
Sunday was International Orphan's Day. E talked
MONUC into sponsoring the day and helping with transportation, convinced the Goma Technological Institute to let us use their grounds, and got Celltel, one of Africa's big celluar service providers, to pay for everything via our friend Junior, who is Celltel's regional chief. I'm about to hop on a bus to catch a flight to Nairobi and don't have time to upload pictures right now. We fed 2,000 orphans lunch, enjoyed dancing, music, and acrobatics, foiled an attempted robbery, and had quite the time. For now, this picture says more about the day than words ever could.
I am constantly amazed by the names mothers give their children here, in the midst of war: Baraka (blessing), Binja (goodness), Esperance (hope). This is Innocent. Based on what he's experienced in six short years of life, Innocent doesn't seem like the right name. But you wouldn't know it from his smile.