Spoked to Ride’s Impact and (New) Mission for Kids in Congo

Thank you, Spoked to Ride participants!

The children of Kimwenza and the Live Beyond Words team would like to say THANK YOU for your incredible contribution in 2017! Spoked to Ride participants (you!) made a huge impact by supporting Live Beyond Words and the Kimwenza school project. The $4,000 given helped us significantly in meeting our fundraising goal.

In late 2017, we were able to start construction on a six-room schoolhouse for our partner orphanage in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Africa. Their school had collapsed and the students were learning in a pigpen. 72 orphans and 230 village children now have a space to learn.

302 children in song outside of the new schoolhouse. The tuition from village children attending school helps sustain the orphanage.

In Congo, education is a privilege not granted to all children and a privilege not generally given to orphans. There is no public education system, so without a parent or guardian to pay for school, children cannot attend. Our partner orphanage ensures that the orphans living there get a good education and a trade skill– equipping them to provide for their future families and working to break the cycle of poverty.

In February 2018, Nicole, a member of our Live Beyond Words team, went to spend time with the children of Kimwenza, train local teachers, and ensure that construction was running smoothly. The first three schoolrooms look great and the second three rooms are on track to be built when the rainy season is over.

Nicole with the children of Kimwenza.
Laura, an artist by trade, went with Nicole to DRC. She brought with her paintings to brighten the walls and organized the painting of the school exterior, making it child friendly and inviting.

In 2018, our goal is to install a water well for the children of Kimwenza. Recent flooding washed away their water supply piping. As of today, they have no sustainable clean water source.

Again, we say THANK YOU. Your contribution mattered greatly and had a huge impact on our organization and our partner orphanage. We are so very grateful for those of you who participated in Spoked to Ride in 2017 and we look forward to partnering with you again this year!

-- Tarra Carlson, President, Live Beyond Words