Kwibuka 30. Remember. Unite. Renew.

Today marks the beginning of Kwibuka 30. 30 years since the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi.

As Rwandans of course know, but as other readers might not, the word “Kwibuka” is a Kinyarwanda word. It means “To Remember.”

This August will mark three years since SOLA arrived in Rwanda. Three years since my school community stepped off airplanes and onto the tarmac and the first Rwandan citizens who stood there waiting to meet us were trauma counselors. Not customs officials or security officers. Trauma counselors.

They told us that they understood what we were feeling, and that we were welcome here. They told us to lay down our burdens, and belong.

I am grateful, forever grateful, for the generosity of Rwanda and the Rwandan people.

And I am with you today, at your side.

Remember. Unite. Renew.