Bridge to Rwanda Crosses to St. X
Her nation is landlocked in Africa, making food is difficult to import and expensive to put on tables. Her nation reels from genocide and has heavy population losses because of AIDS.
Still, Franciscan nun Sr. Pat Mukanyonga of Rwanda labors in hope and faith.
“She’s amazing,” said St. Xavier High School religion teacher Lora Pateras. “I met her about five years ago and from the moment I met her I felt like I was in the presence of a saint. She’s been called the Mother Theresa of Rwanda. She got away and survived the genocide, but she saw these children starving and said she had to go back and care for them.”
Sr. Pat visited St. X Nov. 11, a guest of the speaker’s bureau. Her charity, Bridge to Rwanda, will be the recipient of the school’s mission collection Nov. 18. Bridge to Rwanda cares for about 200 children left orphaned as a result of the Rwandan genocide. Sr. Pat’s talk was an opportunity to learn about the atrocities of discrimination, prejudice, and violence, and see the lasting consequences of these atrocities.
“She’s providing the necessities of life, not just food, shelter and clothing, but education and medical care, too,” Pateras said. “It’s $400 a year for one kid to go to secondary school; 15 of her 200 kids are in that age group. They go through about 70 pounds of rice per day at the orphanage. All the expenses add up and it would be great for our community to be able to help this cause.”
In addition to Sr. Pat, Tom Blankenmeyer (’74) was part of the presentation, speaking on behalf of Engineers Without Borders. He has been to Rwanda and helped design water retention systems for villages in desperate need.
“Study hard,” Sr. Pat advised the students. “In the future I hope you are one who makes decisions and you will be somebody who will free the whole world.”
For more information on Sr. Pat, visit www.sisterpat.com.