I popped in to Acholi Quarters yesterday, and also a couple
of days previous to that. What a joy as always, and some really lovely bits of
news that I’d love to share
The first visit was to hand over some resources and visit
the Hopeful Haven children in their new classroom. Compared to UK classrooms,
and even classrooms at the school down the road where some of the Acholi children
go to, and where the Hopeful Haven children long to go to, it is still a very
small room, but it is theirs and they no longer have to clear out all their
belongings at the end of each day. It has lockable doors, an electric light,
and a blackboard, plus enough benches for all the children to sit on. The
children love it and teacher Miriam is delighted, as she can now leave the
chalk in the room at close of day and know it will be there the next morning,
as well as knowing that the benches won’t have been vandalised, and any books
she wants to leave on the desk will still be there. Little things, but they
make such a difference.
I was also able to hand over some money that had been raised
by some UK schoolchildren which will enable Harriet, our primary contact in the
community and key member of the Lubanga Ber co-operative through which we
channel all our support, to mobilise some ladies to cook porridge for the children
each day. This way they will get some nutritional input, probably their first
proper bit of food that day, and as a result be able to learn better in class.
Big thank you to the UK schoolchildren for their generosity of spirit.
Then yesterday I met parents / carers of most of the
children who are supported with education fees for attending mainstream school.
On the whole they go to the school ‘down the road’ and are all children who previously
attended Hopeful Haven. The meeting was a chance to catch up with them, discuss
various issues that Harriet had asked me to raise, and all in all it went very
well.
And this is where the various positive updates started to
come through. All have come about to some extent as a result of bits of
carefully considered and discretely given support over the past few years. I
must point out that support is only ever given remotely ie I never hand over
money when I am in the community, unless pre-arranged to Harriet as per the
porridge money.
Yes, I get plenty of requests when I am in the community, but
each time my response is to listen openly, to give words and prayers of
encouragement, and then to take the ask away and discuss it privately with
Harriet and John so as to ensure that there is no chance of being perceived as
being a rich white person dishing out money in inappropriate, colonialist and unhelpful
ways.
And I know some people disapprove of supporting individuals, as there is
a danger of creating a culture of dependency, but of all the children that we
help with school fees, none of them get all fees paid except one. In every
other case the parents or guardians are expected to pay 25% of the termly fees
and provide the child with the pencils and pens needed for daily attendance. So,
we assist, but don’t deprive the parents of the dignity of financially helping
their child receive an education, and as I said earlier it is all done through Harriet
and her team and with their total approval.
Anyway, back to the positive stories:
One mum has a 3-yr old who was diagnosed 12 months ago with
a hole in the heart and failure to thrive. Some financial support has been
given to enable the mum to buy regular medicine and more nutritious food, and yesterday
the mum was telling me how well the child is doing now, and how she enjoys
playing with the other children, and keeping up with them physically.
Another mum came and said that she thinks that her child
shouldn’t be on the list for getting support anymore. This lady was the winner
of a ‘Dragon’s Den’ competition that we did a year back – she wanted to start a
stationery business and the money she won gave her the capital to get set up.
The business is now thriving, the mum feels able to pay the school fees herself
and she would prefer to see our support go towards another child instead who
has parents less able to cover the school fees. Proof that we are giving a hand
up rather than a handout.
Then there was the mum who also said that she has now got a
regular job with a weekly income and so can support her child fully when it
comes to school fees – so that’s means funds are released for another new child
we can start supporting.
And finally, there was the grandma who showed me the report card
of her grandson. He is in Primary 3, and this is our third year supporting him
and his little sister, ever since the parents died and the children were left in
the care of their grandmother, who herself doesn’t have very good health. The
pride on grandma’s face was beautiful as she showed me the line that said, ‘position
in class – number 1’! Top of the class for her grandson, what a star, and what
a proud grandma! And all made possible in part through educational support, as
without that he’d have been another child roaming the streets, along with a
massive dose of hard-work and determination on his part, and encouragement and
love from his grandma.
Some really lovely updates
and evidence of the positive that is coming from the input of some generous
donors. Of course, there are so many more children who would love to be
supported, and there are other stories of families whose trajectories aren’t
going in such a good direction. Maybe I’ll share some of those another day, but
for now let’s celebrate with the stories of improved health, academic
achievement, and economic upturn for these families.
And of course, it goes without saying that if you want to be
part of making life better for others, then you just need to drop me a line 😉
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