STUDENT FEATURE: THE SKY IS THE LIMIT

NEWS FROM THE VILLAGE

July 2, 2012

The list of things that Blaise Rwamukwaya can do, and do very well, is so long that it would almost be more expeditious to compose a list of things he can’t do. However, such a list would be rendered useless as his accomplishments quickly outshine any flaws that could possibly be found. He’s a respectful and well-spoken teenager with a hunger for learning both in the classroom as well as onstage. His abilities to elicit wild applauses from his audiences as he sings traditional Rwandan tunes or modern pop songs, or wow the crowds with his dynamic traditional or modern dance moves, would initially have one believe that his dreams were one of stardom. However, his eyes are captured by the celestial bodies for a completely different reason; he dreams of one day flying among the stars as a pilot.

Blaise hails from the Kabeza area of Kigali, and states that prior to coming to ASYV it was very hard for him to set targets such as the ones he has set now. “I didn’t think that I could reach there because of a lack of confidence.” He realized that in order for him to actualize his goals he needed to study somewhere that had good teachers and materials. It wasn’t until he walked through the gates of ASYV that he thought, “my dreams are finally going to come true. There is everything here and if I use my potential I am going to be something.”

 While he found it difficult to settle on just one thing he loves about the Village, he finally stated that it is that “they have all the things we need at school that will help us to succeed. They have materials, good teachers and the staff treat us like parents, which is something that is difficult, but you do it.”

Blaise expects to take full advantage of what has been made available to him at Liquidnet Family High School, and next year he wants to take up the Math, Physics and Computer Science combination because he believes that this track will help bring him closer to becoming a Pilot.

However, he doesn’t simply want to fly planes; he wants to one day start his own organization, such as what “Grandmother” Anne Heyman has done. He wants it to be a place where anyone that doesn’t “have the capacity of living without help, such as orphans and other vulnerable people” can reside.

And what Blaise wants everyone to know about him: “I want people to know that I have the ability to do anything.”

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