Teen Pregnancy

Meet Our Newest Teen Moms

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Clare, Brenda, Sylvia, and Leticia with their babies

When we started the Ross House in the fall of 2020, we put some parameters in place. We knew that the need for a crisis intervention residential program was far greater than anything we’d be able to “solve”, and we knew that we needed time to figure it all out.

Some of the criteria we’ve used over the past two years have been the mom’s age (usually 15 or above), no family members available to take them in (with added support from us), and a differentiation between a short-term emergency admission and a long-term full admission.

We also decided we couldn’t handle pregnant girls, and referred them to another local organization called Amani until after they delivered.

But things change!

Our first pregnant admission was 15-year-old Kalunji back in February, who was homeless after her grandmother died. Due to the rising rate of teenage pregnancy, Amani wasn’t able to take her in. Kalunji is still with us in the Suubi House and she’s doing great.

Our next was 15-year-old Sylvia, who was homeless and rescued by a local LC (community leader) and brought to us. Sylvia gave birth just a few weeks ago!

In the last month, we’ve also welcomed 17-year-old Leticia and her one-year-old son Chin-may, and 15-year-old Brenda with her newborn son Elijah. (We now have custody of Brenda because of the abuse she was suffering at home.)

And – many of you will remember “the girl in the chicken coop” story from my trip this summer – 18-year-old Clare with her one-year-old son Samuel was just evicted from the chicken coop and has now joined the residential program.

That’s four moms, two with newborns, in just a few weeks!

Because of the skyrocketing cost of living right now, teenage pregnancy is on the rise again all around Uganda. We can only take in eight girls with their children at a time, but we are committed to helping them learn the skills they need to create a fulfilling and sustainable life for themselves.

How are we doing this? YOU!

Your support means the difference between homelessness and a life without choices and a life of literacy, a skill for a lifetime of income, and the hope for a good future. We really can’t thank you enough for all your encouragement and support!

Webele nyo!

Jennings

PS One of our Skills for Life students is teen mom Isabellah. After she collapsed at the compound, Nurse Sherry discovered that she had no food over the weekends and her only meals were those she received at Touch the Slum during the week. We have been providing ongoing medical support to get her over malnutrition and she is now receiving meals at the compound during the weekend. Her project on DonorSee is about 30% funded and we only need $185 to complete it. Any amount will help! Just click!

Isabellah’s Project

PSS Don’t forget to grab your free ticket and hear me talk about our work in Namuwongo!

Meet Our Newest Teen Moms Read More »

It’s a Boy!

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I woke up to the good news and wanted to give you a quick update –

It’s a boy!

Sylvia went into labor yesterday evening, and the baby boy was delivered this morning. They’re both fine, and hopefully one of our team will be allowed in the hospital soon. Since minor surgery was involved she’ll be there for a few days – I’ll update you when I know more.

Blessings,

Jennings

It’s a Boy! Read More »

False Alarm… Quick Update on Sylvia

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Sylvia’s labor stopped and the hospital sent her back to the Ross House with “exercises and advice to walk” to induce labor. She’s one week overdue now, according to estimates, and they’d rather the baby not get bigger.

We’ll keep you posted!

Webele nyo!

Jennings

PS We do have a project up for the birthing kit we have to provide for all the pregnant girls to take with them to the hospital. It’s 22% funded (but 100% already paid for!) so we’d love for you to consider a $25 donation.

Sylvia’s birthing kit

False Alarm… Quick Update on Sylvia Read More »

Sylvia’s in Labor!

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Jennings with Ross House teen moms, June 2022

Sylvia, right in front of me in the striped skirt and top, is in labor. She was still 15 when I was in Uganda in June – very young!

Nurse Sherry took her to Amani, which is a charitable organization that helps teen mothers and will do deliveries if it isn’t high risk. Unfortunately, they have referred her to a hospital because her age and physical development mean she may not be able to deliver naturally.

They’re on their way to Naguru Hospital as I type this… Of course, everyone is a little concerned for both Sylvia and the baby.

We’d appreciate your thoughts and prayers today for a safe delivery for both, and, if she needs a c-section, for a skilled doctor to be on shift.

I’ll keep you posted.

Thanks so much!

Jennings

Sylvia’s in Labor! Read More »

Two Emergency Admissions in 4 Days…

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Brenda, above, is just barely 16. (I know, she looks about 12…) She was admitted in the middle of the night when the local authorities brought her to us with her ONE WEEK OLD baby.

Brenda has been living with her mother, who recently lost her job. On Saturday night, she beat Brenda severely and threw her and the baby out of the house and into the street.

Fortunately, we have a very good relationship with the police and local governmental authorities and they brought her to Touch the Slum. She is now living in the Ross House and receiving food, clothing, medical care by Nurse Sherry, and lots of love and attention from Mama Santa.

I’d love to say this kind of thing is uncommon.

Unfortunately, it isn’t, and the very high inflation and cost of food has caused an increase in domestic violence, child abuse, and teenage pregnancy in the slum.

We are the only program of our kind in Namuwongo, which is home to over 30,000 people. Fortunately, we had room to take in Brenda and another 16-year-old, Leticia, over the last week. And that’s because of YOU.

Your dollars are working 24/7 to keep girls like Brenda safe and to provide them a way out of this cycle of pregnancy and homelessness.

We are so grateful that you choose to partner with us so that we don’t have to turn these girls away. Webele nyo!

Blessings,

Jennings

PS Of course we have projects up on DonorSee for Brenda and for Leticia! When girls like this come to us, they literally have the clothes on their backs and nothing else, so we provide an entry packet with toiletries, sheets and towels, clothes and shoes, diapers, and other items for the baby. We’d love for you to help support one of these girls as they get back on their feet!

Brenda’s Project

Leticia’s Project

Two Emergency Admissions in 4 Days… Read More »

When Culture Gets You Down

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I’ve been traveling to Uganda for a long time — 13 years now. And I’ve spent a lot (a LOT) of time in the slum. So I’m pretty used to the culture, the difficulties, the injustices.

But this week…

We have just had an emergency admission of a pregnant 16 year old who was raped by her father.

I’ll pause while you throw something… I know I wanted to.

Of course, most of us are immediately screaming things like, “LOCK HIM UP!” But no. He isn’t going to be locked up. He isn’t even going to be arrested.

Why? Because the GIRL is the one who will be blamed. The GIRL is the one whose life will be ruined if it is made public. We aren’t even telling more than a few people in our own staff because we have to protect her.

She and her sister are terrified. Of the father beating or even killing them. Of others if they find out.

The mother is leaving them in the slum — to the mercy of their father — and going back to the village.

I’ll pause again for you to throw something else…

So we’re doing our best to protect both girls, deal with the extreme trauma through counseling, and find a safe way forward for them.

We’d all appreciate your thoughts and prayers.

Webele nyo,

Jennings

PS We’ll have a project up for this once we can figure out how to do it and create a safe situation and protect anonymity. Meanwhile, you can become a monthly donor or make a one-time donation to help us with this and similar situations. We’d really appreciate your support!

I want to donate!

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15-Year-Old Sylvia – Emergency Intake

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Sylvia is 15-years-old and 5 months pregnant. She’s been in our Literacy class since January, so she is aware of our work with teen moms.

Recently, Sylvia and her roommates, who were living together in a one-room home, were evicted for not paying rent. She was temporarily rescued by a lady LC (local community leader) who brought her into her own home, but that only lasted for two days. The LC’s husband kicked Sylvia out, and she was homeless.

After a couple of days of not having food, she came to the office to explain her situation. While we didn’t have any beds available in the Ross or Suubi Houses, we do have an empty room that we’d planned to convert to a dorm later this year.

We were able to get a mattress, bedding, a mosquito net, and some toiletries delivered before the shops closed for the night, and Sylvia was temporarily placed in the daycare room during the nights.

Now she is safe, fed, Nurse Sherry is keeping up with her progress, and she will stay with us until she delivers and then after.

All this came out of our regular operating budget, so we have a project up on DonorSee to recoup the costs. (FYI: We always give the girls the option to NOT have their faces shown, and Sylvia made that choice so her face is blurred.)

Sylvia’s Emergency Intake

We are also going ahead and preparing the room for four girls, since we have two more teen students (not pregnant!) who are in imminent danger of homelessness. We’ll do a little shuffling around of our current residents so all the new moms are together and Sylvia can begin to learn all the things she’ll need to know in a few more months.

You can help with that project with this button:

Dorm project

I’ll be in Uganda this time next week! More on that next time. Thank you SO MUCH for your support — we really couldn’t do our work without you!

Webele nyo!

Jennings

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Teen Moms and the Culture Problem

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I’ve been working in the Namuwongo slum for a long time — since 2009. One of the most ubiquitous things that you see when walking through the slum is men drinking moonshine, smoking, and playing pool and cards in speakeasy, while women are hawking goods on the street, carrying jerrycans on their heads, and managing a bunch of children.

And yet, it’s the girls who get sold off for brides, who get denied schooling if funds are limited, who aren’t given sanitary pads to manage their periods with dignity, who are told as (often young) teens that “it’s time to find someone to take care of you.” Meaning a man.

Culture is a hard thing to change.

A man can find a desperate girl to live with him in exchange for food and a roof over her head. She’ll call him her “husband,” but as soon as she’s pregnant he’ll kick her out and likely disappear. No one takes responsibility for the babies except for the girls.

Culture is a hard thing to change.

But we are doing it, slowly by slowly. (Mpolo mpola in Luganda.)

We have young men volunteering with us who have sisters who got pregnant because of desperate circumstances. They have seen the desperation and downward spiral that starts with a pregnancy, and they have begun to see that their sisters, their mother, their female friends have VALUE. They are worth protecting and respecting.

Culture is a hard thing to change, but we can do it. Mpolo mpola.

Blessings,

Jennings

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15 Years Old and a New Mom – Kalunji

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Kalunji came to our program when she was 5-months pregnant. She was living with her grandmother (jaja) in a terrible wooden shack in the slum. They didn’t have enough food, but her jaja insisted that Kalunji eat to nurture the baby.

Our team, with help from our donors at DonorSee, provided food, a mattress, bedding, a mosquito net, and a water filter for this small family. Kalunji began spending her days at the compound, even though she wasn’t enrolled in any of our programs. We fed her two meals a day and got her enrolled with Amani, an organization that helps teen moms with prenatal care and childbirth.

In January, Kalunji began learning reading, writing, basic math, and English in our new Literacy Program.

A month ago, Kalunji presented to our nurse at the Haven Clinic with severe malaria. She began an IV treatment and went into labor (about 3 weeks early) that evening.

Unfortunately, Amani was completely full! We also hadn’t purchased the required birthing kit yet. But our nurse, Sherry, called all around Kampala and finally found Kalunji space at the KCCA Hospital, where she gave birth to a healthy baby boy, Kareem.

Kalunji moved into the Ross House, our residential program for teen moms in crisis, from the hospital. Two weeks later, her jaja died.

Raheem is a month old now, and doing really well! Sherry gives him all his regular checkups, as well as Mama. Kalunji is now back in Lit class, and she’s even rejoined dancing in Teen Talk on Fridays.

Next term, Kalunji will join one of the vocational classes in Skills for Life.

THIS IS WHAT WE DO, AND WHY WE ARE HERE

Girls like Kalunji, forced to trade sex just to have food or sanitary pads, are forgotten, shunned, ignored. Illiterate, desperately impoverished, and with no living family to help, her chances of even surviving childbirth were low.

But now she is safe, healthy, cared for, and learning.

There are thousands like Kalunji in the Namuwongo slum, and we can’t help them all. But those we can bring into our program are given sustainable skills, counseling, mentoring, and the life skills needed to not just survive but thrive.

These are hard stories… But they are stories of HOPE. OPPORTUNITY. CHANGE. And they are possible because of you.

Webele nyo!

Jennings

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