SPOKANE, Wash., Oct. 30 /PRNewswire/ -- For many of us, Christmas has always been about children: the joy of watching their faces light up on that special morning. We go out of our way to make Christmas a special time, to give generously to the less fortunate, to remember the underprivileged. This December, twenty-four ordinary people will get the chance to share Christmas in a country with a million orphans, watching the real meaning of Christmas come alive in the faces of the children of genocide.

People to People Citizen Ambassador Programs, founded by President Dwight Eisenhower in 1956, has made Rwanda -- notorious for the 1994 genocide that killed an estimated 1,000,000 people -- part of its Mission in Understanding programs. With a mandate to foster peace through understanding, People to People began sending delegations of Citizen Ambassadors to Rwanda in September, and is currently forming a delegation traveling in December to one of the most remarkable places on earth. This East African country has the highest percentage of orphans in the world, but if the experiences of recent delegations hold true, it is likely the people who apply with the intent to bring some Christmas cheer to them may receive far more than they give.

"'If you wait for your neighbor to give you seeds, you will miss the growing season.' I found this to be a revealing comment about Rwandans' 'can do' attitude in the face of tremendous challenges," says Lisa Erickson, who traveled as a People to People Citizen Ambassador to Rwanda in September. "I came away with a great deal of respect for how the country is conducting itself."

The initial delegations of Citizen Ambassadors to Rwanda returned with a new perspective on a country they had expected to be mired in gloom and hatred. Instead, they found a nation looking forward, not back, focused on reconciliation, not recriminations. Smiles and gentle dignity, gratitude for the simplest things, and hope for a better future were the hallmark even of the orphans, some of whom had never seen "mizungu" (white people) until People to People came to their village.

"The delegation allowed us to experience the heart and soul of a country through interacting with its people," says Mary Lou Powell, Citizen Ambassador. "Digesting the enormity of the genocide through the words of survivors pointed out the profound evil that had enveloped that country, festering for decades. If you want an experience that will immerse you in real Africa, where you can see, hear, and feel the lives of people, take the journey to Rwanda."

Immersion is the heart and soul and intent of the People to People mandate to foster peace through understanding. Delegates on the Christmas program will celebrate the season with Les Enfants de Dieu (Children of God), an association of street children in Kigali, Rwanda's capital; the children of Urukundo Home for Children, founded by 73-year-old American Arlene Brown, who abandoned her comfortable retirement to move to Rwanda; and with the children at the Rwaza Orphanage, founded shortly after the genocide. As part of the Mission in Understanding, delegates will also visit Rwanda's Millennium Village and observe first hand models for alleviating the country's extreme poverty, speak with survivors, and watch victims and perpetrators literally working side by side to put the past behind them.

You can learn more about People to People and the Rwanda delegation at http://www.citizenambassadors.org/ or by calling 800.669.7882, ext. 8100. "Ordinary" citizens are invited to apply for what delegates call a "life-changing and eye-opening experience". It might be the best Christmas present you ever give yourself.

Media Contact: Meggan Needham, Purple Door Communications, 312.286.4974

CONTACT: Meggan Needham of Purple Door Communications, +1-312-286-4974,
for People to People

Web site: http://www.citizenambassadors.org/