Life in a Mud Hut

Written in June, 2013:

Hi Sponsors! About a year ago, I showed you a lot of pictures of typical housing where our children live. But half of you are new sponsors since then, and may not have seen that email. SOVCO is not an orphanage or a school. Almost all of our sponsored children live with relatives in a mud hut with a grass thatch roof. It's not as bad as you might think, living in a mud hut. Some huts, like the one above, are neat and tidy. The thatch is cut straight and even, like a bowl-over-the-head haircut. The walls and door are strong and sturdy. The yard outside the house is swept bare to discourage snakes, and there is a ledge at the threshold to further discourage them. That ledge makes a nice place to sit outside and work or chat with neighbors. Most families live in compounds of huts where their families have lived for generations, except for during the war period, when it was unsafe to live in their homes, and many families took refuge in special camps. The father, mother and grandmother have their own separate huts.The younger children sleep in a hut with their mother, aunt or grandmother. As you can see, washing is hung on lines or laid on the roof to dry. This is the compound of Regina, the woman I asked you to pray for recently. She takes care of several orphans, many of whom are not related to her. When a boy is about twelve years old, he makes his own house for the first time, as Richard has done. Then he will live alone. Inside, the circular space is divided with curtains to create living and sleeping spaces: A strong tree trunk in the center of the house supports the roof, which looks like this from the inside: Bedding, clothing, mosquito nets, and even mattresses are hung over ropes in the middle of the day to keep the inside space clear for other activities, and to keep bedding fresh. Some houses are not as nice, of course. Many compounds have a special hut just for cooking, and the family members share the kitchen. As for the latest news, Regina is feeling better, but two of the girls, Barbra and Winnifred have been sick a lot again. They think Barbra may have sickle cell disease, and Winnifred may have asthma. Both of them have been getting treatment at the best clinic in the area, at Lacor Hospital. We are so grateful for the motorbike, which has been used to get Regina and the girls to the hospital. With school fees, gas, and medical bills, this has been an expensive month. The staff was planning to get by on half their salary, but I was able to use some of the bead money to give them the money to cover the salaries. So, as always, I thank you all for contributing to the good work the SOVCO staff is doing! God bless you!

A Widow's Gift

Hello SOVCO Sponsors! I am doing children's story at our church again this Sunday. I just looked to see what the pastor's text is, and it turns out it's I Kings 17:8-16, the passage that tells about a poor widow giving her last bit of food for the prophet Elijah, with the result that from that point on, her food never ran out. This made me think of Joska, and the goat she raised and donated to SOVCO last week so that the children and their guardians and all the SOVCO community could have a fine meal on the day before school started for the new term. Joska is a widow. I've probably told you about her before; she's one of my favorite people in Uganda. She's raising six children alone, and is deeply committed to the work that SOVCO is doing in her community. The pictures Tonny sent really tell the story of the goat party last Saturday "but one" (as they say in Uganda): First, there were games for the children. From left to right: I'm not sure, Agenorwot Paska, Adong Patricia, Lakaraber Winnifred (Joska's daughter), Apiyo Scovia, not sure, Adoch Janet Sylvia, and I don't know the last two girls. Maybe you do! Next, kids who didn't get mosquito nets last year because they weren't yet in the program, got them this year. The kids I think I recognize in this picture are Steven, Juma, Nancy, ?, Godfrey, Lakica Mercy, Jacob, Patricia (Rachel's), Christopher, Louis, Gloria, Janet, Flavia, Caroline, Joseph Sunday, Paska (Amy's), Levi, Alex, Angom Mercy. Tonny, correct me if I'm wrong. Then, Tonny asked who wanted to read a message I had written to them, and Godfrey's hand shot up! He's been studying English in Kirombe Primary School. Tonny says when he asked, "can anyone read Mum's letter for us all?"..." he came very fast and very confidently and read it clearly for us all and every one clapped his/her hand for our boy Toolit Godfrey." I can't remember what all I said in that letter, but it was something like, study hard and make your sponsors proud. Then it was time to eat, and everybody had to wait in line while Auntie Kevin (with her back to us) and Tonny's wife Beatrice (in a blue skirt) and others served the meal of goat meat, rice and beans. The girl kneeling and getting beans is Fiona. Everybody had a great time, as you can see! Ivan seems to be entertaining the other boys, and Aaron is really enjoying the story, along with Hamis (in red) and Patrick (Loren's). And here is the mother of the feast, Joska herself (in blue), enjoying the meal with her friends. Let us pray that, like the widow in the story, she never goes hungry again! This week has been a busy one for the SOVCO staff, as children start the new term, and the staff goes from school to school paying fees.Thanks to you, they are able to do that! God bless you!

One on One

Written at the end of May 2013:

Hello, Sponsors! The best news in the past few weeks is that three more children have sponsors, just in time for the new school term, which starts tomorrow! These children are Trecy, sponsored by Nancy, and Ivan and Olivia, sponsored by Sherry and friends fromAccessories for Hope. Here is a picture of Trecy when she found out she'd be sponsored. Three girls sang a solo at my church this morning, and as I listened to them, I was thinking about the joy and wonder these kids experience when they find out they have been chosen by someone far away: Who am I, that the Lord of all the earth Would care to know my name Would care to feel my hurt Now, I am not saying you guys are God! But in caring to know the names of these children, and in feeling their hurt, you are clearly doing just what God would have you do. Individual child sponsorship gives both the child and the sponsor the very important experience of being special to someone. Tonny and Gerald, who had an eye operation, thanks to the collective medical fund which your sponsorship provides. We can't be actually be there to put our arm around them, most of us. Most of us can't afford it, or wouldn't relish the long trip it takes to get there. Some people just don't like spiders and snakes. But we are enabling the SOVCO staff in Uganda to develop one-on-one relationships with these children in our names. And the children sleep a little easier at night knowing somebody out there cares about them, specifically. This month has been one in which we had no school fees to pay, which gave us a bit of extra money to use for new mosquito nets for the children. Tonny took the trip to Kampala by bus to pick them up, and here you can see volunteers Oscar and Collin organizing the nets for distribution. Also, the staff was able to have a back-to-school party for the children on Saturday, as the term starts Monday. I hope to have pictures and news of that by next week for you.

Does Sponsorship Work?

Hi Sponsors, I came across an article I thought you would like to see. It's a report on a recent study that evaluated how effective child sponsorship programs are for children. And in case you missed it when I posted it before, the above picture is of our sponsored girl Barbara, in her first profile picture, before sponsorship, and the second is the same girl after a year of being sponsored.

Jewels for Schools!

The thing my sister Tracy and I like to do the best when we get together is generate ideas. This comes from my dad, the guy who invented the idea of using old caboose cars for camp cabins. And so, at Mothers Day lunch, Tracy and I found ourselves brainstorming apps for finding things in Walmart, and ways to raise funds to help kids in Uganda get a better education.

See, last summer when I went to Uganda to visit SOVCO (Support the Orphans and Vulnerable Children), a great organization I have become involved with, I took some visits to schools. The government schools where most children attend have about 100 children per classroom (and per teacher), but only fifty will fit at a time (crowded like this), so the children have to take turns, and spend half their day at recess.

Some parents have responded by starting their own schools. But the parents are poor, so the schools don't have basics like desks and blackboards. This one was donated by my brother-in-law.The man on the right is an eighty-year-old teacher, come out of retirement to teach for free, out of the goodness of his heart. The third teacher was not present the day I visited, because her baby had just died.

This commitment to the well-being of the children was also evident in this woman, the head teacher of a school that has become a leader in the local campaign for "girl child education." She was an idea gal, too, and we had a good old time generating ideas of how people like you could help motivate girls to finish school and get really good grades. The man is SOVCO director Tonny Opiyo.

And then there's the problem of school fees. Many of you already sponsor children like Hamis, shown here with his guardian, a blind woman of about 100 years old. His sponsors pay $20 a month to fund his education. This has allowed him to attend a nearby boarding school, taking the pressure off his "jaja" and giving him a much better education. But the necessity to send some of the children to boarding school, and as they get older, to secondary school, puts an extra strain on the SOVCO budget.

So the educational needs are great, but resources are hard to come by. SOVCO has great plans to someday build a school to cater to local children, and they have even prepared a big pile of bricks to use when the time comes. And there are shorter-term goals as well, like supporting the efforts of local parents, programs for girls, and helping children for whom boarding school is the best option. So here's what we came up with: Jewels for Schools!

A group of moms (called Women of Hope) in the village in Uganda make jewelry from paper beads, which I sell in the store where I work and on a website. Right now, I have a HUGE overstock of bracelets. So we were thinking, it would be great if you would be willing to take ten bracelets to sell at your school or workplace, or maybe at a farmers market or craft sale. Five dollars from the sale of each bracelet would go to the education fund, and the rest to Women of Hope as usual. There are two types of bracelets:

There are Simple Bracelets,which would sell for $10 And there are Wire Wrap Bracelets, which would sell for $15

So, what do you think? Would you be willing to sell ten of these bracelets to help the kids in Uganda get a better education? If so, I will send you the bracelets and cards with information about the project. And I will develop a poster or sign you can reproduce for a display if needed. All you have to do is reply to me and give me the address where I should send the bracelets, and if you have any preferences as to the type of bracelet you want. When you've sold your ten, send me a check. Maybe you'll want to ask for ten more! And another idea: this would make a great fundraiser for YOUR school! One third of the profit from each bracelet could benefit your school, one third for schools in Uganda, and one third for Women of Hope. Think what a great way to teach kids to care about those less fortunate! We could develop a curriculum to tell about the lives of kids in Uganda, each school or class could sponsor a child, the kids could have bead parties...oh, boy, here I go on ideas again! You get the picture...want to be part of it?

Two Incredible Ugandan Moms

This was written for Mothers Day 2013:

Dear Sponsors, With Mother's Day right around the corner, I want to introduce you to some of the mothers I met in Uganda last summer, and the children they care for. Acan Lilly Arach Eunice First, meet Lilly, mother of four and auntie to six nieces and nephews, who also live with her, including Arach Eunice, who is sponsored by our friends, Jay and Brenda. Lilly became guardian to them when their mother became too weak with HIV/Aids to care for them. Lilly seems to be a woman with limitless energy. Besides the endless "digging" that everyone has to do, she cooks for a local cooperative restaurant one week of every month and she is an active bead-maker in the Women of Hope Arts and Crafts Project. She loves making beads, because it gives her a chance to sit in one place for awhile! Lilly always looks fresh and put-together, in spite of all her hard work and ten kids to care for. She loves all the children God has given her equally. Alanyo Joska Lakaraber Winnifred And this is Alanyo Joska and her daughter Winnifred, who is sponsored by my sister, Tracy and her family. Joska is a beautiful person, with a kind and gentle smile for everyone she meets. Her husband died six years ago, leaving her with six children to raise. Winnifred is the youngest, and they are clearly very close. Joska is a woman who gives of what she has. She is very supportive of SOVCO, and serves on the board of directors. Just this morning, Tonny told me he met Joska while she was weeding her beans close to the road. She invited him to come and see the goat she is raising to donate for SOVCO's annual general meeting. When I was heading home last summer, Joska gave me two bags of beans and some rice to take with me. Today I was reading an article by Beth Kuenstler, the director of Kiva, an organization that grants loans to women in developing countries. She said, of the women she has met, "what stood out most was the richness of their spirits and the kindness they put out into the world, even though they lived in what most would consider to be unbearable situations. The hope that people can hold for themselves changed my belief in humanity." This is how I feel about Lilly and Joska, and so many others of the mothers and grandmothers, and just plain kind women who care for our sponsored children. Happy Mother's Day! Sally Front row: Agenorwot Paska, Adyero Agnes, Akello Isabella, Komakech Aaron, Angom Mercy, Joseph Sunday, Janet Sylvia, Anena Caroline, Ambrose, Okello Patrick (#2). Second row: Adong Patricia Achora, Opiyo Gerald, Apiyo Scovia, Apiyo Prossy, Ajok Mercy (both eating mangos, which are in season), Adong Brenda. Back ro

SOVCO Staff

Nancy is interviewed for her profile by Francisca, a volunteer. As you know, an organization is only as good as the sum of its parts. So I think it's time to introduce you to the people who work directly with our children, our Ugandan staff. This weekend they were set to sign new contracts. At left is a typical moment in the SOVCO office a simple brick building by the side of the road. People who are passing by stop by and poke their head in the open door, and sit down on the plastic chairs for a chat with the staff.

You probably know about Opiyo Tonny, our director. He is a young man of 27 years, and he is the one who started SOVCO, when he came back to Ongako after finishing his university degree in Information Management. He has lots of energy and organizational skills, and he can talk a blue streak! It's fun to hear him switching back and forth between English and Acholi.

I have not met Yaru Kevin, because she was just recently hired as a Program Director and especially as a mentor for the girls. Kevin has a degree in Public Administration, and before beginning to work at SOVCO, she worked for SALVE, an organization that works with street children in Jinja, a city in the south of Uganda. She gives the kids lots of practice in English, and she herself is learning Acholi, as she is from a different area of Uganda.

Ocan Oscar, on the left, has been a faithful volunteer for many years, and we are now able to provide him a small salary. He comes each morning to open the office and maintains a presence while Tonny and Kevin are out visiting schools or homes. Odoch Collin, on the right, does these things, too, but I think he goes out on errands more often than Oscar.

Acan Beatrice is the very talented trainer and designer for the Women of Hope bead project, an income-generating project for women in the community. She is only twenty years old, but she grew up making paper beads with her mother, who is a master beader for Bead for Life, a well-known paper bead company. Beatrice is also Tonny's wife, and they are expecting their first child soon.

So, I think they are a great bunch of young people with vision to help the needy in their community. The do all this good work with very little remuneration. I hope that as time goes on and SOVCO grows, we can begin to pay them what they are worth!