On October 25, 1993, Maggy Barankitse buried seventy-two bodies in a mass grave on the grounds of the bishop’s house in Burundi, a day after she was made to watch as they were murdered in a fit of ethnic violence. What happened next would save tens of thousands of children from death and despair during a protracted civil war.

Love Made Me an Inventor is how Marguerite (Maggy) Barankitse describes how she has been able to accomplish her life-saving work. In this first-ever authorized biography in English, readers will encounter her extraordinary journey from survivor to founder of Maison Shalom and the name “Angel of Burundi.”

For twenty-two years Maison Shalom provided care for mothers and children devastated by war and ethnic violence in Burundi. Then, after narrowly escaping an assassination attempt in 2015, Maggy’s work shifted to helping Burundian refugees in Rwanda through education, healthcare, and community services.