Resolutions Realized

Bon Année!!! The New Year is a time of change, a time when we make resolutions and often stray from those optimistic intentions.  The community in Kandale has remained resolute and continues to nurture the progress that has been made these past several years. The vegetable garden is maintained, the flour grinder continues to process grains, saplings emerge in the wild area, teachers prepare new lessons, students clamor for new ideas and stay in practice for the next soccer match

By the time this Communiqué goes out, Colette will have arrived in the Democratic Republic of Congo. This visit will be an extended one with many trips to Kandale. 

In keeping with the New Year's resolutions of the REVE Kandale Foundation, Colette’s first order of business will be to transport the new solar powered water pump to Kandale. The pump arrived in the Kinshasa airport on Thursday and Colette is presently coordinating the on site construction with a variety of individuals. 

The rainy season is waning and the people of Kandale are collecting stones to house the new pump. It is a labor of love, not unlike the line in “Field of Dreams”,” If you build it they will come.” The pile is a symbol of optimism. Everyone remembers the thrill of seeing water gushing from the ground last spring when the pump was first installed.

In the months ahead the Communiqué will continue to keep you informed of the progress being made with many brilliant photos, of course.

Water Water Everywhere

Like many places across the globe, Kandale has been inundated with rain and flooding. The cisterns are full, but it is not potable water unless you filter it and boil it. People still need to make the trek down to the spring for drinking water. Unfortunately, the path has become treacherous due to the trail being washed out and becoming muddy. Large tree roots are now exposed and the sand near the water source has turned into quicksand. The community has been doing an excellent job organizing itself and trying to shore up the path. The head preacher called everyone together to plead with them not to let their children descend into the valley.  

Presently there are no immediate solutions. Other access to water is 5 – 8 kilometers away in neighboring villages and there is some discussion about using bicycles in a ‘bicycle’ brigade to carry water from those towns. However, the challenge in making this happen, is finding enough bicycles locally to hire and to negotiate an affordable fee with bicycle owners to make it affordable for everyone, especially elderly people with no income.

Presently there are no immediate solutions. Other access to water is 5 – 8 kilometers away in neighboring villages and there is some discussion about using bicycles in a ‘bicycle’ brigade to carry water from those towns. However, the challenge in making this happen, is finding enough bicycles locally to hire and to negotiate an affordable fee with bicycle owners to make it affordable for everyone, especially elderly people with no income.

The REVE Kandale Board has been meeting and discussing the need for providing a stable source of drinking water for the community. It is presently the number one concern. They are communicating with other organizations with expertise in water projects such as Water Mission to determine the best approach to drill and create a system to withdraw the water.  All these plans take a great deal of time and money to organize and enact.

Recently Colette has organized a reading, writing and basic mathematics course for people who never had the opportunity to attend school.  The group is called ‘AMI DU LIVRE’ or Book Lovers. The group meets to look at books in the library and play vocabulary hunting games as a way to promote reading and a love of books. This is a way to normalize reading which has not been part of the general culture.  Market Day has created the desire for people to be able to read and write price tags, to take orders, to make plans, and to learn how to tally up the day’s earnings. 

In a town with five languages, Kipende, Kikongo, French, Kilunda, and Lingala, it is important to return to basic language skills. It is Colette’s intention for people to gather in the evenings and practice these basic math and language skills. There have been several meetings so far, one of which Colette attended via Zoom. The third module of ABCD is focusing on microfinance and together with these lessons, the community will become more empowered.

Happy New Year!!!

Munanyi wabonga !!!
or Happy New Year !!! in Kipende.

Mama Tumba, Head of Tree Care and Deputy Custodian

A primary school student extending his reach to learn a third language.

The New Year is a time to look toward the future and to take stock of the past. Often, it all comes down to the simple things, the successes, the challenges... For the people of Kandale, it is putting glass in the windows of the primary school and latches on the doors, and building stairs leading up to the open doorways.  The formidable task of building the walls and constructing the roof has come and gone. Teachers can now focus on the task of educating the new minds that are sitting before them and not worry about goats jumping through the open windows. 

REVE Kandale Staff Members with Steve from Kikwit and Macaire from Burkina Faso shaking hands

In the garden the children are being taught the basic principles of economics and supply and demand. It is the rainy season, and the three cisterns are full of water, but in a few more months the trek down to the spring will resume, but that is still months away. Discussions continue on the best course of action for drilling for water. 

Economics 101 with veteran teachers  Khenda and Azita

Many of the crops have reached maturity and the grains can now be ground with the new flour grinders. Market Day is flourishing, and people are arriving from the surrounding areas to purchase produce and other goods that have appeared. With the lessons from the ABCD presentation, positive ideas for the community are shared from shaded gatherings to cooking pots. 

Glaziers installing glass in the Primary School windows

More and more areas have been lighted thanks to all the new solar panels and friends can linger a little longer in the evening and dream about the upcoming soccer tournament. The girls at school have a safe place to sleep and a new place to prepare their meals.

Papa Kitangwa is back in Kandale to provide sewing training.  He is checking all the machines one by one for a tune-up and making repairs where needed. So far, all the machines are in good shape, except for a few minor repairs. Once the machines have been looked over, he will meet with the Lycee leadership to set-up a training schedule for the coming year.

REVE Kandale Staff Members

Children see the changes and are beginning to feel connected to the larger world. It may not be a rapid change, but it is constant and positive. We truly thank you for all your support this past year. You have made a tremendous difference!

RKF Appeal - Water is Life

Dear Friends,

Clear, fresh water. Most of us take it for granted. In Kandale, fetching water is a necessary daily chore that every family faces. Imagine how your day would be different if you didn’t have clean water running from the tap.

Although water is plentiful in Kandale in nearby rivers and streams, collecting it requires a long, treacherous walk down and back up a steep embankment, sometimes several times a day, lugging 25-liter jugs of water. This chore is usually given to children, especially girls, and it eats away at their time for learning and for play, and negatively impacts their overall health and development.

During the past two years, REVE Kandale, with the support of various donors, purchased and installed three large cisterns that collect rainwater off the roof of the multi-purpose education center.

While the cisterns are a great help for part of the year, they do not provide drinking water and they are quickly emptied during the annual dry season.

In a recent survey, the head of nearly every Kandale household that participated said the family did not have enough water to meet daily needs. That is not surprising. Kandale residents use about 15 liters of water per day. The United Nations estimates that between 50 and 100 liters per person per day are needed to ensure that most basic needs are met. Americans use more than 300 liters per day. Further, and even more worrisome, every household said the lack of water impeded its ability to eat.

 Will you help us reach our goal to bring clean water to Kandale by installing a borehole and solar-powered pump? Your end of year donation will support the work of REVE Kandale and ensure clean water becomes a reality.

We are grateful to those of you who recently contributed to the success of REVE Kandale Foundation’s first ever online auction or donated already this year. Your support is a message of hope to everyone in Kandale.

Join us on this journey to support the vibrant and proud community of Kandale. It is a true partnership across continents and together we know we can make a difference.

 Sincerely,

Julie Martel
Board President

Reap What You Sow Pt. II

As if to coax Colette from the comfort of her tukul, the sound of beautiful hymns emanates from the church at 5 AM. Like the smell of fresh bread baking, the chords waft through the village and encourage the day to begin. As the morning light grows stronger and the church music recedes, birds begin to fill the branches of the mango and palm trees with their own melody. 

Colette anticipates the influx of morning greeters, but she must first endeavor to bathe in the chilly morning water. Last night, she recalled hearing some loud sounds outside of her tukul as though someone was stomping on the ground with heavy boots. She checked the time, and it was 2.30am. Several hours later when she emerged from her tukul, she shouted Chaud-Chaud’s name, who was busy sweeping away the leaves. She asked him if he knew what all the noise was during his rounds the previous night. Chaud-Chaud ran out of sight and quickly returned, proudly holding up a limp and very dead snake. It was small but still very dangerous. Colette jumped back and returned inside the tukul at the sight of this night villain. Chaud-Chaud hid his laugh and took the snake away, but not before Collette took a picture of it.

Down by the depot the flour grinders are turning the days grain into flour. Women are eagerly standing around to observe the process and share stories. A little ways off the masons are busy fitting in the window frames and trying to determine how to position the uppermost frames. In the Multi-Purpose Education Center the ABCD training has begun. ABCD or Asset Based Community Development, has returned to Kandale for its second module, or at least the first half of the second module. The focus of the second module was on Community Centered Development (CCD). There were many people in attendance, especially after word went out about how positive the first module had been.

The first module was centered around finding resources that already exist in the community and where there might be a need that is unfulfilled. The people of Kandale came up with an action plan and decided that the town needed a local market. There had been one many years ago, but there was too much intrusion by the local authorities, so it eventually faded away. Now, however, they are able to have Market Day every Wednesday and Friday, and it has been a big success. Even Colette's father brings avocados from his property and his sought after handmade rattles for sale. He loves Market Day. One of the big selling points for him is the opportunity to socialize and to buy things he wouldn't be able to find otherwise. Either way, Market Day brings him out and puts a big smile on his wise face.

The first part of the second module focused on the concept of a healthy community. Do the people have a role to play in their community or are they idle with no possibilities? They gathered in groups to review the indicators for a healthy community and to do evaluations. What issues are central to community growth? What is working? What does not? and why?

The community reflected upon these questions and one of the ideas they came up with was to hold another soccer tournament. They remembered the joy that everyone experienced and all the reconnections that happened with distant family and friends. It was a profound memory for everyone who attended. Many communities came together to watch their young people play. It was an opportunity to put aside differences, to heal and to reflect upon the many good things in life that they share. Now that COVID is not dictating everyone’s daily life, there is the ‘luxury’ to think beyond the moment to moment. So much has changed in Kandale since the last soccer match in June 2021 and everyone is eager to showcase all the improvements, the new classrooms, the girls’ dormitory with its lights, the growing forest, the internet and other business services. It could be a great opportunity for Market Day to expand beyond fruits and vegetables. There is so much potential.

Colette sensed a shift in the mentality of the townspeople, an actualization of sorts. The numerous programs happening in the town are emblematic of this change. What does development look like? REVE Kandale members have been trained to make bricks, to plant trees, to operate the flour grinders, and to run the Multi-Purpose Education Center with the internet and business center. The locally trained masons are building the classrooms and installing the window frames. A flourishing Market Day benefits all members of the community by supplementing their incomes and reinforcing the importance of community. The number of trips women and children make to fetch water has been reduced because of the installation of three large water cisterns. Now that several new large classrooms have been constructed, the children are educated in a safe, clean, and nurturing environment. Solar panels have brought light to the health center, the Multi-Purpose Education Center, the girl’s dormitory, and is even powering the internet. These are all tangible experiences for the community, and it is being implemented by local people.

Both water assessors, John Nge from Kinshasa and Father Muvuma, the second crew from Kikwit, made assessments for a water pump system in Kandale. They both agreed that it is possible to reach water at a depth of about 100 - 120 meters (or 330 – 400 ft.) It is early days still, but whether solar power can be used to draw the water from such a depth has not yet been determined. There is still a tremendous amount of work to be evaluated, but this is positive news. In the weeks ahead The REVE Kandale Foundation will be envisioning what a water pump system in Kandale will look like and how to pay for it.

A Dr. Gishiya Methode arrived in Kandale with COVID vaccinations. He works for an NGO in Kikwit. He said that he had heard about the many things that have been happening in Kandale and Colette eagerly took him on a tour. On their walk through the forest, they came across some fruit on a tree and Dr. Methode picked several of the fruit and ate them. Colette was taken aback as no one in Kandale had eaten them before and this from a woman who thinks termites are a delicacy. 

The caterpillar harvest was very good this year and they were in abundance in the market. One afternoon Colette was called to hurry over to the girls’ dormitory with her camera. The chaperone and the girls came across an antelope who was gingerly inspecting one of the buildings. Antelopes have not been seen near the town in many years. She did not get there in time to see the creature, but she was pleased when she learned that the children shooed it back into the forest instead of looking for their bows and arrows to secure the evenings meal. Things are changing...for the better. 

Elementary school students are going on a field trip. With all the new development in Kandale, students are being taken on a tour of the library and internet, the flour grinders and garden. What do you want to be when you grow up? Engineer, mason, gardener, electrician? The possibilities continue to grow.

Donatien Katoko Mputu, fondly nicknamed Doyen, passed away abruptly after arriving home from his chores at the Multi-Purpose Education Center. He will be deeply missed. 

Doyen was generous with his affections and time, and everyone benefited from his even-handedness and unselfishness. He gave plenty of it to everyone especially me. He has been an unfaltering presence in all the good work that has happened these many years in Kandale whether it has been carrying rocks from the Kwilu river, nurturing the youth of the community or ensuring all the construction materials for the many REVE projects are kept safe. He has been a source of constancy and a passionate heart for all the positive change in Kandale. He was a patient listener. He never raised his voice, but he knew how to speak with authority and how to get the message across. He started with REVE Kandale from its inception and his engagement and dedication have never wavered. He was the keeper of all the keys to the REVE Kandale office, Tukuls, depot, dorms, etc. and he knew by heart where everything was kept. But most importantly, he was my beloved uncle, my mother’s younger brother. I will deeply miss him. He will be very difficult to replace and presently the community is trying to find a trustworthy person to keep the keys and to be an honest custodian like Doyen had been.

We have decided to split the responsibility among all the staff, each fulfilling a part of Doyen’s daily responsibilities. This is a way for all of us to continue to connect to Doyen and hold him in our hearts.

Thank you for all the sympathies and prayers. - Colette

Reap What You Sow Pt. I

At 5 AM the church bell rings in the center of Kandale. The pastor is bidding his flock to come for the early morning mass. For Colette this is a seminal memory, a constant in her many years of growing up in Kandale and now a constant for when she returns. Despite living in Bethesda, Maryland with her husband, her heart tells her she is home. With all the challenges of transportation and all the work that awaits her, her spirit is renewed once again. The morning is sacred as the sun will be up soon. The birds are filling the tree branches with their musical presence and Chaud-Chaud has not yet started to sweep under the bamboo trees. Colette remains under the warm covers and takes time to imagine the day. She is avoiding the cold bath that awaits her.

As with all her trips to DRC it is a journey of many steps. Plans are laid out well in advance, and still the Congo intercedes. On her last visit the technician from Uganda indicated that he was unable to bring the inverter on the flight to Kinshasa. This required an extensive search for another source for an inverter in Kinshasa. Unfortunately, the one that was purchased was not designed for the current produced by the solar panels. Now three months later, the correct inverter is on the truck and heading to Kandale along with several new solar panels to upgrade the existing ones, a second backup grinder that recently cleared customs, batteries to store the energy and two local technicians who were hired to do a water feasibility study. In addition, Colette met with John Fumana the Executive Coordinator of Africa Inter-Mennonite Mission (AIMM) for Africa. Matt Kunga is the facilitator for the second module of ABCD and will be traveling to Kandale very soon to present the training on Community Centered Development (CCD).

With a stopover in Kikwit, Colette was able to check in on the progress of the metal frame window construction at ITPK for the Kandale primary school. The order was placed in May and they are close to being finished. Colette also stopped by a convent to inspect a water drilling project just outside of Kikwit. One of the technicians who implemented that project would be making the trip to Kandale and conduct an assessment for drilling for water.

Upon arrival in Kandale, the second grinder was installed along with the converter. In the early afternoon the shade begins to creep in on the solar panels and reduce the power capacity, so it was determined to run the grinders from 9 until 2. At 1:30 PM, the operator sounds the whistle to warn that the grinder will close soon. Individuals were trained in the operation of the grinders and in no time, there was a long line of people eager to grind their millet and cassava, and chafe the rice.

A system was developed in that the local team leader, Merveille, would inspect the grain to ensure there were no stones or metal inadvertently mixed in with the grain. These items would seriously damage the mechanisms inside the grinder. They would then receive a red stamp to present to the grinders. Time quickly ran out before everyone was able to grind their grains before 2PM. Those who were unable to grind on that day were given receipts for the following day. Colette was amazed by the cooperative spirit from everyone involved.

Women also claim that the quality of flour from the new grinder is much better. People are very enthusiastic about the new grinders as they used to have to go to a local diesel grinder miles away and there was no guarantee that after making the journey, there would be enough fuel to grind the grains. It was even rumored that the local diesel-grinder had a secret compartment inside the grinder that held back a large portion of the flour, only to have it resold at the market later. Pounding the grains into flour by hand is one of the more labor-intensive jobs that the women of the community do, that and carrying water up from the spring. With the new grinders, women now have more time available to invest in other projects or spend time with their families.

Shortly after the grinders were up and running, the long-awaited metal window frames and glass, arrived by truck in Kandale, 5 months after the order was placed. There was a delay due to the challenges of transferring money to Congo through Western Union which has proven to be the only way to go. Including the window frames and glass, the truck was loaded up with cement, wood and other construction materials. The truck was unpacked, and local masons began laying out the frames for installation in the primary school. They delivered a total of 113 window frames, 56 for the top, 49 for the lower windows and 2 for each side of the two buildings. The frames were specifically designed to protect the glass and deter potential thieves. Once the local masons finish fitting the metal frame, a specialist will come from Kikwit to fit in the glass. With the installation of the windows the classrooms are one step away from being completed. All that remains is to paint the two buildings.

We are grateful to our donors both big and small for giving the children of Kandale a safe and protective learning environment.

Build it and They Will Come

The Multi-Purpose Education Center, newly constructed with a fresh coat of paint in 2018.

In 1995, while on a return visit to Kandale, Colette was taken on a tour of the village and the school. The classrooms were barely functioning as spaces of learning and were in dire need of improvement. To the credit of the local community, they had constructed a long building that was designed to act as a classroom and to serve as a location to take the National Exams. Regrettably, the roof leaked and taking exams was somewhat problematic if it rained. As fate would have it, that night there was a terrible storm and most of the classrooms were flattened along with the longer classroom.

For Colette, it was a call to action. Over the next several years the community mobilized and began to raise awareness about improvements that needed to happen with the school. In 2010 members of the community began clearing the site, and collecting rocks, tin sheets, and money to build new classrooms, but they lacked the engineering skills to build a dependable school. In 2011 a fundraising campaign called: “Operation 1000 Toles Pour Kandale” (Operation Roof For Kandale), was successfully launched and the community in Kandale, together with its members and sympathizers beyond Kandale's borders, raised $22,000. In 2012, they began work on six classrooms for the primary school. The community started making cement bricks with brick forms, but the process was very time consuming as it required several days for the bricks to cure and then there was the constant battle with the weather and goats stepping on wet bricks. Eventually six classrooms were built and are still standing. 

To construct buildings and classrooms with cement bricks was not cost effective. The Board of REVE Kandale Foundation learned about an alternative and more economic way to make bricks with a brick making machine that used a mixture of locally sourced clay and cement. This was the basis for the first RKF campaign in 2017 to raise $35,000 to purchase a brick making machine and have it delivered from Belgium to Kandale along with all the building materials. 

By 2018 the crew in Kandale had made 17,000 bricks to build the first structure,

The Multi-Purpose Education Center. 

The Multi-Purpose Education Center with the adjacent water tanks.

The Multi-Purpose Education Center now sits at the center of a growing network of buildings and structures that include the primary school, the growing high school, the girls’ dormitories and the tukuls. The building serves as the primary space for students to take exams, for the community to hold regular meetings and a space to entrust the growing library, the very popular sewing program, the solar panels and access to the internet. Presently the electricity generated by the solar panels lights the various rooms and offices. In addition, the solar panels provide power to run the laptops and connect to the internet. People come great distances to use the internet to communicate with loved ones in Angola, Kinshasa, and internationally.  Colette communicates from Washington DC on a regular basis with members in Kandale using email, Facebook, Zoom and WhatsApp.  Even the roof collects rainwater to fill the three large tanks that sit adjacent to the building to help alleviate the water crisis in Kandale. The lights have changed the culture of the community by allowing people to stay up late to communicate, read from the growing library or even study for their classes.

The internal spaces of the MPEC include a large community gathering space, , a growing library and access to the internet.

Without a place to take their national exam, students in Kandale had to walk 60 kilometers to Gungu and find a host family to stay with while they took the national exam. This obstacle contributed to an increased number of dropouts, especially for seniors as they could not afford the added costs for this endeavor.

Students lining up at the MPEC to take their Exam d'Etat.

Students anxiously awaiting for the exam to begin.

On Friday July 19th Le Exam d’Etat or the State Exam was held. Of the 252 students prepared to take the exam, 21 were unable to come up with the exam fees of 50,000 Congolese francs or $25 and they will have to repeat the year if their financial situation improves.  The exams were late due to COVID, and it will prevent  many of the students from being able  to go and collect caterpillars this year.  The sale of the caterpillars is often used to help pay for their school fees and buy necessary school supplies. Delegates arrived from various cities, Mukedi, Idiofa, and Kikwit, to monitor the exam.  Normally the idea of leaving the city to go monitor exams in the rural countryside was deemed a form of punishment. This year, however, with adequate housing, and rooms for typing, photocopying, internet access and paid phone services, it was viewed as a retreat from the hectic life of the city. Several of the delegates gave the new facilities high praise. 

The new kitchen for the girls dormitory, under construction.  (Now completed)

Colette will be leaving at the end of August to reconnect with the team from Burkina Faso to finish the installation of the new inverter and to bring flour grinders. In addition, the solar panels that were installed by Dr. Karl Klontz, will be upgraded. Presently, the lights at the girl’s dormitories work on motion detectors which allow the girls to go to the outhouse at night without being disturbed by snakes. It gives them peace of mind and they sleep better knowing that the lights are helping to keep them safe. Colette will be overseeing the completion of the work on the windows and the painting of the primary school. She will be hosting the ABCD training Module 2, on community-centered development.  In addition, they will be bringing many new books to replenish the library and especially the books that are needed for the National Curriculum. There will be two copies, one for the students and one for the teachers. 

These baby owls were rescued from one of the buildings in the village. The papa owl and mama owl are still feeding them. The team has tied the little birds gently to keep them from walking out where there are many predators. Owls are considered bad luck creatures and should not to be touched. The fact that they are being protected is a testimony to the success of our campaign for tree planting and environment protection since 2010, in Kandale.

We wish Colette a safe and productive journey. Kwenda mbote Mama!

Kandale Zoom Update - June 22, 2022 @7pm EDT

Join Colette Ramm, co-founder, and Julie Martel, Board President, for a lively discussion about recent developments in Kandale. Upon their recent return from the Congo, they will report on the impact of several projects including school construction, rehabilitation of the girl’s dormitory, installation of the grain mills, and more! There will be photos and time for questions.

The update will take place on Wednesday, June 22nd at 7 PM EDT. This is a free event. Here is the link to the event: ZOOM LINK HERE.

We will also send a reminder with the link the day before the update. For more information or questions, contact board member Peter Lane. Email: peter.lane100@gmail.com.

Thank you.
The Board

Seeing is Believing

It has been a struggle to title this Communiqué as it embraces many varied aspects of the work that is being done in Kandale. The initial title was ‘Perseverance’ to acknowledge the constant challenges the REVE Kandale community faces with every step of the journey, whether it is bringing a viable source of water to the village, building classrooms for the youth, developing jobs programs, empowering the young women of the community, nourishing the wild places and domesticated gardens, funding the soccer teams, and generating electricity to provide lights for the girl’s dormitories, the maternity and to power the internet and the new flour grinder. The more recent title was ‘Rendez-Vous’ to recognize the necessary networks and communities that have grown stronger these many years and without which REVE Kandale would not have the success that it does. ‘Seeing is Believing’ refers to the actual distribution of reading glasses to the community and, in the metaphoric sense, to the persistence of the vision that has brought so much positive change to the people of Kandale, despite the global difficulties due to the Covid virus.

This past April, Julie Martel, President of the Board of Directors for REVE Kandale Foundation, joined Colette on her return to Kandale. At the heart of their journey was the desire to install 10 new solar panels and a flour grinder in the newly renovated Depot. Colette and the Board put together an extensive itinerary to evaluate the projects underway. The road had other plans.

Julie is no stranger to life in the Congo as she was a fish culture volunteer for the Peace Corps from 1982 – 1984, and Regional Director for Bandundu through 1985. Her previous visit to Kandale was three years earlier and she eagerly looked forward to seeing the changes that had taken place. Upon arriving in Kinshasa, Colette and Julie met up with the three individuals who would be installing the flour grinder. Eric Passoukwene Minoungou and Macaire Nongueb-Zanga are representatives of Green Energy from Burkina Faso who had developed the technology to power a grinder with solar energy. Robert Bakulumpagi came from Uganda to install lights at the newly renovated girls dormitory and to install the inverter to transfer the current from DC to AC at the Depot to power the flour grinder. Unfortunately, Robert Bakulumpagi was unable to bring the inverter with him from Uganda and this team forced to locate one in Kinshasa.

The journey from Kinshasa to Kandale was arduous to say the least. The two vehicles were loaded down with 10 solar panels, 4 large batteries, weighing over 80 kg each, 4 smaller batteries, a mechanical flour grinder, an inverter, supplies and several passengers including the gentlemen from Burkina Faso and Uganda. Colette and the drivers hungrily thought of the grilled goat and chicken that awaited them in Kenge, halfway between Kinshasa and Kikwit. Normally the trip from Kinshasa to Kikwit would take 8 hours on the paved road, but this leg of the trip took over 21 hours because of four flat tires, heavy rain and an accident with a big truck. Fortunately no one was injured in the accident. After repairs had been completed in Kikwit the second leg of the trip from Kikwit to Kandale began along unpaved roads. Once again there was a major blow out and a broken axle that required mechanics to come from Kikwit to make further repairs. This delayed the trip by another seven hours. The people in Kandale waited anxiously for Colette and Julie's arrival. Without cell phone service there was no way to inform them of the difficulties en route.

Colette and Julie arrived with much fanfare and celebration, with long lines of people bringing 7 goats, sheep, firewood, cassava, millet, avocados, palm wine, along with lots of singing and dancing. The following day people were hoping the celebration would continue, but work took priority. The list of activities was extensive. In addition to the installation of the solar panels and the flour grinder, the community was looking forward to celebrating the opening of the girl’s dormitories.

Unfortunately, the inverter that was purchased in Kinshasa was not designed for the energy generated by the solar panels and the grinder did not work to its full potential. This will require Colette to return in late August to supplement the materials and get the grinder up and running.

Two additional girl’s dormitories have been completed with cement floors, a kitchen, and working lights because of the new solar panels, thanks to Saint Mark Presbyterian Church and Dr. Karl Klontz. This brings the capacity for housing students up to 80. The donated hygiene kits from Days for Girls Rockville, Md Chapter and Beverly Graham in California, were distributed by Colette who provided instructions on how to use them.

After the distribution of kits and official inauguration of the dormitory, a large celebration took place including a feast and dancing. The girls were so excited about moving into the dormitory and receiving mattresses, bedsheets, uniforms, mirrors, and kits that they stayed up all night singing and chatting, a luxury for them as they do not normally have the time due to the many chores required of them at home. They also took time to write letters to the donors thanking them for the packages.

Here is a view of one of the dormitories. Inside the girls are organizing their beds.

Here is a view of the dormitories during the day and with all the lights on from the newly installed solar panels.

Simultaneously a training program was underway in the Multi-Purpose Education Center, developed by the Centre de Recherche aux Initiatives de Développement, entitled, ABCD or Asset Based Community Development. The focus of ABCD is to empower communities to evaluate what resources they already have and build upon those strengths. There were representatives from 10 or more communities from as far as 70 miles away. The presenters gave many days of lectures and activities to engage the attendees. The presentation was held in French, Kikongo, Kipende, and Chiluba. People left the event brimming with enthusiasm for the possibilities available to them.

Many other projects continue to move forward. The primary school is nearly completed and is waiting for windows, paint, and permanent stairs to enter the buildings. All the new seven classrooms were furnished by a generous donation in memory of the late Melissa Kruppa, a teacher from Conneticut, who passed away from Covid. The training of community members in construction techniques continues and the students wear their helmets even when not training as a source of pride or possibly as a new fashion statement. In the Multi-Purpose Education Center, the spaces have been reorganized. The library has a new location to facilitate the use of the books. A room has been dedicated for computer training and accessing the internet.

ulie walked the perimeter of the forest and was completely impressed by the health and size of the natural space. Evidently the community deeply respects this environment and the need to protect it against trespassers. As in previous Communiqués, the need for water is pivotal to all activities in Kandale. Julie walked down the precarious route to the spring with some of the children to gain firsthand knowledge of the difficulties involved in providing water for drinking, cooking, and washing. It is a formidable task especially when one considers that children are carrying several gallons each trip.

Upon reflection Julie described her visit as though drinking through a firehose. There was a constant barrage of new experiences; an unending calendar of meetings to assess the many projects underway; and the need to anticipate how those projects will progress over time. Julie remarked that it was such a luxury to simply sit back with Colette at the end of the day as the sun was setting, to take in the fresh air and marvel at how much is being accomplished. The evenings would come alive with beautiful birds singing and flitting from one tree to another to feed on the many berries from the blooming forest.

A Kipende saying: ‘’Tshiololo diana bembewa mulembe go.’’

Mulembe is a special basket made in the village for fishing. It is designed like a sieve with holes to let water out and keep fish in. Sometimes when you pull the mulembe out of the water all you hear is the sound of water dripping out and making a noise that sounds like ‘tshiolololo’ and you can wait until the end when water is out but there’s no fish just the tshiolololo sound. But do not give up on your mulembe because sometimes there’s a big fish despite the tshiolololo sound.

There are many more exciting stories about the trip that we cannot fit into this one Communiqué. We invite you on Wednesday evening, June 22, to join Colette and Julie via Zoom for a live conversation about their recent trip to the Congo and the ongoing progress in Kandale. Stay tuned for more details about this event which will be sent out right on the heels of this Communiqué. Please be our guest free of charge and attend the Zoom meeting. Registration information will follow.

We've come a long way, but there's still so much to do

As we launch this mid-year appeal for support for the Kandale community, it is a good time to take stock of how far we have come – and how far we have to go.

Let us say at the outset that we are grateful for the support of all our donors, as the people of Kandale have only been able to accomplish what they have with their help. As we often say, our Kandale friends have the determination and willpower to better the lives of all their children; the community simply lacks the financial resources.

We invite you to join our growing team of supporters and help the Kandale community realize its dreams of a better future. 

What have we achieved?

Over the past five years, the people of Kandale, with support of friends near and far, have reforested the landscape, bringing a plentiful supply of fruit and nutritious insects such as caterpillars.

They have built an education center that has taken on a vital role in community life, rebuilt dormitories to make it easier for girls to attend – and stay in – secondary school, and laid the foundation for a solid vocational program with an infusion of 40 sewing machines.

More recently, we have turned our attention to building capacity in Kandale to carry on important work: training residents in the construction trades and in maintaining a tree nursery to keep the reforestation program going and convening a workshop on community building from the ground up.

Where do we go from here?

There still exists a great need to expand the education infrastructure, and we will finish the new primary school this year. We also intend to establish a master plan for the secondary school complex, taking a pause in actual construction for the time being.

 And then there is the problem of water. The women of Kandale – along with school-age children — bear the brunt of fetching water from a natural spring located a couple of kilometers away down a steep ravine that can be hazardous during the long rainy season.

The need to haul water from far away is a crushing burden that robs women of productive work time and children of time they could spend in school or on their studies. The rainwater catchment system we have installed is not a long-term solution.

At a recent community meeting, the women identified the lack of easy access to water as the biggest problem facing the community. With that in mind, we will be working over the next year or two on a permanent solution – most likely a solar-powered pump to bring water from the natural spring to Kandale.

To accomplish all of this, we will need your continued support.

Our pledge is to put your money to the best use possible in Kandale, ensuring funds are spent wisely and responsibly. Will you donate today and continue your support for the vibrant and proud community of Kandale?

 This has been a true partnership across continents, and together we know we can make a difference.

 Sincerely,

Julie Martel
President, Board of Directors
REVE Kandale and REVE Kandale Foundation