“I traveled to the Congo with All For Africa grantee Noella Coursaris Musunka and Khaliah Ali, daughter of Muhammad, to attend the ceremony where the first stone for the Georges Malaika Foundation school was to be laid. Our trip also happened to coincide with the 35th Anniversary of Khaliah’s father’s fight versus George Foreman (The Rumble in the Jungle). I knew that the moment would be extremely significant for Noella and the GMF team after all of their hard work publicizing and raising funds for the school.  I didn’t realize, however, how significant the moment would be for the rest of those present.

“We arrived at the grounds quite early that Tuesday morning after a journey through villages and small townships. I was wholly expecting to be the first person there, but as our jeep pulled up, I mistook the school site for something else – a construction zone or a circus! There were cement workers making final preparations for the laying of the stone. There were village school children lining up and rehearsing their performances. There were local musicians in traditional costume singing as loudly as humanly possible. And in the middle of it all were Noella and Alexander, both running around like mad!

“Anyhow, the ceremony was a resounding success. Hundreds of people were in attendance including Governor Moise Katumbi. The ceremony was filled with joy and one could clearly feel the tremendous gratitude that the village of Kalebuka has for Noella and the entire GMF team. To see their faces of love was to feel the heart of the Congo.  Khaliah, the Governor and the other special guests were overwhelmed by GMF’s spirit of self-giving. I, myself, am extremely grateful to the GMF team for making this personal experience possible for me. And of course, none of this would have been possible without All for Africa!”

Sanjay Rawal