I am traveling again... I wish a could package Africa and send it to you in a box; a taste of chai, the scent of markets, and the chill of early morning breezes in the village.  Worlds apart, it's easy to forget the urgency of a continent that is filled with the stories of life existing on the threadbare strands of survival

Yet woven within these frayed strands is a fiber of hope that is manifest in the vibrancy of laughing smiles and the callouses of strong hands that labor towards the restoration of an unseen promised land.  

We have the great privilege of laboring alongside these kindred spirits whose humanity is as frail as our own; to weave the fibers of our own story, weak for weak and strong for strong, into a fabric that can shelter against the tempest of an uncertain future.

From within the shelter of this community, our community, Africa still sings... women still dance around clean water, children still laugh and play games, songs are still written in honor of one another.  These are the relationships we have entered into, these are the communities we have changed.  And while their names may be too many for us to learn, they will never forget ours.  For what was once but a frail thread is now a vibrant tapestry of enduring hope.   

- Barak Bruerd (Director of Africa Programs)