It is not finished...it is beginning...

We sold our house and moved out of our home last weekend. I called my mom and said, "It is finished." In her wise way, she said, "No, it is beginning." I like the way she said that. "It is beginning." This move to Rwanda certainly feels like a new beginning in so many ways. It also feels like the culmination of all we have done over the past twelve years. It just feels right.

I'll try to post some photos of the move in a few days. Needless to say, life is going full-throttle right now. We have some form of a goodbye dinner with someone almost every evening for the next two weeks. Here is our plan:

June 1-19 - Live with our friends, the Selbys, while Lian finishes kindergarten
June 20 - Jen speaks at Pacific Northwest Conference about Children's Hope Chest /attend farewell for Dano's brother and sister-in-law, who also happen to be moving overseas for a year (to Brazil)
June 21-30 - Live with Dano's mom
July 1 - Lian's ballet recital and then we all get into the car and start driving across the country
July 6-17 - Arrive to Ft. Worth Texas for Lian to attend the Hope Connection camp - a camp geared towards helping families with adopted children.
July 17-Aug 5 - Travel Eastward, stopping to see friends and familyi along the way.
Aug 5 - Sep 19 - In Vermont for some much needed rest and to get ready for my brother's wedding on Sep 19
Sep 26 - attend another good friend's wedding in Mass.
Sep 29 - Fly out for Rwanda

Carter Crockett, our partner, moves to Rwanda July 14. His family joins him Aug 21. Dano may have to fly to Rwanda once during the summer. We are still waiting word on that.

I'll try to do a better job at posting, but hope you'll forgive our lack of communication for a few weeks. In the meantime, do check out our website - www.karisimbipartners.com. You can join our mailing list by clicking on "connect."

You are Invited to a Launch Party and Concert on May 17

For tickets go to: http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/64185

Divine Makeover

We have been members of 100 year old Rainier Avenue Church for 8 years and for the majority of that time our church has been planning to renovate and remodel with a view towards the next 100 years. Dano is the project manager for our church's Divine Makeover. It is an honor for us to end our time in Seattle by working alongside so many who are working so that generations of families to come will be served in our community. It was quite an honor for the Seattle Times to feature this weekend's "barn raising" on the cover of their local news section today.

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2009086082_churchbuild20m.html?syndication=rss

Next Steps Toward Moving to Rwanda

2009Rwanda Trip

Dano, Carter and Kerry returned home a week ago after an incredible 12 day trip in Rwanda. The trip only affirmed the direction we are headed towards with Muhabura Venture Partners (we changed the name - that was one of the practical things that came out of the trip). They had over 40 meetings with Rwandan entrepeneurs, successful African businessmen and women, directors of various equity funds and associations, and governmet officials. The bottom line is that we cannot get there fast enough - the work is there, what we are proposing doesn't really exist yet, and our combination of gifts and experience would be invaluable. Carter and Dano have been asked to submit two proposals this week that could determine when exactly we will move, but right now it looks like Carter will be moving July 15, Kerry and the kids will arrive a month later, followed by the Jukanovich family after my brother's wedding in late September. Dano will probably need to make another trip or two before we move depending on how our proposals are received.

Many of our friends have asked what an incbator is. We hope our new name will describe our purpose more clearly. Muhabura means
"the guide" in Kinyarwanda. A venture firm invests in companies. We are investing our time and talent and potential financial investments into high-impact Rwandan ventures. We believe that in helping companies grow and succeed, that more people will be lifted out of poverty through the creation of capital and employment. We want to help people's dreams come true. Partners - many firms invest financial resources into foreign companies, but few get down in the trenches with the leaders of these companies on a day to day basis, helping them think strategically about where their company is heading and navigating the day to day challenges of a small business. We are committing the next 3-5 years to do so.

We are creating a business, but we are also asking friends and family to help us get to Rwanda. With airfare, 6 months rent (you have to put down in order to get a modest place), and shipping costs, we need $25K per family. Bridge2Rwanda has offered to accept these donations on our behalf - http://www.bridge2rwanda.org/donate/ just enter our names in the "other" section.

We are revising our prospectus this week. If you're interested in receiving a copy, please email me at jennifer@jukanovich.com.

Dano is off to Rwanda tonight!

Dano and the Crocketts leave for a 12 day trip to Rwanda tonight. We've started a "cause" on Facebook called the Jukanoviches and Crocketts in Rwanda. We explain about the incubator we plan to launch in this cause. We hope you'll consider joining our cause.

http://apps.facebook.com/causes/255545/16087822?m=cc366e79

The girls and I are holding down the homefront and will spend four days in Bend, OR visiting my best friend, Suzanne Baker. Twelve days is a long time without their dad, but we are thankful for modern technology that will hopefully let us see each other via video a few times during his trip. This is an exploratory trip to meet with Rwandan entrepeneurs, business folks, government leaders, potential investors and others who've heard about our incubator and want to help us get to Rwanda to launch it. Kerry will be spending a lot of time exploring life in Rwanda - visiting the school, looking at potential houses, hanging out in the markets, etc. They have the 12 days packed with meetings. Please pray for safety and health and a very fruitful time.

Help us get to Rwanda!

Bridge2Rwanda has offered to accept donations on our behalf to get us to Rwanda. Once we are in Rwanda, we will be setting up a for-profit organization and we are meeting with private equity funds to get this established. However, there are immediate moving costs for two families to move to Rwanda by this summer or early Fall. Thank you for considering this.

https://secure.bridge2rwanda.org/donate/

Just indicate these gifts are for the Jukanovich/Crockett business incubator. Thank you.

Fast Company Article on Rwanda

If you have a minute, read this article in Fast Company on the development of Rwanda. Several of the people mentioned are folks we are engaging with (Dan Cooper, Joe Ritchie, Dale Dawson, Francis Gatare). Also, we have received incredible counsel from some folks this week and have decided to take their counsel to become a for-profit. We will still be seeking initial seed capital from friends and family to get there, just like initial venture capital because it will take a while to get the actually corporation formed, but this attorney is going to help us with that for free. Incredible.

I also went to a lecture last night by Richard Dowden, president of the Royal African Society/former Africa editor for The Economist - http://www.amazon.co.uk/Africa-Altered-States-Ordinary-Miracles/dp/184627154

Caroline Peixoto went with me (Caroline is moving to Rwanda with us. I knew her mother when I was six years old. Now her 21 year old daughter is moving with us - crazy). It was like he was speaking right to us. He completely affirmed the direction we are moving in and provided invaluable insights. I was able to talk with him and in his words what we are setting out to do is “Brilliant.” Just a little encouraging. There also happened to be four Rwandans there who are interning at RealNetworks for three months. I talked with them for a while and will have them over for dinner. Just a really encouraging evening.

http://www.fastcompany.com/magazine/134/special-report-rwanda-rising.html?page=0%2C0

Dano leaves for Rwanda with the Crocketts next Thursday night on the redeye. They’ll be gone for 12 days. We'll post updates from that trip.