Teen Mom

WHAT IS HOLISTIC LITERACY?

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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.

WHAT

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.

WHY

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!

LET ME HELP!

WHAT IS HOLISTIC LITERACY? Read More »

ALL THE BABIES!

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We have a lot of babies these days!

We first met Jenifer in early 2020, when she was very pregnant and homeless. We were able to refer her to a Namuwongo organization called Amani, which helps teen moms give birth safely. However, they don’t offer care once a baby is born, and Jenifer went back to staying with various friends. Each time, they were chased out of their housing by the landlord for not paying rent.

Jenifer came back to the office when Liz was 18 months old. Once again, she was homeless, malnourished, and sick with malaria.

We admitted her to the Ross House, where she has received medical care, sexual trauma counseling, psycho-social counseling, mentoring, and is enrolled in Skills for Life learning Tailoring.

Liz is one of 5 babies/toddlers living in the Ross and Suubi Houses. There are another half dozen belonging to teen girls in Skills for Life. Most days, all these young moms bring their children to class, tied to their backs or sitting in their laps while they work.

While they make it work, it’s obviously distracting — anyone with a curious child knows how hard this must be!

In early 2022, we will be creating a small daycare for these sweet kids. Moms like Jenifer can leave their child while they’re in class or out working, and know that they are safe, happy, fed, and loved.

Want to help? We’ve got a DonorSee project up to fund the daycare – check it out! As of today, we just need $295 to fully fund this project and have it up and running when classes start back in January! Webely nyo!

ALL THE BABIES! Read More »

SHARON’S STORY AND OUR 1 YEAR ANNIVERSARY

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I can’t believe it’s been a year. Or maybe that it’s “only” been a year — we’ve done SO much more than we expected, and have so many great things already in the works for 2022.

THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT!

This is Sharon’s story. She is one of the 6 girls who has come into the Ross House program for teen moms in crisis in 2021. Because of YOU, she has hope and opportunity!

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November is a big month for Ten Eighteen!

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It’s almost our FIRST ANNIVERSARY! We opened the Ross House a year ago, and my how we’ve grown!

What started out as an idea I got while walking on the beach contemplating the devastating effects on teen girls of the COVID19 lockdown is now a bursting-at-the-seams, thriving hub of activity! Every week we have

  • 5 teen moms in 2 residential settings
  • 1 homeless teen girl in a dormitory
  • 20 teen girls and moms in Skills for Life
  • 30-40 visitors for Saturday’s Turning Point
  • A dozen girls for Friday’s Teen Talk
  • 20 girls in Strong Mind Mentoring groups

We average 1800 meals a month in our Namuwongo project, and we’re growing all the time! Coming in our second year: a computer lab, literacy class, advanced tailoring class, a daycare for our teen moms, and an expanded residential and dormitory program.

Our partnership with DonorSee is allowing us to provide the needed supplies for the girls in Skills for Life, give micro-grants to teen moms to start a small business, handle medical emergencies, and grow our program. We have also been able to provide much needed food for our foster families in Mbarara. We expect the last two months of 2021 to be huge for us on the platform, and we’re so thankful to those of you who have checked us out over there!

At the end of the month, on the 30th, it’s Giving Tuesday. Like all nonprofits, our year end campaigns are really important to keep us healthy for the upcoming year. Please follow us on social media and sign up for our weekly newsletters — we’ll have all the Giving Tuesday and Year End Giving information for you!

WHAT’S NEW ON DONORSEE

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RETURNING TO NORMAL – AND GROWING!

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First, let me apologize for not blogging in so long! I honestly had no idea it had been 6 weeks… I have sent out a good number of short email updates during that time (less than one per week), so please feel free to subscribe there to not miss anything!

Jenifer and daughter Liz at the Ross House

WHAT’S HAPPENING WITH THE LOCKDOWN?

While schools are still closed for at least another 2 weeks, the country has been gradually opening in a “partial” lockdown scenario. There are still a 7:00pm curfew, capacity limits, and other SOPs in place, but life in the slum (where few authorities wanted to go even during the most strict part of the lockdown) is getting back to normal.

Skills for Life Term 2 is in week three, with the classes having been divided between Advanced and Regular on Monday to better facilitate everyone’s learning. We have 20 girls working very hard to take advantage of this opportunity!

On the dark side, mass evictions – halted for a short time during the lockdown – have begun again. Of course people in the informal economy can’t pay… they used their business capital for food, and have no way to earn back that capital to restart a business, nor to pay the landlord. Landlords are businesspeople too, I know, but it would be easier to have sympathy if slum landlords weren’t (as a general but not universal rule) well, the epitome of slum landlords. There was also a tax increase on landlords on July 1 from 10% to 30%, and of course they must pass that on. The end result is that we are seeing a huge number of homeless and pregnant girls.

WHAT WE’RE DOING

Our landlord – who is actually really great! – has been working on the buildings at the back of our compound during the lockdown. We spoke to him, and were able to secure not only a lot more space for our programs, but also a promise that he would only rent to women who he has thoroughly vetted. We didn’t want to move, but also didn’t want to expose girls who had undergone sexual trauma to strange me. (Men aren’t allowed in the Ross House at all.)

What that means:

  • We are moving the Ross House to a large apartment, which will allow us to double our capacity for teen moms. The apartment has a bathroom and kitchen.
  • We are taking the whole lower section of the new building, which adds 5 rooms plus a kitchen and bathroom. We will convert one room into a dormitory for S4L girls who have become homeless and have no family; one room will be the new Advanced Tailoring class; and one room will be a classroom where the S4L girls can learn basic reading and math. We’ll see how we grow with the other two!

We were able to secure this space for not-quite-double our existing rent, which is amazing given the increased tax the landlord is paying to the government. We are so thankful!

MORE TO COME!

We are so excited how far we’ve come in the last 10 months, and excited to see where we are in 2022. If you’d like to partner with us to give teen girls and moms the skills to be self-sufficient, we’d love to have you join the Ten Eighteen family!

YES, I WANT T HELP!

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GOOD NEWS AMIDST THE CONTINUING LOCKDOWN

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We’re at day 44, between the first partial shutdown, and the total lockdown. We’ve got about 10 days to go – in theory – but no one actually expects the lockdown to be lifted or even eased. FOOD INSECURITY and starvation continue to be the #1 issue throughout the country and our programs.

BUT THERE IS SOME GOOD NEWS, TOO!

  • Gideon, Director of Hopeland and Wells of Hope Primary Schools, welcomed his first child on Saturday. Wife Winnie and baby Nathaniel are doing great!
  • We’ve had local donations of food from businesses like Xara Ranch and Lekker Bakery, as well as from expats who have heard about our work and want to help. This is making a big impact!
  • The Suubi House is open and running smoothly. Gertrude, the caretaker, reports that the girls and their babies are adapting wonderfully. They are all still eating, bathing, and doing laundry at the Ross House — only a 5 min walk away.
  • We are able to keep the girls from Skills for Life who have been struggling with mental health issues busy with the Ndoto co-op and outreaches into the community. They are also receiving food for their families, which is relieving the burden there and minimizing the type of atmosphere that leads to child bride practices or other behaviors leading to teenage pregnancy.
  • ALL of the Primary 7 students from Hopeland School passed the National Leaving Exam in March, thanks to your donations that allowed us to hire teachers, provide transportation, and create home-study materials for them during the 15 month school closures.
Gloria, 16, has come SO far in her 4 months at the Ross House! She is now the “senior”, and is ready and willing to help new emergency admissions in the coming weeks.

IT’S BEEN A DIFFICULT TIME, BUT THANKS TO OUR WONDERFUL DONORS AND SUPPORTERS, WE ARE STILL ABLE TO SERVE THE MOST VULNERABLE IN UGANDA.

THANK YOU!

To help vulnerable children and teens, you can donate here! 100% of your donation goes to the work – we can’t do it without you!

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LIFE UNDER TOTAL LOCKDOWN

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Brenda (not her real name), age 17

To say that things are bad in Uganda is a pretty serious understatement. People are already starving and facing eviction, and because of a new 20% tax on landlords starting July 1, they are being made to pay increased rents even while making no money.

ESCAPED

We had a very scary incident today. One of our girls, Brenda (not her real name), 17, answered a call from a man she didn’t know who offered her a housekeeping job. Brenda’s family is out of food and desperate, so she went to find out about the job.

The man locked her in a room and tried to rape her. His plan was to keep her imprisoned in the house, forcing her into sex and trafficking her to others.

Fortunately, Brenda fought her way out and escaped being raped. She was beaten up and covered with bruises, but because she wasn’t actually raped, the police just filed the statement along with the hundreds of others just like it that they’re getting.

HUNDREDS OF OTHERS. And we’re 10 days into a 42 day (minimum) lockdown.

We held an emergency meeting when they got back to the office. OF COURSE, Brenda is traumatized. And there are many more girls who are facing this and who maybe won’t be so lucky.

We have a total of 40 teen girls who have either completed Skills for Life or are on the waiting list and who had just had orientation for term 2 when the lockdown came. There are another 15-20 who are involved in other ways in our Namuwongo program. They are ALL extremely vulnerable.

SOLUTION: WILL YOU ADOPT A GIRL (AAG) FOR ONE MONTH?

For $50 we can feed a family of 5 (the average number in the slum) for a month. FOOD INSECURITY is the #1 driver of voluntary or forced prostitution for teen girls. Through the AAG program, we can remove that burden, we can protect these precious girls and get their families through the lockdown.

Posho, a staple in Uganda, is corn flour

We have also relaunched the Ndoto cooperative, which we ran in 2014 and 2015. Teen girls from our Skills for Life Term 1 who are at particular risk of trafficking, mental health issues, and/or homelessness will be working at Skills for Life to design and create products that we can sell once the lockdowns are over. These girls will make a salary on top of an AAG allowance of food for their family.

SUUBI HOUSE – WHERE HOPE LIVES

We finally got the keys for our transition house this week!! The painting is done, the beds and mattresses are in, and most of the necessities will be purchased this weekend. The power will get hooked up (eventually).

This means that Sharon and Shadia and their babies will be able to move from the Ross House soon, making room for us to take in emergency cases of teen moms in crisis. For the duration of the lockdown, the girls at the Suubi House will still eat and bathe at the Ross House, which is only a 5-minute walk away.

While we knew we needed this house before the lockdown, the current situation means that we will get many more cases of teen moms in crisis referred to us that ever before. Making space at the Ross House to bring in these precious girls and their babies is crucial!

YOU CAN HELP SAVE TEEN GIRLS TODAY!

100% OF YOUR DONATIONS GO TO THE PROGRAMS – WE TAKE NOTHING OUT OF IT. AND OUR AVERAGE TURN-AROUND FROM DONATION TO THE TARGET PROGRAM IS 5 DAYS. YOU CAN TRULY CHANGE A LIFE TODAY!

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IS THE NEXT STEP AFTER HALFWAY HOUSE QUARTERWAY HOUSE?

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THIS IS GLORIA. TODAY, SHE BECAME HOMELESS.

Gloria is 16. Her son Imran is 6 months old. Before she got pregnant, Gloria was using drugs and alcohol, and trading sex for basic necessities like sanitary pads. She lived in a one-room home with 5-6 other girls, who have all now had babies, where the rent was paid by one or other of the girls’ boyfriends.

UNTIL IT WASN’T. NOW THEY’VE ALL BEEN EVICTED, AND GLORIA HAS NO FAMILY, AND NOWHERE TO GO.

Since January, Gloria has been participating in Guardian Angel and Skills for Life programs. She has been in the morning hairdressing class, working extremely hard. She has practiced during breaks and days off, coming in to learn not only hairdressing but also basic reading and writing in Luganda and a little English. She was the subject of our first documentary-style film.

When Ronald messaged me, we were able to have an immediate video meeting – man, do I love modern technology!

These are the daily challenges of working in a slum that has a HUGE population of teen moms who are largely uneducated and unemployed. And let’s be honest, it’s tough.

It’s tough to turn away girls in need. We get multiple calls a week from authorities and other organizations about teen moms in crisis. It’s just HARD. But we could have a house the size of a city block and still have to turn people away…

We do as much as we can and make sure to really invest in each girl we CAN take, making them a part of our family.

So we did the only thing we could do: we moved Gloria into the Ross House.

SO THAT BRINGS US TO THE “QUARTERWAY” HOUSE.

A couple of weeks ago, we realized that Sharon and Shadia, our two Ross House residents, had no family to go to when their stay was complete. Many (most?) of the teen girls in the programs don’t – they are either orphans, were kicked out when they got pregnant, were raped or abused by a man in their home who is not their father, or their family is in a village and unwelcoming. Our previous residents didn’t have this issue, though, so we hadn’t yet figured out the next step.

But by mid-June, we MUST have one! And now Gloria has come to the Ross House, and the need for “the next thing” (we’ll call it TNT) is even more urgent.

When we first realized we need a TNT, we began to plan. We have a lead on a 2-room place close to the Ross House/Guardian Angel/Skills for Life compound. It’s supposed to be available in May, so we are following up on that today.

We planned the HOW:

  • a resident social worker
  • a micro-savings program
  • continued financial/business literacy training
  • small contributions to the house to build the skill of budgeting

We applied for a grant to fund it – but with our accelerated schedule, the expenses will come before the money (if we’re blessed with a yes!).

BUT OF COURSE WE HAVE TO DO IT. THERE’S NOT EVEN ANY QUESTION…

Our goal isn’t a pleasant 3-4 month stay for a young, sick mom, and then to push her back out on the street to be in a worse state than before. Our goal is holistic.

  • Medical care for physical wellness
  • Psycho-social counseling for mental wellness
  • Sexual trauma counseling for emotional wellness
  • Vocational training for financial stability

The girls may not have a family — or a good family — to lean on, but they have us.

WE’RE ALL FAMILY NOW!

To help with the cost to establish the Suubi House , please make a one-time or recurring donation!

IS THE NEXT STEP AFTER HALFWAY HOUSE QUARTERWAY HOUSE? Read More »

TEEN MOM GOES FROM HOMELESS TO HAPPY AT THE ROSS HOUSE!

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We got a call from local authorities in early November about a girl who had just given birth who was living under the small roof of a video shanty. Esther and her baby were very sick.

We got her and her baby to a clinic, where she was diagnosed with a bad infection due to childbirth complications, and the baby was also ill. Both were treated, and we moved them temporarily into a small garage of a now-closed nonprofit who allowed us the space for a short time. Mama Santa visited and brought food several times a day, and made sure that Esther and the baby took their medications.

When we opened the Ross House in mid-November, Esther was one of our first residents.

She cried for an entire week.

After just a month, Esther had gained weight, gotten well, and was full of smiles.

She enrolled in our first Skills for Life, choosing hairdressing. She also learned a “small skill”, how to make samosas, and was given the tools she’d need to start a small business while she learned her “big skill” over four months.

Esther graduated from the Ross House at the end of January, having completed our Sexual Trauma Workbook and our basic financial and business literacy training. When she moved in with her sister nearby, she took a month of food with her for the household, as well as all she would need to run her samosa business in the morning and attend the hairdressing class in the afternoon.

While her brother-in-law eventually decided he didn’t want Esther and Ella living with them (we moved her in with a family from church), Esther continues to thrive. She is excelling in the advanced class, and working extremely hard on her skills and creativity.

ESTHER IS NOW ALMOST UNRECOGNIZABLE!

She’s the one on the left… To be honest, when Ronald sent me this photo, I didn’t realize who was in it!

This is real change, and thanks to S4L, lasting change.

The Ross House family expands with every graduate — and they remain our family, with access to medical care and food, continued counseling, and opportunities.

MAY 26, 2021 UPDATE

On Saturday, Esther taught a skills workshop on how to make and sell samosas to 15 young people!! She did an amazing job, earned some money, and gained a huge amount of confidence. AMAZING!!

THIS IS OUR WHY!

AND THIS IS YOUR IMPACT!

Thanks to you and donors like you, we are able to create dramatic, deep-rooted change that will affect not only girls like Esther, but their children, their extended families, and their community.

AND THAT’S TEN EIGHTEEN’S MISSION: TO CHANGE THE CULTURE OF EXTREME POVERTY FOR THE YOUTH OF UGANDA.

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