AUSTIN, Texas — The Mukire Family is ringing in the season of giving as they settle into their new lives in Austin.
At Interfaith Action of Central Texas, the family opened boxes of household items like a pressure cooker, an air fryer and a comforter set.
They are all part of a wish list benefitting Aimable Mukire, his wife Chantal Bisaninka and their five children: Belle Mukire, Valerie Mukire, Dorcas Shimwe, Mediatrice Irakoze and Israel Mukire, who was born in the United States.
The wish list is comprised of donations the family asked for from the community thanks to the Statesman Season for Caring Program. They are one of 12 families nominated by local nonprofits.
The spirit of generosity is a far cry from their old lives, when Aimable was born and raised in the Congo, fleeing the country due to war in 2004.
"They were killing people and then taking other things that they used to have and just killing people any time," Aimable Mukire said through a translator.
Mukire and his family fled to a refugee camp in Burundi, where life did not necessarily fare easier.
"Whenever they were leaving to Burundi, the people stole everything, they took everything from them. Whenever we got to Burundi, we had nothing at all," Mukire said. "When we got to Burundi, they gave us food, but it wasn't enough food for the family, and life was just hard cause we had nothing."
Mukire raised four kids at the camp. Two of his daughters, Valerie and Mediatrice, have cerebral palsy.
"These two didn't go to school, they stayed home, they did not have a doctor," Mukire said.
The family spent more than 15 years at the camp, arriving in Austin with the help of a refugee protection organization in 2019.
"It's really good, and there's peace. Nothing to worry about because I feel safe," Mukire said.
The family is fulfilling its wishes and dreams in more ways than one.
The Mukires still need help in the form of living room furniture or a gently used car. For a link to their wish list, click here or contact Interfaith Action of Central Texas. To learn more about the Mukires and other families in need of basic needs like rent, groceries and utilities, click here.