Art for Gorillas

Category: Art of Conservation (AoC) | Date: Oct 29 2009 | By: Julie

AoC’s Parents as Partners Open House at Rushubi Primary School.
All photos courtesy of Molly Feltner.

Wow, oh wow, we had a great turn out at our second open house! We didn’t even offer (nor will we ever) banana beer or per diems!

A future student? We are hopeful that this young child’s brother or sister–who was an AoC student, now a ‘graduate’–is handing down lessons to her such as the basic habits of personal hygiene, respect for oneself and others, and a sense of wonderment about the world they live in.

Gifts were given to students who received top marks on the final exam, who had perfect class attendance, and for putting forth exemplary effort throughout the school year. The woman pictured above, on the far right, stands proud after her daughter receives an award in all three categories.

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After Dative’s poignant letter she read aloud, I gave her a huge hug.

The teamwork of Eric, Innocent, Molly, Valerie, Phocas, Amahoro Tours driver Emmanuel and assistant Hassan, teachers, and students was remarkable. We simply can’t do what we’ve been trying to do if not for the commitment of this dedicated group of people.

Tags: children, conservation, education, environment, parents, rwanda

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Category: Art of Conservation (AoC) | Date: Oct 26 2009 | By: Julie

All photos courtesy of Molly Feltner. Manirabizi’s mother was the first parent to show up with her child at Nyabitsinde Primary School for Art of Conservation’s Parents as Partners Open House. We invited her into Manirabizi’s AoC classroom to begin looking through an envelope of the art work he had done throughout the year.

If only one parent of one of our 50 students show up–I thought to myself–then AoC’s team effort would seem worth every moment. It was great to see Manirabizi’s mother responding to her son’s work.

Next arrived Nyiranjijuke and her mother.

As the classroom fills with students and parents, Innocent directs the group to take the time to look through the children’s work and around the classroom at the Word Wall, maps, artwork. Everyone enjoys snacks and juice.

This photograph illustrates so much of what we’ve been hoping for… communication.

I nearly melt listening to Manirabizi’s poem he wrote in honor of his ‘other’ parent, me. With concentrated effort, he recited his poem aloud in English with Innocent translating in Kinyarwanda. This is his poem.

Thank You Our Parent
Let us give our thanks
For our parent
Who loves us children.
Dear teacher parent,
You help us all sides!
You give us all skills.
You give us knowledge.
Not only knowledge
But also school materials.
You help us about tourism
From you, I know our country’s capital
Kigali.
From you I am good at art.
Of course, wherever I go,
Never forget you!
My name is Manirabizi. P. 5, Nyabitsinde Primary School. Thank you again.

Tags: Africa, education, parents, partners, rwanda

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