school

We Got Fired – From Serving Food!

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Yesterday morning, we left Kampala at 7am and drove straight through to Mbarara. It was a 4 1/2 hour drive west, and, after we got out of Kampala traffic, was pretty easy.

We went straight to Hopeland Primary School, where we toured all the classrooms and then did the devotions gathering with all the students and staff. the kids sang, Ronald taught a lesson, and we presented them with a new soccer ball and volley ball.

Then it was lunchtime, and Ronald and I were roped into serving. I’m not sure why serving matoke and beans was so difficult! hahaha But somehow, we got fired from the job — no kids starved, fortunately, as the others kept the line going. (If it had been up to us, they might have finished around dinner time!)

After lunch and checking in the hotel, we walked up the road to the soccer pitch that a local high school allows the school to use. Those kids PLAYED! (As did Ronald and William!) The girls took the volley ball to play one game, the boys took the soccer ball for another, and the small kids took an older ball and played their own. They ran and ran and ran… and it was HOT! But they had a total blast, and it was great to watch them.

Today, we will head out to Rwakobo Village and Wells of Hope Primary School. We had hoped to spend time tomorrow, which is Martyr’s Day and a national holiday, around the village, but Gideon’s wife Winnie is in the hospital and they may have to go to Kampala tomorrow. (Prayers please!)

We will spend the morning with the kids at Wells and filming some new projects for DonorSee. We’ve got a BIG, exciting project coming up in a couple of weeks, which we’ll be shooting footage for, as well as a new ecobrick water tank project for Hopeland School.

I’ll be home in a week – that’s hard to believe! Thank you so much for your support while I’ve been here. We’ve funded quite a few projects and gotten a few new monthly donors, too. We’re so grateful for your partnership!

Blessings,

Jennings

PS If you’d like to become a monthly donor, click the link! Even a small monthly donation helps so much – and 100% goes to the work, so you are making a huge difference. Webele nyo!

COUNT ME IN!

Graduation Was Simply Amazing!

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Graduation was AMAZING on Saturday!

We had 20 girls who never thought they’d ever wear a cap and gown or walk the stage to get a diploma or certificate who laughed and cried and danced and feasted to celebrate their own success. It was wonderful!

Every girl has a story. Stories like 17-year-old Sharon, who is the firstborn of five children. She did attend school for a few years but soon had to leave because her family couldn’t afford the fees.

Sharon gave up hope and turned to drugs and alcohol.

But our team identified her on our community outreach, enrolled her in Skills for Life, and now she has completed her hairdressing course and is ready to work in a salon or start her own business.

THIS IS WHAT IT’S ALL ABOUT.

Education in ways that make our girls able to sustain a livelihood.

It’s why 100% of donations go to Uganda and our programs. YOU are changing lives every day!

Webele nyo!

Jennings

PS We currently have a project on DonorSee to fund the graduation, which allows us to put on the *next* graduation in August or September. We’d love your help to continue celebrating our teen girls’ amazing accomplishments! Just click the button below!

PAY IT FORWARD!

WATER CRISIS IN RWAKOBO VILLAGE, LAKE MBURO

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There are times when you find yourself horrified at what you don’t know…. This is one such time.

I have been to many villages in central and eastern Uganda, largely with Hospice. I’ve been inside tiny slum homes: 8×8’ where 9 people live. I’ve been in traditional round homes with thatch roofs, and regional hospitals that are best not remembered. But this village… It takes the cake.

We knew we were there for a reason as soon as we got there. We have focused on food and education, and our primary goals remain — but we have realized that if the people of the village are barely surviving, are, in fact dying of diseases brought on by contaminated water or lack of food — we also have an obligation to those people who surround the school.

We were able to get the kitchen built in record time, and on Monday, March 9, began feeding the children of Wells of Hope Primary School. It was a great day!

First day of FOOD!

But on Friday, March 13, we couldn’t feed the children. Why? There was no CLEAN WATER. Anywhere.

Over the last few days, we have been gathering information on the water situation. I learned what a “seasonal well” actually is: a depression in the ground that’s dammed up and fed by muddy trenches when it rains. The animals use it. The people use it. It’s contaminated and full of disease, amoebas, and parasites. Not even the survivalists on Naked and Afraid would drink it!

Seasonal “well”

Yesterday, they were able to catch enough rainwater to use for the meal, but today they had to fetch it from this “well.” This video shows the collecting of the water that was used to feed our kids…. That’s just NOT OK. Yes, they boiled it. It’s still not OK!

We have begun an EMERGENCY FUNDRAISING CAMPAIGN to get both a cistern for the school and a well for the village. The cistern will allow a clean catch of water during rainy season so that the porridge and any drinking water will be free of contamination. A well will give the entire village of 2700+ people fresh, clean water ALL THE TIME. During dry season, the school will use it for their daily needs, and everyone will benefit.

IN FACT, IT WILL QUITE LITERALLY CHANGE THEIR LIVES! TODAY, WE SENT THE FUNDS FOR THE CISTERN. WE DIVERTED MONEY FROM OTHER PROJECTS BECAUSE WE DEEM THIS TO BE URGENT IN THE EXTREME. YOUR DONATIONS WILL HELP US “REPAY” THE OTHER PROJECTS, AS WELL AS FUND THE WELL.

WHAT: $7500 FOR A CISTERN SYSTEM AND A FULL BORE-HOLE, DEEP WELL IN THE VILLAGE
WHEN: IMMEDIATELY
HOW TO DONATE:

  • Use the Text to Give info in the photo above. Put in your own amount!
  • Use this link to our Water Project donation page. If you can select to pay the processing fee, that would be amazing!
  • Mail a check to us — please use the Contact page and we will send you our mailing address.

If you want more information, please reach out to us — we give 100% of your donations to the work, and anything we collect above the $7500 cost of this project will go to our main programs: food for 456 kids daily, education, and vocational training for teen moms in the slums.

For more day-to-day information, please FOLLOW US on Facebook and Instagrams (links below) — our social media is always the most up to date on what’s going on. Thank you for praying and partnering with Ten Eighteen as we take on this huge — but doable — endeavor!

WHY SPONSOR A CHILD?

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Jonah at the Arise Africa Babies Home is Mr. Personality

Child sponsorship has been around for decades, and there’s a good reason for that — IT WORKS! Children in developing countries often have limited access to education because their families can’t afford the fees. But education is the only possible route out of the dire poverty in which they live… Hence the problem!

IN UGANDA, MANY SCHOOLS SAY THEY HAVE “FREE TUITION” BUT THEN PILE ON FEES FOR MANY OTHER THINGS: UNIFORMS, EXAMS, ACTIVITIES, AND BOARDING FEES IF THE CHILD BOARDS AT THE SCHOOL. MOST EVEN REQUIRE THAT CHILDREN BRING ESSENTIALS TO BE GIVEN TO THE SCHOOL, SUCH AS BROOMS AND TOILET PAPER. THIS PUTS EDUCATION OUT OF REACH OF ABOUT HALF OF THE CHILDREN AND YOUTH IN THE COUNTRY.
HOW DOES SPONSORSHIP HELP?
First and foremost, your sponsorship fee lets the child know that he or she can continue in school, for each term, and for each year. Many children do go to school, but sporadically: one or two of the three terms a year, or skipping years altogether. Fees are due at the start of each term, so if the family doesn’t have the money, the child can’t go. There are many young people in their twenties who are still trying to finish their basic education.

In addition, your sponsorship helps:

  • Ensure that basic medical needs are met. Malaria medication can save a child’s life, but only if the child’s family or guardian can afford it.
  • Assists in the school’s expenses, such as teachers’ salaries, infrastructure, and boarding facilities.
  • Helps provide the child food.

WHAT DOES THE SPONSOR GET?
When you sponsor a child, you get the gift of making all the difference in the world to an impoverished child. Knowing someone cares enough to send money for them is huge to a child who has felt unloved, unwanted, and unseen.

We also facilitate communication between the child and his or her sponsor, and thanks to the internet, that’s done in near real-time. We can exchange letters and photos at the touch of a phone screen, so you’ll know if you’re child is ill, cheer them on when they’re in need of encouragement, and celebrate with them when they do well.

To change a child’s life today, go to our Sponsorship page, or click here to make an immediate donation and we’ll match you with a child.

Wells of Hope School, Rwakobo village, Lake Mburo National Park