{{Little Known to most Rwandans, residents of a UK town Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk have declared July 7 Rwanda Friendship Day. }}
Bury is the seat of the Diocese of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich.
The Rwanda Friendship Day was declared by the community’s leadership during Mass at at St Edmundsbury Cathedral also attended by the area mayor, Councillor Terry Buckle and Rwanda’s High Commissioner to the UK, Williams Nkurunziza attended.
Also about 200 residents including other dignitaries and members of the Rwandan community were in attendence.
Mayor Buckle and Amb. Nkurunziza light a candle of friendship to mark July 7 as ‘Rwanda Friendship Day,’ the same day a year ago that the Rwandan Olympic team first arrived in Bury St Edmunds for their Pre-Games Training Camp.
According to the mayor, the dedication of this day is intended to ensure that the community builds ‘a lasting legacy of friendship’ from their first interaction with the Rwandan athletics’ team.
Amb. Nkurunziza noted, “Our athletes came here to compete in sports, but won a special place in your hearts. By declaring July 7 the Rwanda Friendship Day, the people of St Edmunds demonstrate a deep desire to build an enduring friendship between your community and our country. We share this desire and commend you for taking the first, firm step in this journey.”
{Newtimes photo}
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