History and Timeline of Construction
Chris Foreman and Kim Foreman began the ministry of Come & See Africa in the summer of 2005 when they led a team of 4 people to East Africa. Then in October of 2005, Chris traveled to Butare, Rwanda, on his own and truly planted the ministry by hiring two directors and renting a house on Cyarwa Road. By 2006, they saw that the rented house was inadequate for the vision. They began to look for a plot of land on which to build a permanent "Christian Student Center".At first they considered renting a school or constructing on government-owned land, but finally they determined that the best investment was to own the property and to build a state-of-the-art student facility. In July of 2007, they took a hard look at the large lot next to the petrol station that was listed as "#2 Mukoni". Here we are on a stealth observation. At the time we didn't know that the land was once owned by the genocidal ex-president of Rwanda, Théodore Sindikubwabo. | ||||||||||
July 2007 ~ Here are photos of the first consideration of the property. | ||||||||||
January 2008 ~ During this mission , Chris asked Pastor Rob to evaluate the property. He thought it looked good and we moved forward to purchase it for $16000. | ||||||||||
July 2008 ~ We brought the money with us on this mission trip and the deal was made. In August - a month after we returned to the USA - heavy equipment moved in to level the plot. In October of 2008, the recession struck and it was tough to raise funds. | January 2009 ~ Our biggest mission ever with 9 people aboard. We also had an international student conference with students from Uganda, Congo, Burundi as well as Rwanda. We sponsored a few "work days". We wrote down our favorite scripture verses and put the paper at the bottom of each foundation hole. | July 2009 ~ Chris went on mission alone to Africa. The pace of construction was slowing down. We didn't have the money. Chris made the parable of the three builders to help raise funds. | January 2010 ~ Neither Kim or Chris made the trip to Rwanda in January 2010. However, Frank Murenzi took these pictures of ongoing construction. | July 2010 ~ This was the final trip that Kim and Chris made together to Butare. These photos were taken in July 1010. | August 2010 ~
After Kim's death, we re-cristened the LightHouse as "The Kim Foreman Bible Institute". Simon and Zachary were with Chris in Rwanda for Kim's funeral. Later we tweaked things and the building resumed the name "LightHouse" while the school inside the facility was designated the institute." | July 2011 ~ After Kim's death, Chris was at a crossroads. What should he do with the ministry and the mission house? To honor the memory of Kim, Chris decided to move full steam ahead with building. He invested Kim's life insurance benefit into the LightHouse, as well as some of her retirement savings. Chris traveled alone to Butare to establish a roadside memorial at the point of the car crash. The progress was amazing. | January 2012 ~ Chris traveled to Butare with Lizzie -- his girlfriend and future wife. She got a window into the missionary world of Chris. | July 2012 ~ Chris traveled to Butare alone to monitor all funds that were being invested in the Lighthouse. At this point, CASR had received a cargo container of material. Barry Hui made a big contribution to make that happen. | January 2013 ~ Chris traveled to Butare with his brother Frank for the First Annual East Africa Christian Apologetics Conference. They added a roof. It looked so much better. Although the building was not complete. We held the conference in a classroom and students slept in the guestrooms. | April 2013 ~ These are pictures sent by Pastor Paul showing the front retaining wall and bridge to the front door under construction. Again, money is short and progress is slowing. At this point we have invested about $750,000 into the Lighthouse. We can use you help to make it complete -- to the glory of God! |
