Mukarabe returns from a successful mission

Mukarabe returned from Uganda several days ago, tired but extremely satisfied about her intervention in Uganda. We can say: Mission accomplished!

But first of all, we want to say: THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU! To all of you who have supported us with your prayers, wonderful encouraging messages and financial support. Without you, this trip would have never been possible. Every step of the way Mukarabe in Uganda and me here covering the home front, we felt your prayers and support, and it fills our heart with joy to know that you all were part of Mukarabe's success in Uganda. Special thanks to our church THE LIGHT FELLOWSHIP and pastor Dave Hino for sacrificially supporting the mission.

A quick summary of the mission: After several months of heavy civil unrest in Burundi due to political turmoil produced by the President's unconstitutional run for a third presidential term in office, thousands of Burundians fled the country, crowding refugee camps in neighboring Tanzania, Rwanda and Uganda. The unrest hit home, as many of Mukarabe's family and their neighbors were in harms way, to the point where one nephew, Emery, narrowly escaped death being shot through both legs.

Over the course of the summer 2015, AMAHORO INTERNATIONAL aka the Makintos facilitated the escape of a large group of Burundians, many family members of Mukarabe, to neighboring Uganda. We were able to connect with pastor Alex Ojera from Bombo Pentecostal church, who gave them temporary shelter. The medical mission, organized every year by our other church , Peninsula Community Church under the leadership of Pastor Jim Welch and Dr. Dapo Popoola, was instrumental in providing urgent medical care, especially for Emery.

Mukarabe flew to Bombo, and through God's leading and some very powerful connections achieved the quasi impossible: Provide full legal refugee status for ALL our Burundian refugees within days, NOT YEARS!. They can now work, go to school, open businesses.

She connected with Ugandan government officials on the highest level, visited the biggest refugee camp in Uganda ( and probably in East Africa) named Nakivale in Mbarara (which houses between 400.000 and 600.000 refugees, with a projected occupancy of 800.000 for this fall), and made other very important contacts in Uganda. Thank you, Pastor Alex, for giving your love and support to the Burundian refugees, and logistical and spiritual guidance to Mukarabe's mission.

Seemingly there is no improvement of the situation in Burundi; the killings continue and especially young men are targeted by the regime, being accused of opposition and rebel activities. Thus we are anticipating the ranks of "our" refugees to steadily grow.

NEXT PHASE: Creation of the JOYFUL HOUSE OF REFUGE in Bombo , Uganda

Our plan is to build a House of refuge for Burundian and other refugees, where they can escape the sinister fate of refugees having to populate the camps run by the United Nations, where unemployment, violence, rape and hopelessness are rampant. We want to give them the opportunity to be creative, active and contribute to the new community they are part of instead of being a liability.

AMAHORO INTERNATIONAL is planning to purchase land in Bombo and start the construction of the JOYFUL HOUSE OF REFUGE. It will be auto managed by the group of initial refugees and serve as an outpost and point of contact for the next wave of Burundian refugees.

PLEASE HELP US! We need an initial downpayment of $4000.00 for the parcel of land, and then $10.000 for the construction of the Joyful House of Refuge. There are 3 ways to contribute:

1) Make a tax deductible donation to AMAHORO INTERNATIONAL on our home page Helpforburundi.wix.com/home by clicking on the taxdeductible donation button, and mark your donation "Joyful House of Refuge" or JHR

2) Click the Non tax deductible button to donate straight into our paypal account (Amahoro ministries)

3) Support our Gofundme initiative "Support the Joyful House of Refuge in Uganda", which will be posted within the next 48 hours on our website.

As well, we are starting a new fundraising concert series featuring "Makinto and the Gospel messengers". Please let us know if you in your house or your church or other organization would like to host a concert (write an e mail to makintomusic@gmail.com).

And: Emery will need optimized treatment in the US. We are planning to bring him here for surgery on his very badly infected legs. AMAHORO INTERNATIONAL will sponsor him, with your help!

Again, thank you for partnering with us.

With gratefulness

George & Mukarabe Makinto