On a hillside in Kayonza District, eastern Rwanda, nine children with disabilities learn on an exposed concrete porch—rain or shine. Some have epilepsy. Others are immunocompromised. None have walls to protect them. Two women from the area are working to change that.
Julia Deimert of Airdrie and Esther Mbatuyimana, a survivor of genocide against Tutsi now living in Calgary, co-founded the Canadian charity Living Channel Services in 2016. Together, they're fundraising to build a proper school—one of the first in Rwanda designed specifically for children with disabilities.
"The kids right now are at the top of a steep hill on a porch," Deimert said. "Some of them have immune problems, so they're always sick because they're exposed to the rain."
Their Bricks of Hope campaign aims to raise $80,000 to build the new facility—complete with desks, fencing and an accessible classroom. So far, they've raised about $30,000.
"The fence actually costs more than the building, but without it, we can't get a permit," Deimert said. "If we raise the rest by the end of May, we can start construction June 1."
April 7 marks the International Day of Reflection on the 1994 Rwandan genocide against the Tutsis, which killed more than 800,000 people in 100 days. For Mbatuyimana, who was 13 at the time, it's both a personal and national day of mourning.
"We don't forget, but we need to move on. We need to build the country," she said. "That's why we come together—to remember and to educate."
She and her family narrowly survived multiple attempts on their lives. She moved to Canada in 2003 and began working in long-term care.
"When I grew up, I didn't see people with developmental disabilities in Rwanda," she said. "But when I came here, I connected with them right away."
Eventually, she managed group homes and began working with families caring for children like Josh—Deimert's son, who has autism and a rare metabolic genetic disorder.
"Esther became Josh's second mom," Deimert said. "Sometimes I think in his mind, she's his first."
"We joke and tell people we're sisters. Can't you tell we look so much alike?"
That bond deepened in 2016 when Mbatuyimana returned to Rwanda and saw how children like Josh were treated.
"They are told their child is cursed," Mbatuyimana said. "Families abandon them. They can't take them to church. It's a shame. It's isolation."
Living Channel Services was started by supporting 30 families. Now, it helps more than 60 people, with 50 more on a waiting list.
The school opened in August 2024 with just three students. That number has since tripled to nine.
"One little boy followed a caregiver to school and refused to leave," Deimert said. "He just showed up and stayed."
Many families in the region can't afford therapy or transportation. The school plans to relocate to a central, accessible site near the district office—Rwanda's equivalent of city hall.
"The idea is that everyone will see it," Deimert said. "They'll see kids with Down syndrome painting the bricks and being part of something. That visibility matters."
Each donated brick will carry a name or message. Community members, students and families will gather this summer to paint them as part of what the women call a "work bee."
One of the program's most powerful stories involves a father, Papa Josh, who started with a single piglet.
He sold the first litter, planted a garden and used the proceeds to buy a calf. His son, who once crawled on his hands, now walks upright and helps feed the cow daily.
"He hugs the calf. It's his job. He's proud," Deimert said. "His dad doesn't see him as a burden anymore."
The father—a genocide survivor against Tutsi—now trains other families in agriculture and animal care.
That kind of sustainability is central to the charity's work. In addition to its pig and chicken co-ops, the organization runs a sewing class for women and a weekly peer group for caregivers. A tiered fee system allows families to pay what they can.
"We give a hand up, not a handout," Mbatuyimana said. "The goal is to make our programs unnecessary for those who graduate, so we can support others still in need."
The new school will include a respite area for parents, an outdoor classroom and a dedicated space for the co-ops. It will also act as a teacher-training hub, with support from the Ministry of Education and local universities.
"We plan to employ people with disabilities at every level—from the classroom to the co-ops," Deimert said.
Their next initiative is a children's book about disability inclusion, which will be published in English, French, and Kinyarwanda.
"It tells the story we live every day," she said. "These kids have value. If we don't include them, we all miss out."
Deimert said the work is deeply personal. She spent years seeking support for her sons—one of whom, Josh, screamed for up to 11 hours a day before moving in with Mbatuyimana.
"You couldn't comfort him. Nothing worked. I would lie on the couch sobbing, asking God why," she said. "That was my darkest time."
"But now, all of it—I use in Rwanda."
Mbatuyimana said she still receives calls and letters from across Rwanda asking for help. They want to expand but can only go as far as their budget allows.
"We started with 30 children. Now the demand is everywhere," she said. "It breaks my heart because we can't help them all."
Fundraising in Canada, she added, can be complicated.
"Sometimes people judge me—because I have an accent, because I'm an immigrant," she said. "But we keep going. We are called to do this."
Her long-term vision is for the school and programs to become community-run.
"Eventually, it has to be theirs," Deimert said. "This can't just be a Canadian project. It has to belong to Rwanda."
Mbatuyimana agrees and says the school is ultimately about identity.
"These children are not a curse," she said. "We make sure they know they are seen."
To support the campaign or sponsor a brick, visit www.livingchannel.ca/bricksofhope.
Each $10 or $11 donation helps build a classroom in Kayonza District, Rwanda. Donors can personalize bricks with names or messages to be added to the school wall as a visible show of solidarity. The team hopes to begin construction by June 1.
On April 7, as Rwanda reflects on its history of genocide against Tutsis, both women say remembrance must be paired with action.
"We remember," Mbatuyimana said. "But we also build. That's what our kids will carry forward."
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