We are pleased to share that on September 26th, 2022, Heroes Inclusive Centre officially opened in the Gasabo District of Kigali. This opening fulfilled our dream of opening a centre where all children are welcome to learn and grow, including those with severe disabilities. Here children of all abilities can learn side by side, are given the opportunity to access an excellent education, and also recieve the rehabilitation services that they need to reach their full potential.

The first day of school was very exciting for everyone, including the students, parents, and all of our staff.

Heroes Inclusive Centre was purpose built to be accessible for children with physical disabilities, allowing them to participate fully in daily school activities. We currently have 65 students enrolled, however, we will be able to accommodate up to 500 students when we are running at full capacity. The following services are offered at Heroes Inclusive Centre:

• Inclusive Nursery Education
• Inclusive Primary Education
• Special Education Program
• Physiotherapy services
• Occupational therapy services
• Community Education
• Parent’s Group activities
• Children’s Recreational Activities
• Home Visit Program

Our new facility includes both a gym and an adaptive playground, which are not only places for our students to have fun, they are also ideal settings to work on a variety of physical therapy and occupational therapy activities.

Heroes Inclusive Centre also has a kitchen to provide our students with nutritious meals, and a nap room for our younger students to stay well rested.

The school year has not only started at Heroes Inclusive Centre, but we also welcomed 31 students at our original site in the Gikondo District of Kigali, Heroes School.

It has been an exciting year of growth with the opening of Heroes Inclusive Centre, as we are have 96 students enrolled over our two locations. With growth however, there are always challenges. Transportation is a major issue for us, as our original van for Heroes School can only transport 18 students at a time. This not only means multiple trips to get students to Heroes school, but it means that we have no way to transport our students to Heroes Inclusive Centre. Additionally, like many countries in the world, Rwanda has experienced a dramatic increase in food prices. This has resulted in even more food insecurity for many families who were already struggling to put food on the table. For Heroes, this has put a huge strain on our Food Program budget, as we are dealing with rising costs at a time when we have more than doubled our student population.

While we still have many challenges, there is a lot to celebrate, and Christmas is the perfect time to celebrate and express our gratitude to all of our generous supporters. Without support, we would not have been able to achieve our dream of providing educational opportunities for children with severe disabilities. Specifically, we would like to thank Ed Mills and Kristian Thorlund for their ongoing support, and for making the construction of Heroes Inclusive Centre a reality.

This year we had Christmas celebrations at our two locations in Gikondo and Gasabo districts. Our students, their families, and our staff had a wonderful time together, sharing food, dancing, playing, and celebrating their achievements.

From all of us at Heroes, we would like to wish you a very happy and healthy 2023!