Philip Eykelbosch had been working for three years as a project engineer in Seattle, Washington when he realized he was ready for a change of lifestyle and a change of scenery.  “I was progressing professionally, but just wasn’t getting any satisfaction from my work. I had this nagging feeling that there was something more to life and so I quit my job and began searching for volunteer opportunities in Africa.  Africa had intrigued me since University when I had several friends from different African countries. There was something unique about their attitudes and the way they lived, they seemed really happy.” 

During Philip’s hunt for opportunities to get involved, he remembered hearing from one of his friends about Wellspring.  Philip had known of Jeff and Richard from when he attended Trinity Western University in 1998 and so after checking out Wellspring’s website, he contacted Richard to inquire about ways to get involved.  Philip’s timing was perfect and Richard and Jeff knew immediately that Philip’s skills were exactly what Wellspring needed to help complete a wood-working project.  Within three weeks, Philip was on a plane to Rwanda.

This isn’t Philip’s first time overseas, considering he spent most of his childhood in Japan and Germany, but he is excited to be experiencing a new country.  “Rwanda surprised me. It is very densely populated with people always moving around.  I am impressed by people’s desire to work hard and find their attitude so different than the guys I worked with in North America, it’s really refreshing.” 

Philip came to Rwanda with a craving to work with his hands and to be productive for a purpose that he believes in.  In the few weeks that Philip has been here, he has cranked out dozens of cabinets, book shelves, cubby-hole units, shoe shelves, coat racks, and multiple other projects. Some of these will be immediately installed and put to use in the Wellspring Academy and the rest will be all ready for next year when the Academy grows to grade 5.  Philip’s hands have produced the shelves where students can keep their notebooks and the cabinets for teachers to store their materials. 

While Philip has already accomplished a great amount of work, his adventures are not over yet.  After Rwanda, he’ll be heading to Uganda to connect with some projects there.  Wellspring has been greatly blessed by Philip’s contribution in the way that he has used his gifts and skills to serve Rwanda’s next generation of leaders.