From Ballard to Bellingham to Burundi, an eclectic group of nearly 20 professionals and students, including a massage therapist, a self-ascribed "computer geek," a veterinarian assistant and alternative-rock drummer, and even a retiree from the car wash industry, met in Susan Partnow's Ballard living room recently. They are joining her Ballard-based organization, Global Citizen Journey, and are considering taking her two-week trip leaving June 28 to Carama, Burundi to help bring both moral support, and clean water, to that war-torn community.

Carama was once home to over 6,000, but during the 1993 civil war between Hutus and Tutsis, most survivors fled, and homes were destroyed. Now people are returning, the town is rebuilding, and the outside world is helping.

Global Citizen Journey visits a different African village annually. The last two years brought it to the Niger Delta and Ghana. Those members who choose to go on the trip pay their own way, $3,150 plus airfare. Some of that fee goes toward supplies for the village water project. They are called "delegates," and meet their African counterparts, a local group the same size, paired by common interests. Arrangements for the African "delegates" are made by Partnow's Burundian counterpart, Prosper Ndabishuriye, through his organization, Youth in Reconstruction of a World in Destruction. He attended the Ballard meeting and spoke of the war and encouraging signs he has since seen, and positive actions he has personally taken since the war.

A prominent ambassador for peace in Burundi, Ndabishuriye, 50, a Hutu, met with the former democratically elected President, Melchior Ndadaye, in 1993. As national director, Campus Crusade for Christ, he said he was privileged to share his thoughts on unifying the bitterly divided country. Tragically, just three months later, Ndadaye was assassinated and genocide followed. He is now in contact with current Burundi president, Pierre Nkurunziza, who he said might visit Carama during the June trip, and pick up a trowel.

"Burundi is a very small country," said Ndabishuriye in a quiet voice at the meeting. "You can fit five of my country inside Washington. Seeing people like you I find very encouraging. It tells me the situation in the world is going to change soon. Listening, writing, taking action that is why you are here.

"People who used to live together decided to kill each other. They trained children to kill their own. I wondered what could I do to establish a bridge?" With the help of God, Hutus and Tutsis can start to trust each other." At the problem's core, the Hutus make up nearly 85 percent of Burundi's population, while the Tutsi minority ruled over them for years, causing resentment and instability.

He unfolded a large blueprint of Carama, and pointed enthusiastically to 500 new homes that his, and other organizations have helped build, and where the next 300 will be situated.

Some members of Global Citizen Journey have traveled with the organization before. Others are new, inspired by the project, but somewhat apprehensive to dive into a dangerous environment.

While Burundi is currently enjoying a ceasefire, both our State Department, and the hip and defiant Australian-based Lonely Planet, strongly advise against travel in Burundi on their web sites. But, according to Partnow, that is precisely the point.

"They are needy, even more desparate than the other countries we have visited. We will travel as a plugged-in a group with guides, and will be in as safe a situation as possible," she said. "Showing up as a group of just ordinary human beings from another country always creates a buzz in the village, an inspiration to them, as they are to us.

"The origin of our group is the living room. We are not part of any large government organization or system, and don't want to get funded by one. Self-funding is part of who we are." As there is no corporate sponsorship, she encourages travelers to fund-raise, both to help pay their way, and also to increase public awareness of Burundi and their role there.

Members may have deep spiritual beliefs, but Partnow, who is not Christian, emphasized that her organization is not religion-based.

"Every person has a piece of the truth," she said. "If we listen deeply enough we will find that. Through compassionate listening, we can connect without judgment."

Reverend Deborah L. Adams is project director for Portnow, and has been a pastor for 25 years. At the meeting, she made the point that the group encourages interfaith dialogue, if religion is brought up at all. "I am very clear that a large part of the troubles in the world are caused by the institution of church. The church mission models come with a means to convert. In some cases it is doing great work in the world, but we need dialogue between the different churches and cultures.

"Our organization is a model that does that. I understand the Christ figure to be one who comes in friendship. I like interfaith, and its focus on international friendship, which is in all of our traditions."

For more information, go to: www.globalcitizenjourney.org

Steve Shay may be reached at steves@robinsonnews.com