Talking Point: Running for a cause

Andre Okenge is the founder of the Ejo Heza Project, an NGO that supports street people in Rwanda. He is a Karataker, acrobat and athlete. Presently in the country from Canada where the project is based, he is organizing a marathon run to raise awareness and funds for the project. QN: What is Ejo Heza? ANS: Ejo Heza’s main mandate is to help street kids in Rwanda out of destitution and into a new life. As we all know, in Africa, millions of kids who should be tomorrow’s leaders are suffering on the streets. We help the kids through non-cash donations like sports and music equipment and other tools. QN: Tell us about Andre the sportsman. ANS: I was born a footballer like most African boys. At the age of 12, I joined karate. I went to a karate club in Congo for training. I was born on the border, so I experienced life on both sides. It is my sister who encouraged me to take up karate after noticing my interest in sports. I was doing different sports every day of the week. Mondays and Wednesdays were for karate, while Tuesdays and Thursdays were for acrobatics and gymnastics. When I attained enough skills, I started my own gymnastics and acrobatics club in Gisenyi. Up to today, people there still call me maitre (master). Karate is about self-defense, that’s why I like it. You use your hands, body and feet, but most importantly the brain, because it’s about strategy. You learn the virtue of patience, to the extent that anyone can poke your eye and you won’t react. Karate teaches you to be patient, simple and humble. It’s not violent, just competitive. QN: How did a sportsman end up in charity? ANS: That’s a long story. The idea came to me while in Canada, where I worked for a company that supplies sports timing equipment. I had already been an athlete in Belgium, where I first went after leaving Rwanda in 2000. So even with the new job, I still kept running. One day, I encountered a Canadian cancer victim called Terry Fox running on one leg to raise awareness about the disease. He was supposed to run around the country (Canada) on that one leg. Immediately, I decided that I wanted to do something charitable like Terry. In Rwanda, there were these people called mayibobo (street kids) lining the streets of Kigali. After seeing what Terry Fox was doing for the cancer cause, I wanted to do something for these street kids back home. At that time I was coaching the Ottawa Rwanda Soccer Team, made up of Rwandans in Ottawa, Canada. I shared the idea with the team, and luckily there was someone with the same idea in the team.” QN: What do you plan to do during your stay in Rwanda? ANS: We are organizing a national marathon for next month, to raise money and awareness for street people. Anybody who think the idea is good can also help by being a part of the marathon. The idea is to have a marathon every day, for 20 days. As a sportsman, that’s my thinking, because I don’t have enough money myself for the cause. We plan to do it progressively every year. For next year, we could run for genocide survivors or another disadvantaged lot. Initially I was supposed to run all by myself, but there are other athletes who have expressed interest, like Mathias Ntawurikura, and Joseph Nsengiyunva. The starting date is May 13, in Kigali.