St. Henry’s Primary School (Busabaga): The first time I visited St. Henry’s, I cried. The children were confused by my tears. One teacher told me on my next visit that the children thought I cried because I didn’t like them. I cried because the buildings were terrible, the toilet was a patch of grass and the students looked very needy. I cried because I wasn’t sure how we would be able to help them.
Help did come, thanks to our amazing donors! Before long, this school was transformed from a structure that resembled a goat pen to a school campus that really improved student’s learning, safety and the quality of life for teachers.
St. Kizito Kasokoso: Educate Uganda had partnered with 27 schools and we had told our Uganda Team that we couldn’t partner with any additional schools. “Okay, okay.” they respond. Then they took us by St. Kizito, Kasokoso just to say hello. Fr. Charles Jjemba supposedly needed to say hello to one of his parishioners. Four years later, this little school with little to no shelter to teach from has four beautiful classrooms. We just knew helping them was the right thing to do!
St. Kizito Kasokoso is a school still trying to grow and perform better. Each year they make improvements and Educate Uganda is trying to assist them by providing training for teachers, ensuring students have school supplies and helping with school meals.
The celebration to dedicate the four classrooms, latrine and water tanks was so special. A Ugandan dedication usually includes dancing, speeches, mass, singing and gifts but the new landscaping was a first for Educate Uganda! Bushes that spell “Karen”…it is probably safe to say this is the only place in the world with such unique landscaping!
Nkakwa Primary School: Nkakwa is one of our most remote locations. The roads to Nkakwa are very poor and and it is always a challenge to get to this school. The first visit to this school left us really wanting to help. The school had a small building to house three classrooms and the other students would meet under nearby trees.
Today, they are still in need of three more classrooms but they are grateful for the improvements they have received.
This little girl showed up at school the day we visited her school. She had just been gored by a steer. We were so shocked that she would show up for school in such bad shape! We were also blessed that one of our donors had sent some money along “just in case we needed to help someone.” This little girl was sent to the doctor and a few months later, she looked as good as new!
The guardians of the students in our sponsorship program remind us of the importance of our programs with each visit. The guardians will wait hours at our partner schools to say hello, tell us thank you and to give us a gift from their garden. This disabled gentleman on a trike cannot walk, but he makes a point to come to the school when we visit to say hello and thank us.
