Journey of Hope Fall 2015 | Page 50

CONSTRUCTION COMPLETE: R ukut is a small village on the Yarkhun River. Approximately 20 families call it home. Located a short distance from the Afghanistan border in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province, the village is remote to say the least. A featured project of CAI’s 2015 Spring Capital Campaign, funds were collected to build a permanent school in the village. Construction began in May on land donated by the community. CAI purchased and delivered materials, such as wood and concrete, while villagers collected gravel and stone from the nearby river. The community came together to provide unskilled labor to assist the skilled laborers brought in by CAI. The building was completed in September, ahead of the cold weather. The school boasts four classrooms, one office, two toilets, and a boundary wall. Previously there had been only one teacher, Mr. Essa Khan. After teaching in two other CAI-supported schools north of Rukut, Khan is happy now to be working in his home village. 44 | JOURNEY OF HOPE CENTRAL ASIA INSTITUTE