The First BE in the East
By Alex Bok and Miranda Hyslop-Garza
The first Eastern region Boys Excelling (BE) camp took place in Rwamagana at G.S. Gatagara in November. The camp had over 60 boys participate, including several who were visually impaired. The boys attended three classes a day for three days then could join in several activities planned for the afternoon. Each day a theme was presented in the classes – day one talked about leadership, day two was preventing HIV/AIDS and day three focused on gender issues. In classes, volunteer teachers tried their best to answer students’ amusing questions. As the week progressed, students became more open to new ideas and information.
After classes finished, students took a short break then picked an afternoon activity to join. The most popular activities were learning to bake bread, playing Ultimate Frisbee and learning the high-octane moves of modern dance.
An afternoon cursed with rain meant outdoor activities were moved indoors, and volunteers proved their adeptness at flexibility and change. One rainy day activity was particularly interesting – playing Pictionary and charades with the students. Several volunteers and facilitators went to help, but only one camper showed up to the activity. Needless to say, the six volunteers and one Rwandan facilitator made this one camper feel incredibly uncomfortable and also that we were all here for him. Although student turn-out was low for this activity, the volunteers and facilitators had a good time –
drawing large amounts of weapons to try to prompt the guessers to say “Arsenal soccer team.”
An afternoon cursed with rain meant outdoor activities were moved indoors, and volunteers proved their adeptness at flexibility and change. One rainy day activity was particularly interesting – playing Pictionary and charades with the students. Several volunteers and facilitators went to help, but only one camper showed up to the activity. Needless to say, the six volunteers and one Rwandan facilitator made this one camper feel incredibly uncomfortable and also that we were all here for him. Although student turn-out was low for this activity, the volunteers and facilitators had a good time –
drawing large amounts of weapons to try to prompt the guessers to say “Arsenal soccer team.”
At 7:00, dinner was on the table and the hungry eyes of 60 boys were felt. Guard your food. Although we wanted boys to meet as many different students as they could at dinner, trying to break up the bonds and friendships they had already made became a challenge. No matter what, best friends continued to sit by eachother instead of moving to a new table – but it also might have had something to do with the presence of akabanga at that certain table.
After dinner, there was another round of organized activities for each hero group. The first night each hero group wrote and performed a song. The group of Martin Luther King Jr. won for best song. The second night the volunteers and facilitators turned Gatagara into a carnival. The boys participated in a tug-of-war, face painting, rice sack races and other carnival games. The last night, we held a bonfire. This event is highly anticipated at BE and GLOW camps. Our bonfire was a place where students, facilitators and volunteers felt free to share success stories and literally burn away any failures or obstacles preventing success. The best part, however, was sharing American culture in the form of a smore after sharing our stories.
After dinner, there was another round of organized activities for each hero group. The first night each hero group wrote and performed a song. The group of Martin Luther King Jr. won for best song. The second night the volunteers and facilitators turned Gatagara into a carnival. The boys participated in a tug-of-war, face painting, rice sack races and other carnival games. The last night, we held a bonfire. This event is highly anticipated at BE and GLOW camps. Our bonfire was a place where students, facilitators and volunteers felt free to share success stories and literally burn away any failures or obstacles preventing success. The best part, however, was sharing American culture in the form of a smore after sharing our stories.
On the last day, we held closing ceremonies. Each hero group filed in to the main hall one at a time, shouting their group's sprit song and carrying a poster the boys designed. Then, Christina Titus’ group surprised her with a round of “Happy Birthday” and a cake baked during the afternoon activities. One student from each group made a short speech, either in English or Kinyarwanda, about BE Camp. Everyone prayed together, then lit a candle signifying the light ignited at BE Camp and to be passed on to others. To end the week, one of the visually-impaired boys sang “Silent Night” and played guitar.
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Photos By: Ian Allen, Health 4