Left to Tell: Discovering God Amidst the Rwandan Holocaust

Leonard Ukulikyinkindi is Immaculée’s father. Rwanda is a patriarchal society, so Leonard is seen as the leader and protector of the family, and he is known throughout the community as a wise man, someone who community members can come to for advice in times of crisis: “Dad invited people into the house at all hours and would discuss their problems until they found a better solution. He was a good diplomat and always made people feel as if they’d resolved their own difficulties” (8). Immaculée is very close her father, who:

always knew when I was frightened, and he’d bundle me in his arms all the way home. He was a big, strong man, and I felt safe and loved wrapped in those powerful arms. It thrilled me to be lifted up so affectionately, especially since Dad was very reserved in an old-fashioned way and rarely showed his emotions or said he loved my brothers and me (4).

Education is valued in their household, and so Leonard does everything to facilitate his children’s schooling. Leonard is killed by the Hutu militia, known as the Interwahame, while trying to procure food and supplies for a group of Tutsi refugees that are about to die of starvation.

Marie Rose Kankindi, known simply as Rose, is Immaculée’s mother. Immaculée looks up to her mother:

Her energy never failed to astonish me: Mom was always the first to rise and last to bed, getting up hours before anyone else to make sure that the house was in order, our clothes were laid out, our books and lessons were ready, and my father’s work papers were organized. She made all our clothing herself, cut our hair, and brightened the house with handmade decorations (4).

Like Leonard, Immaculée’s mother is “also known for her many good works. She could never turn away anyone in need, so we often had another family living with us because they’d fallen on hard times and needed a place to stay until they got back on their feet” (7). Marie is killed by Hutu extremists when she cannot provide the ransom money that the killers demand.

Damascene is the second eldest child in Immaculée’s family. Immaculée has a special connection with Damascene:

He made me laugh every day, and he always knew how to stop my tears. Damascene…to this day I can’t stay his name without smiling…or crying. He was three years my senior, but I felt as though he were my twin. He was my closest friend; he was my soul mate (10).

Immaculée describes his near universal social appeal:

Almost everyone who met Damascene loved him—his easy smile and jovial nature were infectious. He was a class clown but also a brilliant scholar, consistently among the top students in his school—and he went on to become the youngest person in the entire region to earn a master’s degree (11).

Damascene writes his final words to Immaculée in a letter while trying to flee from Rwanda to Zaire. Damascene is killed after emerging from a hole he had been hiding in while trying to leave the country.

John Marie, known as Vianney, is the youngest of Immaculée’s siblings, “a wide-eyed innocent who was lovable but pesky, as all younger brothers are, I suppose” (11). When the genocide begins, Vianney is ejected from Pastor Murinzi’s house because, even though he is just a child, sheltering him poses a higher risk because he is a boy. Immaculée is forced to give Vianney the news that he cannot stay at Pastor Murinzi’s home early in the morning, and when they part, it is the last time they will ever see each other. Vianney is killed, along with his friend Augustine, soon after leaving the pastor’s home.

Aimable is the oldest of the siblings and the only survivor in their immediate family aside from Immaculée. Aimable is described as:

the most serious member of the family. He was so quiet and introspective that we joked he was the family priest. Mom doted on him because he was her firstborn and her favorite, but Aimable was humble, shy, and embarrassed by the extra attention she paid him. He was also sweet-natured and detested violence. When the other boys roughhoused or fought with each other, he would step between them and make the peace (9).

Aimable is away at graduate school in Senegal during the genocide. As the only other survivor from the family, Immaculée has a difficult relationship with Aimable when they are finally reunited.