She's My Sister

Biking for our Congo Sisters

In June and July, a group of young people will ride from Florida to New York to tell the stories of their sisters in DR Congo. They need your help!

She has a story to tell

Don’t let the statistics silence a story like hers.

Bringing Trauma Healing to Great Lakes Africa

Trauma care makes relief & development work more effective. Find out why.

Become an Advocate. Speak for your Sisters.

As a Sister Advocate, you can bring hope to desperate and hurting women. We can show you how.

About She's My Sister

She’s My Sister,™ an American Bible Society initiative, seeks to repair spiritual and emotional wounds caused by decades of brutal conflict. Addressing trauma is the first step toward restoring hope and beauty from horror’s ashes.

Featured Article

Organizing for Service

As many as one in seven people worldwide are traumatized, so She's My Sister is preparing our Scripture-based trauma care model for broader deployment.

Read the full article »

They Have Stories To Tell

When war came to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the lives of many, many women and children forever changed. Here are some of their stories. Will you hear them?

Name: Consolatta and Sister Alvera

Age:

22

Consolatta, now 22, is from Masisi territory in North Kivu Province in Eastern DRC. When her village was attacked, she fled and was later brutally raped by a group of soldiers. Physically broken and psychologically traumatized, she was then abandoned by her parents. Eventually she found her way to Flame of Love, a center run by Sister Alvera Nyiramasuhuko in Goma. Today she cares for some of Congo’s thousands of war orphans—and increasingly for victims of war rape.

Name: Esperence

Age:

19

As she speaks, Esperence holds her 2-month-old baby, Baraka. The child’s name means “Blessing,” but the circumstances under which he was conceived were a curse. Esperence was sent to get water, a long way from the house she shared with her uncle and his wife. As she walked, seven soldiers attacked and raped her. She lay on the ground, paralyzed by pain. Eventually, Esperence found her way to Mama Jeanne, a woman who offers medical care and shelter to orphans and survivors of rape. Sick and weak, Esperence was losing blood rapidly. Doctors performed surgery to stop the bleeding and discovered she was pregnant. Esperence slowly gained her strength, but learned that her uncle and his wife were killed. She has nowhere to go.

Name: Nabusiralo

Age:

45

Nabusiralo knows the terror of hiding in the bush, night after night, to avoid being discovered. Any sound, any rustle could mean she was found by the militia. Over time, she got used to living on the edge of fear.But it wasn’t in the open where Nabusiralo’s worst nightmare was confirmed. It was in her own home. Her brother visited, and Nabusiralo thought she’d be safe to sleep in the house with two men to protect her. She was wrong. Soldiers crashed through her home, killing her husband and raping her. Nabusiralo was eventually brought to a hospital where she was diagnosed with HIV/AIDS. She worries continually about her children, who may lose their mother to a dreaded disease. “How can they survive?” she asks.

Name: Juaite

Age:

23

Statistics shed light on a situation. But they never tell the full story. Juaite is a statistic. She is one of 200,000 women and children who was raped in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. But the full story is the pain, isolation and humiliation Juaite suffers after 10 soldiers violated her. Juaite, 23, had to undergo two surgeries so doctors could repair her severed bladder. She now lives in a shelter for survivors of rape and has no home to go to. Juaite longs for independence and wishes she had money to start a small business.

Name: Mukeshimana (Watch & Pray)

Age:

20

Mukeshimana is 20 years old. When the war came, she fled and tried to hide in the bush. But eight ruthless soldiers pursued, trapped and raped her. Since then, Mukeshimana lost the ability to control her bladder. As a result, her relatives shun her. Mukeshimana suffers from traumatic gynecologic fistula — an injury that can occur from violent sexual assault. Doctors in Goma tried to repair Mukeshimana’s problem. Ten surgeries later, she still suffers the effects of her condition. She lives with deep emotional and physical pain. Her story is not uncommon in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Name: Gakuru

Age:

25

Gakuru’s life is characterized by loss. When she was a young child, her parents died. But a loving grandmother raised her, and Gakuru knew security and peace. One day, her grandmother sent her to the farm to harvest herbs. Four soldiers attacked and raped her. She became pregnant. Gakuru carried the child for nine months, but the baby was dead in the womb. Gakuru had to come to terms with losing a child who never had a chance to know her or love her.

Name: Imani (Faith)

Age:

20

Imani was 13 years old when war came to the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, robbing her of the happiest years of her childhood. Soldiers entered her home and killed her parents. Then five ruthless soldiers raped her, causing a traumatic injury. As a result, Imani lost the ability to control her bladder, a situation that gives her great shame. Imani underwent seven surgeries to repair the injury, but none of the operations worked. Imani, now 20, lives with great emotional, physical and psychological pain. She hasn’t seen her siblings for nearly eight years and feels alone in the world.