The Congo Tree

Heidi's running WYLD...

Heidi Bentley

Heidi Bentley

My Story

Some friends and I set up The Congo Tree in 2013. In fact, we didn't intend to set up an organisation at all - we wanted simply to offer training to youth leaders and young people to develop their transferable life and leadership skills. After seeing the impact on our pilot group, we decided that there was something in it... Since April 2013, over 500 young people have been through our World Youth Leadership Development (WYLD) programme and I still get monthly, if not weekly messages from young people about the changes they have seen in themselves and the world around them thanks to the skills they developed with The Congo Tree. We're currently working in 2 locations in the Democratic Republic of Congo, with 4 different groups of young people, and we want to expand into more rural areas. So I had a WYLD idea to run a half-marathon to raise money for us to be able to do this!

One of the areas The Congo Tree wants to expand into is called Rutshuru. Since 1993, there has been almost consistent conflict in Rutshuru territory, mostly inter-ethnic. It was a location where thousands ran to from Rwanda during the genocide in 1994, and a subsequent massacre of many of these refugees followed in 1996. From then onwards, the creation of armed groups multiplied in response - originally for defence and protection - and conflict has continued. The M23 armed group formed from roots in Rutshuru, bringing grave consequences for the whole population, including their final showdown with the national military, the location of which locals now refer to as 'the triangle of death'. The most obvious results of this conflict have been illness, poverty and death. This has left many displaced from their homes, many orphaned, many young people groomed or simply forced to join armed groups. But more than this, the impact of trauma, fear and a belief that there will never be an escape from the continual cycles of conflict - and subsequently the demise of hope - sustained by the population has been hugely negative.

However, the young people remain undeterred. In April 2018, I returned to Rutshuru and we were invited to meet with a group of young people who represented every ethnicity and church denomination in the area of Rutshuru. They had come together to see how they could be a part of a change in their local area. With support from their churches, they started a co-operative to run small community projects and little businesses, using these as a voice for peace and to model to their communities how it was possible to work with their 'enemies', and even call them friends. They were already doing so much that The Congo Tree would hope to train them for - we were so impressed that we told them in that very meeting that they didn't need us at all! But they implored us to consider their request for proper leadership skills training, for equipping in how to improve what they do and also how to mentor and effectively pass this on to others.

This is the group that I am running for: A group of 28 young men and women who love their community and believe it will be possible to live there together, in peace; a group of inspirational young people who are willing to volunteer whatever spare time they have to see positive change in a community wrecked by conflict; a group of young leaders already showing outstanding leadership but real need of additional support to expand their capacity and reach.

A half-marathon will be a huge challenge for me, even though, after talking to these young leaders and understanding the challenges ahead for them, it doesn't seem nearly difficult enough. Please do give as generously as you can - not for me and my blisters, but for awesome young people like those in Rutshuru. Thank you.

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  • Target
    £1,000

My Story

Some friends and I set up The Congo Tree in 2013. In fact, we didn't intend to set up an organisation at all - we wanted simply to offer training to youth leaders and young people to develop their transferable life and leadership skills. After seeing the impact on our pilot group, we decided that there was something in it... Since April 2013, over 500 young people have been through our World Youth Leadership Development (WYLD) programme and I still get monthly, if not weekly messages from young people about the changes they have seen in themselves and the world around them thanks to the skills they developed with The Congo Tree. We're currently working in 2 locations in the Democratic Republic of Congo, with 4 different groups of young people, and we want to expand into more rural areas. So I had a WYLD idea to run a half-marathon to raise money for us to be able to do this!

One of the areas The Congo Tree wants to expand into is called Rutshuru. Since 1993, there has been almost consistent conflict in Rutshuru territory, mostly inter-ethnic. It was a location where thousands ran to from Rwanda during the genocide in 1994, and a subsequent massacre of many of these refugees followed in 1996. From then onwards, the creation of armed groups multiplied in response - originally for defence and protection - and conflict has continued. The M23 armed group formed from roots in Rutshuru, bringing grave consequences for the whole population, including their final showdown with the national military, the location of which locals now refer to as 'the triangle of death'. The most obvious results of this conflict have been illness, poverty and death. This has left many displaced from their homes, many orphaned, many young people groomed or simply forced to join armed groups. But more than this, the impact of trauma, fear and a belief that there will never be an escape from the continual cycles of conflict - and subsequently the demise of hope - sustained by the population has been hugely negative.

However, the young people remain undeterred. In April 2018, I returned to Rutshuru and we were invited to meet with a group of young people who represented every ethnicity and church denomination in the area of Rutshuru. They had come together to see how they could be a part of a change in their local area. With support from their churches, they started a co-operative to run small community projects and little businesses, using these as a voice for peace and to model to their communities how it was possible to work with their 'enemies', and even call them friends. They were already doing so much that The Congo Tree would hope to train them for - we were so impressed that we told them in that very meeting that they didn't need us at all! But they implored us to consider their request for proper leadership skills training, for equipping in how to improve what they do and also how to mentor and effectively pass this on to others.

This is the group that I am running for: A group of 28 young men and women who love their community and believe it will be possible to live there together, in peace; a group of inspirational young people who are willing to volunteer whatever spare time they have to see positive change in a community wrecked by conflict; a group of young leaders already showing outstanding leadership but real need of additional support to expand their capacity and reach.

A half-marathon will be a huge challenge for me, even though, after talking to these young leaders and understanding the challenges ahead for them, it doesn't seem nearly difficult enough. Please do give as generously as you can - not for me and my blisters, but for awesome young people like those in Rutshuru. Thank you.