Flame of Love Orphanage
Sister Alvera's Projects
Sorry for the Translation,
we are doing our best for the moment
Here is the list of what you will find on this page:
- A word from Sister Alvera recently received by Gerard Picard.
- Sister Alvera tells her story.
- The budget plan for the construction of a place for the sisters who take care of the Flame of Love Orphanage.
If you wish to help Sister Alvera, contact us and we will send you her contact information.
Click here to contact us:
https://
www.laflammedamour.org/
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A word from Sister Alvera
Hello dear Gerard,Our news is good. Our two religious communities are doing well. We have 6 brothers and 10 sisters.
Our joy is that our Bishop has given us a companion. His name is Father Roger Ndabarinze. Every Saturday he comes to say Mass and every Tuesday he gives classes to our young people in formation.
At the request of the Bishop we have rented a house so that the women's community will not be in the orphanage. This house will be only for the formation to the religious life of our young people. However, he demands that we build our own houses of formation. Fortunately, we already have plots of land. That is why we have sent you a project for the construction of the formation house.
Our children are also doing very well. We have a total of 155 children in two centers. One center in the city of Goma and another center in the area of Masisi Parish of Nyakariba.
With the war that we are living, life is becoming difficult and food is very expensive. We have difficulty in feeding the members of our two communities and our children. We also have difficulties to pay the school fees and the medical care of our children.
Good understanding and union of prayer,
Sr. Alvera
Historical Overview
Sister Alvera's story
From the Carmelite vocation
to the Flame of Love vocation
of the Immaculate Heart of Mary
After her studies in Rome, Sister Alvera worked in MWESO and MATANDA (Diocese of Goma) from 1990 to 2002. During her apostolate in these areas, she lived through the difficult moments of war, killing and hatred. These events remained engraved in her heart. Day and night, she meditated on these events. When she was appointed to Madagascar in 2002, she told herself that she would not think about them for a long time as she was going to be away from the place where she lived them. However, the same events have always remained in her heart.
In 2004, still a Carmelite missionary in Madagascar, sister Alvéra fell ill and went to BUKAVU (RDC) to be treated, where she was in contact with professor Emmanuel who gave her a little book of the Flame of Love. In this book, she was touched by the message of the Virgin Mary to Elizabeth Kindelmann, a Hungarian : "There are so many sins in the world ! Help me to save souls! I give you in hand a ray of light : The Flame of Love of my heart. By it, ignite yours and transmit it to others, at least to a soul... It will be the great Miracle whose light will blind Satan. It is the fire of Love and union. We will extinguish fire with fire, the fire of hate with the fire of love. I need you".
The sister understood that this message concerned him.
Leaving Carmel
When I was still in Madagascar, says Sister, as superior of the community, we had a retreat with the local bishop and the theme of this retreat was love. This theme touched me very much and afterwards I went to see the preacher. In my spiritual direction with the Bishop, I had spoken to him about the voice that calls me to spread the flame of love of the Immaculate Heart of Mary (message of the Virgin Mary), see the previous point. The Bishop encouraged me a lot by reassuring me that if it is the Lord's call, He Himself will take care of His work. So I wrote a letter of ex-claustration to my provincial who answered favorably to my request.
Beginning of the Community Flame of Love
of the Immaculate Heart of Mary in Goma
In 2006, I had received a help from the missionary father of Africa: JEAN PAUL STENAKES to build a house in the plot of my big sister Thérèse N'RABAHUKWA in Nyakariba with the aim of taking care of the orphan children.
Unfortunately, due to the war that was going on in this area, this was not possible.
As I had just found my letter of ex-claustration, I wrote to his Excellency Monsignor Faustin NGABU, Bishop of Goma on September 01, 2007, to ask him the authorization to continue my religious vocation with the community Flame of Love.
It is on October 29, 2007 that I started the Flame of Love Community here in Goma in a house that I had just rented in the kyeshero district; Kituku avenue thanks to the small sum with which the carmelites had just granted me. I started with four girls and I was the fifth. It is in November of the same year that we took the first child whom we met at the church of the district Saint Kizito, parish of Our Lady of Mount Carmel when we were at mass.
In January 2008, we received two orphans from MASISI. That same year, I was in contact with the Association "ALIANCE BIBLIQUE" which helped us with few means to support orphans, widows, handicapped and other destitute people.
In 2009, we were already 7 girls and I was the 8th. That same year we received three young boys who joined us to start the male community.
It is in 2011, that I started the orphanage of Nyakariba. By the grace of God, we have continued to find people of good will who continue to take care of the children especially by paying their studies.
As I had a good number of girls and boys who joined me to advance the Flame of Love Community, at the same time we started with the Flame of Love Movement so that the laity could get involved in this spirituality.
In 2013, we were already at 8 in the Community of feminine branch and 4 in the Community of masculine branch and had 60 orphaned children among whom 6 handicapped.
Nyakariba Orphanage, our sub-branch also had 16 orphans and two supervisors this year.
Considering the commitment to the Flame of Love on the side of the Community and the Movement, I went to see Monsignor Theophile KABOY, Bishop of Goma, to inform him. It is on 22/01/2013 that I wrote to him.
Considering the norms of the code of canon law relating to the associations of the faithful in the church and considering the commitment of the Movement, its apostolate, the prayer and actions of charity in favor of the needy, Bishop Theophile KABOY of GOMA gave us a decree of approval of the Movement Flame of Love of the Immaculate Heart of Mary on 06/03/2017. The same year 2017, we had by the grace of God the men of good will who built us a building where our orphaned children remain but which still remains insufficient.
On 18/09/2019, I wrote to Mgr Willy NGUMBI NGENGELE Bishop of GOMA to inform him about my Community of brothers and sisters who had just
to make 15 years of experience of the Flame of Love Spirituality and its apostolate of supervision of children, handicapped widows and street children. The bishop had answered us favorably and we were preparing for the vows on 27/02/2022. On that date we did not profess the vows, due to certain norms that had not been well respected. For this reason, our Bishop suggested the following:
-To separate the girls in formation from the orphanage so that they come to the orphanage for the apostolate and return to their house for a good formation.
-Introduce the training master and mistress.
-To build our own formation houses.
In the interview of April 13, 2022, with the Bishop, sister ALVERA and brother ANDRE were maintained by the Bishop as master and mistress of formation of our brothers and sisters of the Flame of Love Community. In this same interview, the Bishop also named Abbot Roger NDABARINZE, Rector of the propedeutic Saint André, as companion of our Community. It is a gesture of fatherly love that our pastor has shown to our community and we thank him for this accompaniment. May God give him back a hundredfold. Among the three conditions that the Bishop asked of us, we have already fulfilled two:
We have succeeded in renting a house of formation for our sisters (future religious)
We have the master and mistress of formation.
It remains for us to build our own formation houses, an urgent condition to better continue the formation because the vocation to the Flame of Love is abundant here in the Diocese of Goma.
Present state of our
Community Flame of Love of the Immaculate Heart of Mary
and its apostolate
1- Father Roger NDABARINZE, accompanist
2- Feminine branch: 9 sisters in formation and Sister Alvera N'RAMASUHUKO GAHINYUZA, Formator, National Coordinator and Superior of two communities (feminine and masculine)
3- Male branch: 5 brothers in formation and Brother André MONGA MABOSO, Formator.
N.B. There are also other young people who have already done sessions who are waiting for admission except that the capacity of reception is not favorable to us.
The Apostolate that we exercise
Flame of Love Orphanage of Goma: we have 104 orphans and street children, 6 handicapped and 18 supervisors.
Orphanage of Nyakariba : we have 16 children and 3 supervisors.
Children placed in families for whom the men of good will help us to pay for their studies: 48 from elementary school to university.
Every Wednesday we have the supervision of widows and widowers to whom we give instructions and sometimes share food with them.
Description of the project
Project of the construction of a training center for girls for religious training and the supervision of orphan children. The target groups are girls and orphan children.
Summary of the Project
This project consists of building a training center for girls in religious life, the supervision of orphans and other vulnerable children, and also for the resocialization of people at social risk in the city of Goma and its surroundings. Composed of 3 training rooms, an administrative office with three rooms inside, 4 dormitories, I Chapèle, 1 refectory, 4 training rooms and toilets, the latter will be built in the city of Goma in the Province of North Kivu.
In addition to the construction activities, this project will also focus on community mechanisms for the care of children at risk. It will also support the training of 50 girls in religious education and the supervision of orphaned children in the city of Goma and its surroundings.
This project is one of the sustainable solutions for the holistic and sustainable care of orphaned children and the resocialization of children at risk.
Operational Context
For the past four decades, the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo has been experiencing recurrent ethnic conflicts. These conflicts in North Kivu date back to the early 1960s and have both an inter- and intra-ethnic dimension. They have grown in scale with repeated wars;
For decades, North Kivu Province has been the scene of cruel and devastating conflicts that have spared no one. Women have been raped, mutilated, tortured, murdered... children have been orphaned by the cruelty of war through the death of their parents.
Children are undoubtedly a decisive category whose care requires a special emphasis because the future of the whole nation depends on it. Their participation cannot be relegated to an uncertain future: we need them now. Children represent a living force, they are rich in aspirations proper to this moment of existence, precarious living conditions spoil this potential and this energy;
From its creation in 2007 to our days; the Flame of Love center had to take care of 226 orphan children and those separated from their parents. Of this number, 6 are adopted internationally, 73 reunited with their respective families. At present, the Flame of Love Center has 114 children, of which 51 are girls and 63 are boys. 97 of these 114 attend school, of which 43 are girls and 54 are boys. During all this period, the center recorded 4 deaths in total.
In view of this number of orphan children that the Center of the Flame of Love supervises in the city of Goma, a need to build a center turns out to be indispensable to congratulate the training of the girls supervising them because they are without any appropriate training in the supervision and the detraumatization of orphan children.
For a better supervision of the children, the focus will be on the construction of a training center for 50 girls in order to allow them the accessibility to the training on religious life and the accompaniment of the orphan children.
Problems
The problems faced by the girls who look after the orphan children in the Flame of Love Center are linked to the lack of a favorable space for their formation in the religious life and the care of the orphan children, etc. This situation makes that the members of the community and the orphaned children find themselves on a scattered space that does not guarantee neither the intimacy nor the necessary space for all the activities of the community life.
Objective
The overall objective of this project is to contribute to the training of 50 girls in religious life and the supervision of orphan children within the Flame of Love center through the construction of a modern training center in the city of Goma in Nordl<ivu Province, Democratic Republic of Congo. To welcome candidates and be attentive to the needs of spiritual and integral formation.
Population Concerned
The population concerned by this project is mainly the girls who supervise the orphan children at the Flame of Love Center in the city of Goma. Through the construction of this center, they will benefit from a formation to the religious life and the supervision of the children.
Implantation
The implementation of the present project will allow the direct and indirect beneficiaries to acquire a considerable baggage in the care and the accompaniment of the orphan children but also the resocialization of the children in moral danger. In order to achieve this, strategies capable of allowing the attainment of expected sustainable solutions are developed within the framework of strengthening the integrative approach of stakeholders in order to attain sustainable solutions for a better supervision of orphaned children and those in moral danger in the city of Goma in the Province of North Kivu, Democratic Republic of Congo.
Specific Objectives
Construction of a modern training center: This objective is to build a modern training center for 50 girls who care for orphaned children in the city of Goma; Activities
Preparation of the land/plot,
ZL Recruitment of builders,
Procurement of building materials
Procurement of materials ;
Construction itself;
Monitoring and evaluation of activities.
Equipment of the training center: the implementation of this objective will consist in equipping the built center.
Activities
Procurement of equipment
JL Acquisition of equipment, Installation of equipment;
Monitoring and evaluation,
Training : This objective will allow the training of 50 girls who will supervise orphaned children in the Flame of Love center in the city of Goma;
Targeting of 50 girls to be trained;
Recruitment of trainers,
Training itself
Delivery of training certificates; Monitoring and evaluation
Expected Results
A modern training center for girls who supervise orphaned children is built, 50 girls are trained on religious life and the supervision of orphaned children and those in moral danger; 50 trained girls supervise orphaned children according to recommended norms and standards; 50 girls who supervise children receive training certificates. The activities will be monitored and evaluated.
Educators
The support of orphans and children at moral risk increases from 35% to 85% thanks to the training; the modern center built facilitates the training of 50 girls; the care of orphans respects the recommended norms and standards.
Strategy
The implementation of this project will focus on the community approach through different targeted actions, which will allow stakeholders to take ownership of different activities for the care of orphaned children and the resocialization of children at moral risk
Direct coordination upstream of the implementation of field activities with direct stakeholders and local authorities in order to make the activities community-based, which will allow for a good contribution from the beneficiaries and strengthen the trust between the direct beneficiaries and the community
Regular organization of supervisions in order to ensure the progress of the project and the sustainability of the actions;
Participation of the Beneficiary
The participation of the Flame of Love Center will be very perceptible through the availability of the plot of land in which the modern center will be housed, intended for the training of 50 girls who will supervise orphaned children and those in moral danger.
Potential Risks
Use of unsuitable building materials;
Likely unrest due to elections scheduled for 2023 in the Democratic Republic of Congo
Looting of stakeholders' property.
To avoid these risks, the following scenarios will be considered.
Use of community leaders and religious authorities in the implementation of field activities to select reliable suppliers of construction materials. Securing all assets assigned to this project.
Coordination
To reach the objectives of the present project, the Flame of Love Center intends to consolidate its experience by referring to its previous realizations within the framework of the supervision and the accompaniment of the orphan children and those in moral danger.
In order to reinforce a good coordination, the Flame of Love Center will have recourse to the program of its hierarchy through its technical services for a punctual accompaniment each time the needs will be felt throughout the implementation of the activities of the present project on the field.
Report
The narrative and financial report will be sent to the hierarchy according to the calendar of the report, monthly in order to allow a closer follow-up on the state of progress of the field activities and punctually each time a need is felt.
Visibility
The visibility of the present project will be done through visibility panels, the logos of the Flame of Love Center and of the financial backer that will be printed on the clothes, the badges that will be worn by the different intervening parties involved in the implementation of the project, banners. They will also be posted on all the facilities and glued on the project equipment. Also, in the presentation of the project, special emphasis will be placed on the source of funding.
