BergFamilyAfrica: SO.... What are some basic facts about Rwanda?

Rwanda is a country in central and eastern Africa with a population of approximately 11.4 million. The population is young and predominantly rural, with a density among the highest in Africa. Rwandans share a common culture and share the Kinyarwanda language.

Where is Rwanda?? Look for #25 on the map below, and you will find it. It is a small country ~ roughly the size of Maryland! Located almost right where the belly button would be if Africa was a person. :)

Rwanda is located a few degrees south of the Equator, and is bordered by Uganda, T anzania, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The climate is temperate, with two rainy seasons and two dry seasons every year.

Where in Rwanda are the Berg’s going?

OK, Kibogora isn't actually on this map, but we are near Kibuye. If you want to visit, if you get that far, we will come and get you and bring you to our place! How's that for a deal?

We are going to the Western province known as Kibuye, to the 269 bed Kibogora Hospital, a ministry of the Free Methodist Church in Rwanda, Central Africa. It lies just east of a beautiful lake in SouthWest Rwanda, Lake Kivu. For the more curious among you, here is a link to a website about "our" hospital. http://www.kibogora.org/

What will you do there? Good question! Tim will serve as the surgeon at the hospital, and Linda will coordinate the kids' home schooling. Hannah will take a “gap year” between high school and college, then she will return to the states to start her college career. While in Rwanda, she'll focus on teaching English as a second language in local schools. In addition to homeschooling, Linda and the children will look for other ministry opportunities. Possibilities include evangelism in villages and in the hospital chaplaincy program, helping with the child nutrition program, including finding sponsors to help individual children in this program, organizing and hosting short term mission trips to the hospital from the United States and elsewhere, raising goats, rabbits and chickens to help families provide food for their children and teaching English as a second language.

When are the Berg’s leaving? In June or July 2012

For How Long? We don’t know! Our initial commitment is 1 year. We will decide the rest as God leads.

How can I keep up with the Bergs as they travel this road? Come back to this blog, silly! ...And hopefully, we'll be able to go to facebook next year, too.

Will you be working with a mission agency? Yes! There are many possibilities.....however, we don't know which one just yet.....more on this as it develops.

Does your hospital have a website where I can see pictures? http://www.kibogora.org/Hospital.php

How can we pray for you? Let us count the ways! Please keep coming back to our blog for current prayer requests! Top right now are:

That God would be glorified through our going.
Spiritual, emotional and physical preparation to go.
For God to protect our hearts as we prepare.
For God to continue to strengthen and protect our marriage.

For our kids! Moving overseas as a teenager or a pre-teen is a challenge. Leaving all you know behind, especially friends, is a life changing, scary thing to do. We know that with God's help, they will be up to the challenge, but it will still be difficult. We'd love to know if God is asking you to keep Sam, Ruthie, Stephen and Hannah in your prayers. Pick one or all of them!

To be able to see and spend time with all our family before we leave, and that our family relationships would all be whole and strong as we leave.
Finding a family to rent our home while we're away.
Finding a one year home for our beloved dogs Star, Prince and Jack-Jack (We have 3. Yes, they can be split up), and our big, black cat, Panther.
OR...Figuring out if there is any way to bring any of our dogs with us. Probably not, but we can still pray, right?
Clearing the "stuff" out of our house.
Decisions about selling/storing our "stuff" (from cars down to stuffed animals).
Decisions about home schooling next year. We need good internet connections to be able to use The Potter's School http://www.pottersschool.org/, our first choice for home-schooling.
That we would have a good internet connection. (See above) Primarily we want this for home schooling, but hey, if Linda can use facebook, that will be a plus, too. :)