,

My name is Shaun. I have been volunteering with Ubaka U Rwanda since 2010. Ubaka is led by Evode and Becky who met while they were  working with street children in Rwanda. The two fell in love, married, and have been bringing street children into their home and treating them as family ever since. Some of these children need help working things out with their family while others have nobody or place they can go to. Years ago, I would spend winters in Rwanda when I was through my seasons fighting wildfires out west. I cherished every minute with the kids and family and have spent years of my life with them. I used to say that I wouldn't be able to live with myself if they had to go back to the street because we could not provide for them. It's that mentality that motivated me to fundraise for them stateside.

Back in 2011, a few of us from The Arroyo Grande Hotshots walked 230 miles in a week to raise money for the kids. After that, the whole gang got into it and for years before COVID, we called it Run the 1. We would run miles relay style up and down the California coast. Some people ran 1 mile, others ran 50+, and everything in between. And by doing so, we raised hundreds of thousands of dollars over the years for the kids. The money would go towards building their current home, school fees, medical bills, and simply helping to keep the lights on.

I didn't bother folks last year. Thanks to our sponsors and responsible management, our home of (former) street children maintained well during the height of the pandemic. Sadly I have not been back to Rwanda, California, or anywhere away from my home yet. I miss everyone dearly. However, enough time has passed where I must do something to try and raise some funds for our kids. Our next year's school fees will be due, and our running costs have been massively in flux due to the pandemic and nature's way of shaking things up.https://www.outdoorproject.com/united-states/new-hampshire/pemigewasset-loop 

 

Tentatively, on November 10th, you may find me running the Pemi Loop in the White Mountains of NH. This will be my first time ever attempting the 30+ mile adventure with 10,000 + of elevation gain.  Considering the weather, this could be moved around. As I write this, this is a solo adventure. However every year Run the 1 has gone on, our kids typically have ran with us from afar, as have other supporters not physically with us that day. So we shall see! I will give more updates as the time goes on. Historically, we have reached the $15,000 mark for donations. We would be grateful for even $15 during this challenging time. Thank you to all those who read this and already knew everything I was trying to convey. I wish we could share this altogether in person. Always in heart, though. And to those just learning, thanks for any help at all in forms of donations, sharing, and great energy.

 

Gratitude,

Shaun (Sully)