After 14 years in Rwanda, American couple returns home with full hearts

It is a calling they answered with all their hearts but as they say, every great journey comes to an end, and that is what is happening to American couple Mike and Vicky Koch, who have been doing missionary work in Rwanda for the past fourteen years, but are now heading back home. The Kochs first arrived in Rwanda in July 2010, to join Rafiki Foundation Inc., working with Rafiki Village, a not-for-profit education institution established by Rosemary Jensen in 2009, to help raise and educate orphans and children from vulnerable households in Nyamata, Bugesera District. The Kochs were not new to Africa, having previously worked with the Rafiki Foundation in Malawi in 2002 and later in Zambia, in 2006, before moving to Rwanda. They’ve been married since 1972. For nearly a decade and a half, Vicky and Mike have called Rwanda home, forming a close-knit family with the children and staff at the village, which was officially launched by the First Lady, Jeannette Kagame, in February 2009. The First Lady had met Mrs Jensen during a conference in Kampala, Uganda and they became friends and she made a promise to support Rwanda’s development and education efforts by establishing Rafiki Village in Rwanda. After arriving in Rwanda, Mike served as the Village Administrator and Plant Manager while Vicky was the Village Headmaster and Music Teacher. Having served for 14 years, the couple has called time on their stay in Rwanda, but as they go, they carry indelible memories. “We've been with the Rafiki Foundation for 22 years, and we have been blessed to be in three different countries in Africa in those 22 years, but very blessed to be in Rwanda for the last 14 years,” said Mike in an interview with The New Times. For all these years, they’ve been living with children, many of them orphans at the Village. The centre started as an orphanage but later the government phased out orphanages in 2012, opting for a different approach of finding foster families for the children. Rafiki Village, which started with 78 children, transformed into an education institution, after the government found homes for some of the young people. However, those who were old enough were able to remain as boarding students, they retained the ones who were in secondary school. Mike and Vicky remained with 34 of the children, who they were taking care of, but today, as they leave Rwanda, only 20 of the 78 they started with remain and many of them are set to graduate. Many of them come from vulnerable households around Bugesera, which they are able to go visit during holidays but many prefer to remain at the village, which has all the boarding amenities they need in life and get all their basic needs. They all do go to their families or guardians during the school breaks. The village is more of a family where they live and coexist together as they learn. It is a kind of environment suitable for a child to grow in and Mike and Vicky have been at the forefront of ensuring that the school, which is mostly funded through well-wishers, keeps running and provides a safe space and environment for young people. Home away from home As they leave, the Kochs depart with hearts full of joy and a fulfilled mission, having helped to build something they believe will be sustained even as they go. They are thankful to the Government of Rwanda for making it possible for them. “We have been so blessed to be surrounded by like-minded people, people who have such a great joy in serving God, and serving the young people of the nation,” “We've had a very excellent relationship with the government and with the different people in the district. They've been very supportive and helpful,” says Mike. It’s been a journey littered with memories, started by friendship between the First Lady, Jeannette Kagame and Jensen. The two connected during a Conference of First Ladies in Kampala and discussed the need to address the challenge of orphans. Jensen, who is currently 95, founded Rafiki Foundation after her trip to Africa with the Bible Study Fellowship in Kenya, where she met an orphaned child who needed help and she decided to do something, and that's how Rwanda was chosen to be one of the places Rafiki would spread its wings. “We were in 10 countries. When we originally started, it was a home for orphans. There were many HIV/AIDS orphans around Africa and then we asked ourselves, where are they going to go to school?” recalls Vicky, explaining how they decided to go into classical Christian education. They worked with district officials to identify the orphans. (Most of the funding comes from the Rafiki Foundation in the U.S. which receives donations from individuals and churches.) In Rwanda, they also work with partner churches, the Anglican and the Presbyterian churches, which connect them to widows, whose products they export and sell in the U.S. The funds raised then provide the widows with income they can use for school fees and other expenses needed to live. They also have the Rafiki Institute of Classical Education (RICE), where they take post-graduate students to train them with teaching skills to teach others. As they depart, Vicky believes they’ve done their part to equip and power young Rwandans, most importantly doing it with Rwandans. “The people are wonderful. They have been passionate about education and children. All of our teachers are Rwandan, they're eager to serve, they serve with a whole heart and they love the kids,” “I think that's what I would take home from Rwanda. You love your children and you are passionate to serve and it's a great combination,” says Vicky. One of her greatest memories is when Rafiki Village had to close when the Covid-19 pandemic broke out in March 2020, just like other schools around the country, and they thought they would be back in two weeks. It took seven months. “Seven months later, we got the children back and it was a big celebration, not only on our side but on the children's side too, to be home,” she said. “It was amazing because they were so glad to be home. They looked at it as home,” adds Mike. Use your time on earth well As the Kochs head back to America, Vicky says they go with full hearts, that they have spent a better part of their life, doing God’s calling, taking care of children and restoring hope. “Your time on Earth is short. Use it wisely, serve God, and you will be amazed at what he can do,” says Vicky, as her parting shot. On his part, Mike says their desire is to leave behind a group of Godly young men and women who will serve their country with all their hearts and knowledge. “We want them to be highly educated, with great moral virtues and be able to go out and be servants to others in the country and teach other people,” adds Mike, who will continue to be the Rwanda Country director. Both of them will continue serving remotely. Emmanuella Mukanoheli, born in a remote part of Bugesera in December 2005, joined Rafiki Foundation Village on March 1, 2009, graduated recently and is awaiting to head to college. She is grateful for the education and care she received at the centre. Being God-fearing and having respect for others, regardless of who you are, are some of the most important virtues she says she learned at Rafiki. “I have also learnt to put my values in a certain order, based on what's most important, what's most beneficial for everyone,” says the 18-year-old, known in the village as ‘Muki’ Dadi Ishimwe was three and a half years old, living in Musenyi, Bugesera district, with his grandmother, who was taking care of him before he was adopted into Rafiki Village, where he grew up. Ishimwe, who recently graduated from senior six and is expected to join college, says as he heads out, he has learnt much about God and the gospel, which keeps him grounded and committed to the pursuit for wisdom and knowledge, all of which are enshrined in the curriculum they undertake. “What I most like about Rafiki is the pursuit of wisdom. Not only do we get knowledge, but we also learn how we can pursue wisdom that comes from God and that is the way to succeed in life,” says Ishimwe. He hopes to pursue a degree in computer science or mechanical engineering to be able to work in the tech industry and participate in building and developing cutting-edge science and technology in Rwanda. “Hopefully I can educate and empower the coming generations of Rwandans and mentor them in both the academic aspect and also the spiritual aspect,” says Ishimwe. As he plans to go out to study, most probably out of Rwanda, Ishimwe remains steadfast that the knowledge, skills, virtues and faith attained at Rafiki Village will safeguard him from temptations such as drugs and alcohol. As Mike and Vicky Koch head back home, Sarah MacMahon, who was transferred from Ethiopia Rafiki Village will be the Head Master while Martha Newton, who has been working with the home for the past 8 years, will be the Child Care Administrator.

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After 14 years in Rwanda, American couple returns home with full hearts