2016 Highlights

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World Dance for Humanity – 2016 Highlights

By Janet Reineck, WD4H Executive Director
With special thanks to Genevieve Feiner – Our full-time assistant and collaborator

We are so grateful for the interest, support, and involvement of our dancers and donors, which made wonderful things happen in 2016 – at home and in Rwanda!

CLICK HERE to see our Field Reports – Your support in action!

Santa Barbara: We continued to offer 5 classes each week to our enthusiastic community of dancers (with all proceeds going to our aid projects), reach out to wheelchair-bound seniors and disabled adults, and help the Westside Boys & Girls Club with at-risk youths in their after-school program. Thriller 2016 was a big success, with 200 dancers, 20 Flashmobs, and $10,209 raised for our Rwanda Education Fund!

Rwanda: In 2016, WD4H sent $123,986 in aid to Rwanda. None of this went to salaries or administrative expenses – every dollar went to the projects, resulting in extraordinary progress in the communities we serve. By the end of January, WD4H will be helping 8,400 people in 25 Rwandan communities lift themselves out of crushing poverty. We are witnessing an incredible transformation as these people gain the confidence to envision a better life, and the skills and resources to make it happen.

Our contributions to the Rwandan communities in 2016:

Education: Stipends for 7 Primary, 109 Secondary, and 17 College Students in 2017

Agriculture: 7 parcels of Farmland, 15 Cows, 17 Goats, 100 Chickens

New Businesses: Twirererabana’s Dignity Café, Abishyizehamwe Bakery, Ruganeheza Water Project

 Support for Existing Businesses: Twa Seamstresses, Kungabu Fish Farm, Tubeho Bakery, Umunezero Chicken Farm, and Abaharaniramahoro Wedding Rentals

 Training: Co-op Leadership and Management Training, and Student Leadership Training

 Community Assistance: 102 Mattresses, Health Insurance for 1,500 people, and four Teachers’ Salaries

 “Thank you for sacrificing your time, energy, talents and resources, and serving the communities so wholeheartedly. What you are doing in this broken-hearted country speaks for itself. Your contribution towards the rebuilding of this nation is priceless. You have given the communities a story of hope to tell, and a voice with which to tell their story.”  – Justin Bisengimana, Rwanda Program Director