Welco​me to Kirotshe Foundation

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     My name is Makorobondo Dieu-Merci Kamongwa Salukombo "Dee". I am the founder of Kirotshe Foundation. I was born in Kirotshe in 1988. My life started as most lives start in the village with my father being a teacher and my mother being a house wife and an entrepreneur (selling tomatoes, fish, charcoal and anything she could get her hands on). When I was 5 years old, we moved to the city of Goma as my father found a good job because he finished school. In Goma, life became pleasant as my father's work paid well and he was able to take care of the family and many other people until 1996 when the Congo War began. The Congo War has taken over 6 million lives and our lives could have been lost if not for the grace of God.

     

      The Congo War forced us to move to Kampala, Uganda where we lived there for 3 years as refugees until the Cleveland Catholic Charities through UNHCR accepted our family to Cleveland, Ohio USA. In USA, my biggest worry was to fall behind in school because I expected most of the American students to be very smart compared to me as they have everything they need to succeed compared to me when I was in Africa. To make a very long story short, I refused to take for granted the opportunity to study in America where for the first time I had all the resources I needed to succeed. Fortunately, everything worked in my favor as I attended Lincoln-West High School, Lakewood High School and Denison University. At all these institutions, I was blessed and fortunate to be part of their running programs and was able to represent them well with several school accolades and as a 6-Time All America.

     

     I have been fortunate to be successful in America thanks to the people that God has put into my life. Kirotshe Foundation is about giving a chance to the kids in Kirotshe who will never get a chance like I had. As education and athletics have been central to my life in the USA, the goal of Kirotshe Foundation is to help in bettering education and athletics for the kids of Kirotshe. We have taken a big step with the Torrens Learning Center and the TeamKirotshe athletes. We have currently added the Hewa Bora project which features a bakery and agricultural work program.

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     I hope more will join us in helping making a difference to the lives of the students, workers, and athletes of Kirotshe. 

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      Yours Faithfully,

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      Makorobondo Salukombo "Dee"