It's Really Happening!
It'sbeen four long years since Odette saw Grace and Lilian. When she leftRwanda, they were 8 and 11. At 12 and 15, they are no longer girls, butbecoming lovely young women.
Many of you were with us in thevery beginning, two years ago, when I asked you to send me to visit thegirls as a messenger of hope and love from Odette. Since then, I'vebeen back to see them four times. Twice with Picture Hope, once inFebruary to help them move to Uganda (when we decided things would becalmer and more secure for them there), and then late in March, whenOdette and I decided it was time for me to come to Uganda again andstay until the final push for paperwork was completed.
I'm stillin Uganda now and let me tell you it has been a harrowing two weeks. Ihave criss-crossed borders, helped the girls through more than oneunexpected difficulty, survived a car accident, gotten very proficientat dealing with government officials and been taken to the very edgesof my capacity as an advocate and friend.
I'm happy to reportthat as of Friday, April 16th, the girls have legal and properpermission to be reunited with Odette in the United States. The onlything that remains is for me to buy the one way plane tickets and dowhat I can to cover the costs we've incurred over the last two weeksespecially as more than one extraordinary measure was taken to bringthis process to completion.
It feels fitting to us at thisamazing moment to ask you to help bring the girls home. You've beenwith us in your hearts and minds and thoughts and prayers--yourkindness has made an amazing difference in this process and truly,truly we understand deeply that we could not have come this far withoutyour kindness and support.
As always, the tiniest amount $1 or$5 is more than enough to be in this together. And for those who cannotgive, we welcome all your good wishes as this chapter of our storycomes to a close.
I'm very teary and more than a little weepywriting this post from a little internet cafe in Uganda. In many ways,over the last two years, these girls have become an important part ofme. I'm honored to know them and will be always in debt to them for theways they have changed my life forever.
If you'd like more information or specifics, feel free to contact me at jen.lemen@gmail.com.
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