Coming from Rwanda as a young single refugee mother with 2 sons, Joy knew nothing about New Zealand and felt scared, alone and lonely.
Her boys helped her to get out of the house, learn English and get a job. And as people welcomed her she relaxed and began to meet people who became her friends (and her husband!). Joy also made some deliberate decisions about how she would approach life here.
She says, “I didn’t want my past to be in front of my future. I wanted that past to be the past and to create a new life in a new country. And that is what I chose. And I used what I have got and it worked for me and I think I was very lucky.”
