Cassville native works to help Rwandan women out of poverty
Kelia, Melissa Bittle and Francine are pictured above outside their home in Kigali, Rwanda in October 2014. Photo by Betty Krenek
March 4, 2015
Steve Chapman
When Melissa Stimson-Bittle lived in Cassville, she liked to help others. She was active in First Baptist Church, where she participated in a number of mission trips. Her role models were her pastor, the Rev. John Duncan, and his wife, Jennifer.
“John and Jennifer really fostered the heart of missions in our church,” she said. “Whether it be local service or serving around the world, they led by example and, to this day, serve the community.”
Now living in Reeds Spring with her husband of 13 years, Michael, Bittle continues to pursue mission work. Bittle is the Admissions Director at the Academy of Hair Design, and it si through that position that she is helping to better the lives of women who are living in poverty in Rwanda.
Bittle, the second of two children to Bill and Marge Stimson, graduated from Cassville High School in 2000. After graduation, she went to OTC in Springfield and earned an associates degree in graphic design. Bittle worked as a graphic designer in for the Parade of Homes for eight years but left to work in the administrative side of a beauty school in 2009. For the last two years, she has been with the Academy of Hair Design in Springfield.
In Rwanda, about 57 percent of the nation lives in poverty due to lingering effects from the 1994 Rwandan Genocide and a massive food shortage. About 27 percent of the families in Rwanda are headed by single women, and they are the most in danger of falling into poverty.
In 2012, the Academy of Hair Design partnered with Africa New Life Ministries, an organization founded to help end poverty in Rwanda, to open the Dream Beauty Academy in Kigali, Rwanda. Here, women with no way of providing for themselves are taught cosmetology and business skills through an 11-month program. These skills allow them to earn a living for themselves and their families.
In October 2014, Stimson went to Africa with a number of other staff members at the Academy of Hair Design to the visit the Dream Beauty Academy. They spent 10 days in Kigali and had the chance to speak and work with the school’s students.
They also met some of the women who had already graduated and were working in beauty salons in Kigali. According to Stimson, the Academy has powerfully affected their lives.
“A couple of the students I got to meet personally now work in a salon in their city,” she said. “They are able to make money and provide for their family whereas before they didn’t know where meals would come from. The children would be forced to go on the streets looking for food. Through their stories, you can see the heartbreak they felt for not being able to give their children basic necessities. Now, as trained, employable citizens, they can hold their heads high as they walk down the street knowing they no longer have to do illegal or immoral acts to be able to survive.”
Bittle also got to meet and spend a day with Keila, a seven-year old girl she and her husband personally sponsor through Africa New Life Ministries. She took Keila to a worship service at a church outside of her hometown and also took her shopping. “It was the first time Keila had ever been outside of the town she lives in,” Bittle said.
Bittle said Africa has always been on her heart, and she plans to return, either this fall or in 2016. She believes the Dream Beauty Academy provides the women who attend there with something that is valuable beyond estimation.
“They have self worth, they have a goal, they feel confidence and pride,” Bittle said. “In a country that aimed to decimate a people group a short 20 years ago, these feelings don’t come lightly. Having training and someone invest in you personally are valuable opportunities for the Rwandans.”
Steve Chapman
When Melissa Stimson-Bittle lived in Cassville, she liked to help others. She was active in First Baptist Church, where she participated in a number of mission trips. Her role models were her pastor, the Rev. John Duncan, and his wife, Jennifer.
“John and Jennifer really fostered the heart of missions in our church,” she said. “Whether it be local service or serving around the world, they led by example and, to this day, serve the community.”
Now living in Reeds Spring with her husband of 13 years, Michael, Bittle continues to pursue mission work. Bittle is the Admissions Director at the Academy of Hair Design, and it si through that position that she is helping to better the lives of women who are living in poverty in Rwanda.
Bittle, the second of two children to Bill and Marge Stimson, graduated from Cassville High School in 2000. After graduation, she went to OTC in Springfield and earned an associates degree in graphic design. Bittle worked as a graphic designer in for the Parade of Homes for eight years but left to work in the administrative side of a beauty school in 2009. For the last two years, she has been with the Academy of Hair Design in Springfield.
In Rwanda, about 57 percent of the nation lives in poverty due to lingering effects from the 1994 Rwandan Genocide and a massive food shortage. About 27 percent of the families in Rwanda are headed by single women, and they are the most in danger of falling into poverty.
In 2012, the Academy of Hair Design partnered with Africa New Life Ministries, an organization founded to help end poverty in Rwanda, to open the Dream Beauty Academy in Kigali, Rwanda. Here, women with no way of providing for themselves are taught cosmetology and business skills through an 11-month program. These skills allow them to earn a living for themselves and their families.
In October 2014, Stimson went to Africa with a number of other staff members at the Academy of Hair Design to the visit the Dream Beauty Academy. They spent 10 days in Kigali and had the chance to speak and work with the school’s students.
They also met some of the women who had already graduated and were working in beauty salons in Kigali. According to Stimson, the Academy has powerfully affected their lives.
“A couple of the students I got to meet personally now work in a salon in their city,” she said. “They are able to make money and provide for their family whereas before they didn’t know where meals would come from. The children would be forced to go on the streets looking for food. Through their stories, you can see the heartbreak they felt for not being able to give their children basic necessities. Now, as trained, employable citizens, they can hold their heads high as they walk down the street knowing they no longer have to do illegal or immoral acts to be able to survive.”
Bittle also got to meet and spend a day with Keila, a seven-year old girl she and her husband personally sponsor through Africa New Life Ministries. She took Keila to a worship service at a church outside of her hometown and also took her shopping. “It was the first time Keila had ever been outside of the town she lives in,” Bittle said.
Bittle said Africa has always been on her heart, and she plans to return, either this fall or in 2016. She believes the Dream Beauty Academy provides the women who attend there with something that is valuable beyond estimation.
“They have self worth, they have a goal, they feel confidence and pride,” Bittle said. “In a country that aimed to decimate a people group a short 20 years ago, these feelings don’t come lightly. Having training and someone invest in you personally are valuable opportunities for the Rwandans.”
