For the past three years, Libby Weir, a member of the Jasper Rotary Club, has travelled more than 13,500 km to volunteer in the tiny east African country of Rwanda.
On May 14, she was one of six women recognized by the Rotary district for their contributions at home and abroad.
“Libby does amazing work internationally,” said Linda Robertson, the district governor for Rotary district 5370. “These women are absolutely dedicated. The amount of volunteer hours they have contributed is just phenomenal.”
Each woman won a “Light Up Rotary” award for their leadership as part of a campaign called “She’s All That,” to encourage more women to join Rotary.
Weir said she was “surprised” and “humbled” by the recognition.
“It was a great honour, I couldn’t believe it was me.”
Travelling on her own dime, Weir uses her experience as a visual artist and arts educator to help Rwandan teachers make handcrafted books out of everyday items through a program called Right to Read Rwanda, funded by the local Rotary club.
“She makes the books out of nothing,” said Jill Fenton, a Jasper Rotarian and founder of Tools for Schools, a local non-profit organization that aims to improve educational opportunites for Rwandans.
The books are made out of cardboard, fabric scraps from tailors in the market, wire for the bindings and cassava glue.
The teachers then use the books to share their personal stories and to learn English.
“A lot of the stories are about genocide,” said Weir, who helped make more than 500 books over a two-month period last year.
“It’s a good feeling to help other people. It’s totally rewarding,” she said, explaining they work from sunrise to sunset six days a week.
“It’s the first time these teachers have done anything to do with practical arts, it’s very exciting,” said Fenton. “When I go back they always ask about Libby, because she has done something so innovative with them.”
Weir first fell in love with Africa in 1996 when she was invited to Botswana as a guest artist at the Thapong International Artists’ Workshop.
A decade later she returned to the continent with her mother-in-law, Fenton, who moved to Rwanda in 1999 to head up the Green Hills Academy in Kigali, the country’s capital.
“You have to be willing to do what it takes to get the job done,” said Fenton, who now leads a team of trainers, including Weir, to deliver educational programs and workshops in five rural areas of Rwanda.
In addition to volunteering in Rwanda, Weir was also recognized for her work building playgrounds in Belize and Honduras.
During her time there she also helped the local Rotary clubs prepare grants to secure funding for future projects.
When she isn’t volunteering, she spends her time working as a visual artist doing contract work for local schools in Jasper and beyond.
Paul Clarke
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