Last month 90 B2R students travelled to Gisenyi for B2R’s Annual Alumni Retreat. The weekend was packed with several different speakers, including Stephen Kinzer, author of “A Thousand Hills;” Pastor Antoine Rutayirsire; Lucy Mbabazi, country director for Visa in Rwanda; and Jean Paul, country director for the Clinton Development Initiative.

The theme of the retreat was “Think Big and don’t let fear take the last word.” Each speaker highlighted different aspects of this idea, discussing a variety of topics such as servant leadership, the dangers of entitlement, and living and working in a secular world.

“We hope that the speakers will give the Scholars a different point of view, opinion and advice and that it will be well received because these are people they want to emulate,” Career Development Advisor and Class 1 Scholar, Nancy Ndekwe, said. “They are people who are role models and mentors to the Scholars, which makes it easier for them interact and talk to them on a personal level.”

In addition, the retreat also provides students with an opportunity to reunite with friends and meet other B2R Scholars from various classes.

“My favorite part of the retreat was listening to the speakers, all of them, and getting to know their value system, experience, and wisdom.” Group 3 Scholar, Bright Ntambara said. “I also thoroughly enjoyed spending time with my friends from Group 3 and the rest of the Scholars. It was especially valuable getting to know the Scholars from other groups on a personal level.”