An American worth celebrating

Paul Grondahl (a name synonymous with exceptional work in feature stories) has an article about an orphaned refugee whose nineteen-year-journey has taken her from a small child mistaken as a another corpse amongst the sea of dead left in the wake of the Rwandan genocide to our front door, right here in the Capital Region. 

Grace Rutagengwa graduates tonight from Duanesburgh High School.

From the article:

“What Grace has overcome in her life is almost unfathomable,” said principal Beth DeLuke, who recalled a shy and frightened girl who could speak almost no English when she arrived at the school 18 months ago to live with a local family.

…

Before she expired, Rutagengwa’s mother hid her youngest daughter under her skirt. When a neighbor woman found the corpses, there was so much blood covering the motionless little girl that she thought Grace was dead as well.

The woman’s name was Providence and she provided shelter for Grace until the girl could be safely transported, concealed in a large suitcase, out of the country. The orphaned girl endured overcrowded, abusive and unsanitary conditions in camps in Congo and Burundi. There was no schooling. A lawless current surged through the camp, leaving young girls vulnerable. She cut her hair short, dressed plainly and tried to pass as a boy so she would be left alone.

And there’s more. What a tale of survival.