Let’s be honest, 2021 probably wasn’t anyone’s favorite year ever… but you stepped up for Ten Eighteen in a big way, and we can’t thank you enough!
Donations for 2021 were up a little over 70% from 2020 and that’s AMAZING.
We met not just our year-end giving goal, or our stretch year-end giving goal… you donated 20% more than even that!
THANK YOU FOR 2021! Read More »
Last fall I started using the term HOLISTIC LITERACY to try to describe what our Namuwongo Skills for Life program is about. It’s probably a little different for a teen girl living in the slum than it would be for someone in a developed country, so I want to explain both the what and the why.
Many of the girls in our residential and Skills for Life programs have never been to school. Of course, that means no reading, writing, and arithmetic, but in Uganda that also means no English.
Why? English is, after all, Uganda’s official language.
But there are 60+ tribal languages spoken in Uganda. The Namuwongo slum is like every other slum — a mix of displaced and desperate people who come to Kampala to try to have a better life. People tend to spend time with those of their own tribe and language. They do not speak English.
English is learned in school. In fact, it is actually illegal for schools to teach the tribal languages. They speak, read, and write in English.
BOTTOM LINE —> No school = no English
But there’s more to literacy (for us, at least!) than the three Rs and English. We add a meaningful vocational skill so girls have a lifetime of income potential.
If needed for immediate survival, we teach a smaller skill that can start bringing in some money right away.
We conduct health and hygiene workshops so girls — and boys — can physically take care of themselves.
We are adding a computer lab in 2022 to bring digital literacy and enable routine things like national ID card updates and job applications to be done by the girls themselves.
And we will begin using Neema Development’s Entrepreneur training this spring to bring basic business literacy to the girls.
If you read through that list again, these are things that you probably already know. You may not have been taught them, per se, but you picked it up along the way. You already live in a world of holistic literacy, and you use these skills every single day.
We believe the teen girls and teen moms in our program deserve that opportunity as well. They are smart, motivated, and hard-working, and they know the alternative. They are choosing a better life and doing what’s required every day!
THANK YOU for partnering with us as well change lives AND change the culture. If you want to make a donation, click the button – 100% goes to the programs!
WHAT IS HOLISTIC LITERACY? Read More »
At Ten Eighteen, we have always promised to use your funds in the most transformational ways possible. And WOW, did we outdo ourselves in January!
The Literacy Class launched, with 20 girls who are eager (desperate!) to learn basic reading, writing, English and math. Our own teen mom Gloria, from the Ross and now Suubi House, is the most dedicated student there. (She’s on the left with her son Imran.)
Skills for Life Tailoring and Hairdressing courses did their 2-week-split, dividing the more advanced students into the afternoon classes and the ones needing more help into the morning classes. Our goal is COMPENTENCY, so we want to make sure that the girls who need more time (usually because they are illiterate and don’t speak English) get everything they need.
The daycare is now open, and our staff is already exhausted! hahaha Having done daycare in my home for a year, many many years ago, I warned them that it is a LOT of work. They now believe me! But it’s going really well, and it is SO helpful for the moms who are in class to be able to leave their children for a couple of hours to fully concentrate and learn.
Yesterday, we hired a full-time nurse. Today, we put in the order for the clinic furniture. By the end of the week, we will have stocked medication and supplies, and we should have a fully functioning and staffed clinic by Monday. We had 4 medical issues in January alone, so this will significantly help us in prevention, early treatment, and emergency care.
Sharon graduated from the Suubi House and moved with Patience to her first home of her own. She is working in a salon and told Ronald yesterday she has a new prospect for a better job. Shadia also graduated from the Suubi program and is in her own place, too! Both girls bring their kids to the daycare while they are working, so we see them — they’re doing great, and we’re so proud of them!
Bob Ditty had to postpone his photoshoot due to illness. We’ll let you know when that will be once we know.
The Advanced Tailoring class will be up and running by the end of February (probably sooner). While she waits, Ross/Suubi House resident Jenifer is doing an internship at a local tailoring shop.
We are now feeding over 60 people a day at the Ross House compound! We had to get a second stove!
Schools in Uganda FINALLY went back in session after 22 months. Wells of Hope in Rwakobo Village has 300 students! We provide food for Wells as well as Hopeland (150 students).
THANK YOU for your support and encouragement! We couldn’t do this without you! To become a monthly supporter or make a one-time donation, click the button. 100% goes to the programs!
WHAT A MONTH JANUARY WAS! Read More »
As you know, we had a lot of donations in December. It was truly amazing! So we wanted to let you know how we’re using your money so far in 2022.
Right now – today – we have finished our daycare!
This has been a long-held dream for us. We’ve watched our teen moms go to class with babies on their backs or having to chase a toddler around during lessons, and it was (of course!) obvious what we needed. But we didn’t have the space or the budget. Until now!
Thanks to your donations, both directly and on DonorSee, we got the funds to create the daycare. Our soft opening is this weekend, and we will be open for “business” (it’s free!) on Monday. Our wonderful social worker Sarah, who has a baby of her own, is in charge.
The Literacy class had its last day of “soft launch” today, too. Monday is the official launch, and we’ve got 20 girls ready to learn basic reading, writing, English, and math.
Monday, the great photographer Bob Ditty is coming to spend the day doing a photo/video shoot. I had a Zoom meeting with him yesterday and can’t wait to see his images and videos. He usually works in rural areas of Uganda, so he’s very excited to take his work to the slum.
And then Tuesday, we start work on the clinic! Having a nurse and stocked clinic onsite will save us SO MUCH MONEY, not to mention catch the common illnesses like typhoid, malaria, and pneumonia early. The nurse will also conduct regular health and hygiene seminars, and visit our families in their homes. We are really excited to add this to our compound and community.
We have a DonorSee project up to help with the clinic. If you’re interested in helping us, click the button!
Thanks for all your support and encouragement – know that you are making a HUGE difference everyday!
HOW WE’RE USING YOUR DONATIONS Read More »
What a difference a year makes!
When Ronald and I had our 2021 planning meeting at the end of 2020, we felt like we were really stretching on our 1-year goals for Touch the Slum, Skills for Life, and the very new Ross House programs.
And yet here we are, at the end of 2021, and we not only met all our goals for 2021, we met our goals through 2023!
Even with the (surprise) harsh total lockdown in June, we have gotten 40 girls through Skills for Life. We have not had a single drop-out!
…and much more!
Every single day, we touch the lives of teen girls in Uganda’s largest slum.
Friend, sometimes, we go outside our brief…
In our Namuwongo project, here are some things we don’t (usually) do that we did last week:
It’s just a matter of budget – there is SO MUCH NEED among the 30,000 people that live in Namuwongo, and we are one small nonprofit. We have to say no MUCH more often than we can say yes.
But sometimes, you just can’t say no.
A few weeks ago, the LC (local community leader) called about a pregnant 15 year old girl. While it’s in our “one day” plan, we currently aren’t equipped to take in pregnant teens. But we brought Kalunji to the office for counseling, and she has come back and spent all day every day there. She gets 2 meals a day, she’s finally gotten prenatal care and vitamins, and she’s safe.
Last weekend, the team went with her to visit her home, where she lives with her jaja. What they found was an elderly woman near to starvation, in a home where they slept on the bare dirt floor.
When Ronald sent me the video, there was no question. OF COURSE. Buy food. Get charcoal, a mattress, bedding.
OF COURSE. Because sometimes, you just can’t say no.
Ugandans know what Ugandans need.
There, I said it.
Let’s be honest, very many (most?) nonprofits define a mission first, then go do it somewhere. Very often, it’s NOT what the beneficiaries themselves think of as their most pressing need.
I have witnessed this first hand:
Okay, these are needs. (Well, not that first one!) These are “good works.” But they are things done TO people, maybe even FOR people, but not WITH people.
Uganda is poor, yes. Desperately so for most people. But Ugandans aren’t stupid. They can look around their communities and see what the needs are.
What they lack are the things Ten Eighteen strives to provide:
In order to create lasting change, we focus on the change Ugandans truly want. We all know how being forced into change feels — who wants to be forced to give up caffeine, or live without power thanks to a hurricane, or put on bed rest?? We want choices, and we want to buy in to the changes. We’ve been able to achieve so much with so little over the last 12 years because we’ve trusted our Ugandan partners — and because you’ve seen the impact and wanted to make an difference!
OUR GUIDING PHILOSOPHY AT TEN EIGHTEEN UGANDA Read More »
Since we started in 2008, we have used 100% of our donors’ money for the programs.
Surprisingly, people have argued with me (at length) as to why and how that can’t be true, even while our books and statements clearly show it is. So I thought I’d explain how it can be so.
I started this as a labor of love, and, to be honest, until 2020, it was a part time (sometimes VERY part time) job. When I’m in Uganda, which was twice a year until we moved to Nicaragua in 2016, it’s 70-80 hour weeks of working, but at most that’s 5-6 weeks a year. Even when I restarted in 2019, the work was less than 4 hours a month.
When we visited last January, I did feel strongly that we had the groundwork in place to grow. In February, I started getting Ten Eighteen ready to apply for grants. And then Covid arrived on the scene, and all the best planning went out the window. Grants pivoted to all things covid. Uganda locked down in a draconian way, and people began to starve.
So all the “formal” stuff went out the window, and we worked many many hours a week, just trying to keep people alive, provide meals, solicit donations, explain what was happening, and keep going by faith. The aftermath of the lockdowns, school closures, destroyed businesses, and starvation took months to fully realize and to begin to sketch out a way forward.
One day, and thanks to (we pray) grants, we do hope to pay people — that will mean that the work has grown to the point that our impact in Uganda is where we envision it. But our belief is that YOUR hard earned money should go to the programs that you believe in. To the work, to feed children in devastatingly poor schools, for vocational training to teens in the slums who have nowhere else to go, to the teen moms at the Ross House, to clean water for Rwakobo.
I am blessed – we are blessed – that life in the US, while difficult over this last year, has let us offer our skills and work as volunteers. I’ve been to Uganda 13 times — we’ve been 29 times as a team — and we understand how great the needs are there and how far even a small amount of money can go.
HOW DOES 100% OF YOUR DONATION GO TO THE PROGRAM? Read More »
If you follow us on social media (and if you don’t, please do!), you saw our partner and team profiles in November and December. But every once in awhile, I want to introduce myself to anyone new, and let you know the WHY behind Ten Eighteen.
My mom and grandmother were both lifelong volunteers. My grandmother didn’t stop until was 85, and even after that, did flowers at church for many more years. (She lived to 106 1/2!) My mom is still on boards and committees at 79. While my children were younger and we homeschooled, I had this vague idea to start a nonprofit, although I didn’t really know what that nonprofit would do exactly. For about eight years, the idea percolated in the back of my brain.
In the fall of 2008, I felt like it was time, and filed the paperwork — still without a hugely clear idea of what exactly we would do beyond help some missionary friends in Thailand and Zambia. I got the 501(c)3 designation in December, and around Christmas reconnected with a friend I hadn’t seen in almost 15 years, who was living in Uganda.
The first thing Ten Eighteen ever did was rent an office space for an NGO that my friend had been working with in the slums of Namuwongo. My daughter went over to visit in May of 2009, and my son and I in September. By the time we’d spent a couple of days there, we knew that Uganda was where were meant to be!
There are a lot of things I love about Uganda (and yes, some things I’m not so fond of!). But the big WHY, besides just knowing that’s where we were called to go, is this: NO ONE CAN DO EVERYTHING, BUT EVERYONE CAN DO SOMETHING.
The problems are much too big for one small nonprofit. And for the first 44 years of my life, looking at huge problems like the Namuwongo slum, three million orphaned children, HIV/AIDS decimating the 20-40 age group, devastating poverty, lack of basic necessities and services, would have completely overwhelmed me. And, to be honest, it is still overwhelming somewhere in the back of my mind. But somehow, when we were there in the slum, visiting women and children and picking our way through indescribable filth, I knew: We could do SOMETHING. Not everything… but something. And that was enough.
In our 12 years, we have actually done a lot of things:
All with very little funding, and a lot of hard work and effort by our Partners, Team, and Donors.
I’ve been to Uganda 13 times now, and pray I’ll be able to get back sometime in 2021. My heart is there, and I’m so grateful for the opportunity I’ve had to work with such amazing people.
PROFILE OF FOUNDER AND PRESIDENT, JENNINGS WRIGHT Read More »
It’s here! The online shop is fully stocked, and full of great handmade items from the Ndoto co-ops we had in 2014 and 2015. (See the note at the bottom for a full history there!) These items were made by women living with HIV/AIDS, one in the slum of Namuwongo, and the other in a remote village called Mawanga, in partnership with Rural Orphans and Womens AIDS Network (ROWEN).
You’ll find jewelry, bags, and things for your home. Soon, we will have some sleep shorts stocked as well, in fun local kitengi fabrics. (The shorts don’t have size labels, so we’re trying to sort into best-guess sizes and get some photos.)
Here’s the best part:
How?
Well, while the Ndoto co-ops were going, we paid a salary to each woman, as well as providing all the materials. Because of our move to Nicaragua, we closed the online store, but I still had all those great handcrafts. Now, we can put 100% of the price you pay to the work! (Yes, shipping and tax go to others… but you can’t have everything!)
That means you can make a big difference while getting great stuff for yourself and your loved ones. Everything is unique, everything was made with love, and trust me, you’ll love it all!
Check out Lotus y la Luna, who used some of our products in their catalog. Awesome, eco-friendly and sustainable clothing from the Crystal Coast.
INTRODUCING THE NDOTO COLLECTION ONLINE STORE Read More »
