monkey: business

We’re sitting at the airport…. I’ve changed into my travelling clothes, comfy trousers and trainers. The skirts will be packed away until another trip to Uganda. Our brains are bursting – we’ve learnt so much about the projects here. We’ve seen both terrible situations and lives turned around, met some awesome people, and spent time with our Ugandan friends and family.

The last two days we’ve been at the Uganda Global Care Training Conference with all the Centre managers and Paul, UK Head of Operations. What an incredibly talented, visionary, hard-working, and kind, bunch of people they are.

 I hate saying goodbye – who knows when we’ll be back, and we can’t exactly pop over if we want to see each other!

The conference was at a Christian Training Centre.  

The whole event had similarities with a UK Christian leaders’ conference. The rooms were basic but pleasant, the grounds peaceful and attractive, meals were communal affairs, there was too much food, including snacks during breaks, we worked very hard.

The differences included monkeys in the garden, cold showers, the food itself (e.g. matooke…boiled, mashed plantains [green bananas], and goat stew), hot milk for cups of tea, mosquito nets, huge millipedes, and gorgeous flowers and trees.

It was an oasis outside the hectic noise and madness of Kampala. Travelling to the airport, it was a jolt to be back amongst crazy roadside markets, gangs of motorbike boda boys, a poor slum area, an accident, and barefoot people at the side of the Kampala to Entebbe expressway. (Expressway is a joke – the speed limit is 30K/hr!).

I’m finding it quite hard to write tonight. I don’t want to trivialise or patronise. I don’t want my reflection to be about me, but about the work we’ve seen, the way the staff here lay down their lives for vulnerable children.

It was a privilege to work with them at the conference and see their passion and concern. They achieve so much with so little. They’re not afraid to acknowledge mistakes, and learn from them. They want to see children lifted out of extreme poverty, and families able to support themselves.

They want to find sustainable solutions to generate income from within Uganda so they don’t have to be so dependent on UK donors –  in some areas, sponsor numbers have reduced significantly.

We need to review our own contributions – not just monetary.  We need to remember the faces of the sets of twins and how children’s lives can be changed. Marginalised and isolated children given love and hope. Hungry children being fed.  Uneducated children going to school, completing vocational training, being self-sufficient. I suspect there’ll be more blogs over the coming weeks as we digest our experiences.  Two things I’m certain of – Uganda and her people still hold a part of my heart, and this time I have to remember for longer.  

Stable Foundations

One of the greatest privileges of our trips to Uganda is meeting sponsored children.  Our Ugandan children write to us twice a year, and its particularly encouraging when they recognise us from photos we’ve sent, or remember things we’ve written.  We started sponsoring because we knew about Global Care through my Mum, and the time was right for us. We had two children and a good income, and we wanted to support a vulnerable child. 

On our first trip, our youngest son, Pete, who was 17 at the time, came with us.  He was so moved by his experience, seeing the lives of children here, and meeting a girl he’d written to since they were both 7, he asked us to sponsor another child. Now he’s older, he’s continuing the sponsorship himself.  We were introduced to a scared shy boy, dressed in ragged clothes, his single mother struggling to provide for him and his sister. His tiny bag contained half an exercise book, a razor blade to sharpen his stub of pencil, and a slice of potato for his lunch.  With education, improved nutrition and medical support, he’s grown into a healthy teenager, still at school –  still not over-keen to talk to us, but we are a bit of an embarrassment in front of his friends!

In Kampala in 2010, they showed me pictures of a waiting list of cute little children, with horrific stories of poverty, neglect and abuse.

Today we met a boy we’ve sponsored since baby class who is doing well, and now in Primary 1. He seemed cheerful and bright.  He recognised us from photos we’d sent.  He goes to Guiding Star School in Kampala, a colourful happy place, where he is both loved and educated.

We have a sponsored girl whose brother beats her. Global Care local staff work hard to support and protect her, and keep her safe. We have another who has never done well at school. She’s a timid child who struggles to meet our eyes, and never seems to remember who we are. She was abandoned at birth on a neighbour’s veranda.  GC have decided she should move schools – to a smaller school where she’ll get more attention, and hopefully have a better chance of learning.

All the children we’ve sponsored over the years come from very challenging backgrounds. Some do really well, like the girl who is now married to a teacher and runs her own business. Others not so well, like *Sarah, who had a relationship with a teacher and became pregnant. But …they are all loved by the staff here, and they are loved by us – which of us has children who didn’t make bad decisions at some time in their life?  *Sarah had to leave school when the baby was born, so her sponsorship paid for a hairdressing course.

Coming here over the last 8 years, and meeting sponsored children who are now managers, doctors, teachers, lawyers, I know that sponsorship alters life potential. We’ve met struggling guardians, visited inadequate homes, seen the effects of destitution in this country (I’ll never forget the homeless man in the hospital, or the babies at Amecet).  But children are not sponsored in isolation, this charity is about family, community, sustainability.  Extremely vulnerable sponsored children can become self-sufficient adults, now supporting siblings with their own education.

This trip, we’ve visited communities supported by GC who have improved access to water, sustainable agricultural projects, schools with staff accommodation improving teacher retention, and feeding programmes for younger children. GC is not afraid to tackle HIV/AIDS support or Hepatitis B vaccination – knowing that providing long-term sustainable solutions often needs high short-term investment. As we come to the end of our trip, I really do believe what I said two weeks ago, that GC is saving lives, and giving people with no hope a chance to believe life can get better – and frequently, it does.

*Name changed to protect identity

Where on the elephant are you?

Today we’ve driven for 5 hours from Soroti to Kampala. We left a busy rural town with dusty heat, where every child under 10 years old waves, and shouts ‘Muzungu, how are you?’, or this morning, ‘Muzungu byee’.  Women dress conservatively in skirts that fall well below the knee. You leave a flat arid plain, pass through swamps, towns of varying sizes, a jungle, cross the river Nile near its ‘Victorian’ source, see mountains in the distance… In my case you sleep a lot. 

Finally, you arrive in Kampala, which I can only describe as bonkers! A great sprawling city, with modern high rise buildings and a commercial quarter, but also the familiar pot-holed mud roads with tiny houses and shanty villages.  No clear road. Its like an M25 traffic jam -  only it’s the city centre and the cars are moving at speed.  Drivers play a game of ‘who dares wins’ – only the weak give way.  Some of the time I shut my eyes.  I’m terrified for babies and children carried on the backs of motorbikes by mothers sitting ‘side-saddle’. Some women wear tight trousers, tight dresses and high heels. Around the pool at our hotel, men and women are on sun-loungers in swimsuits. It is a bit of a culture shock.

Once again I reflect that some things in Uganda don’t change – I can’t imagine Kampala with respectful drivers and any kind of workable traffic control! But then as we reach our hotel, I’m reminded of how much has changed since our first visit in 2008.  The main highways are ‘proper’ tarmac roads – not pot-holed, rutted expanses of orange rubble. People still drive on the wrong side of the road, pedestrians and push-bikes share the space with lorries, but there are marked areas for walking and cycling (even if no-one sticks to them).  Some hotels have wifi - even the guest house in Soroti, and hot electric showers, and apart from in Rukungiri, we’ve had power most of the time.  I feel safe, I can go shopping on my own, we can walk around on our own – we don’t need a Ugandan ‘minder’. There are more ‘posh’ 4x4s, more two-story houses with painted verandas and formal lawns. Prices have risen hugely. Our room prices have averaged an increase of 40% since last year, and our meals in Rukungiri, 50% since 2012. Food prices, medical costs, school fees, rent – all risen.

What hasn’t risen, is pay for manual workers, or the rate of unemployment.  Day workers still wait hours for the hope of a day’s labour, the lucky ones working a gruelling day under the hot sun for the equivalent of a few pence or maybe a pound. Enough for food, but not school fees. We don’t begrudge supporting the tourist trade, we don’t mind paying more for rooms and food. But… we wish the greater percentage of our money wasn’t going to the rich people who own hotels and that staff wages had risen accordingly.

I’m not going to bang on again about the barefoot hungry children living in hovels, or the disabled girl sleeping with her sister in an unstable outhouse. I just hope that I can cause you to stop for a moment. Consider why it is that throughout the world, rural communities are worse off than urban ones.  What can I do to make sure I don’t keep getting richer while the poor keep getting poorer? Is there anything you can do to support families get access to clean water? Could you consider sponsoring a child in Uganda? We don’t know how we’re going to respond to this trip. But we know more than ever that this is who we are and what we do – we support the work of Global Care. We’ve still got 2 days left. Tomorrow we’re visiting Kampala schools, then joining the others at the conference. The one thing we do know is that we can’t do everything, we mustn’t do nothing, we can do something. 

To understand the title, see: Where are you on the elephant?

You are fat!

This was our last Sunday. We dressed in our best clothes and set off for Deliverance Church (DC). We love DC! The format is familiar to our own church, but the band is VERY LOUD, and the singers and dancers leap about their tiny space waving hankies.  The worship leader keeps changing, which keeps things moving…. and the music never stops.  The songs are repetitive and simple with lots of ‘call and response’. At DC the words are on a screen so we can quickly pick up songs in both Ateso (the local language), and English. There’s also a translator. The service starts at 8.30am, but at the last minute we decided to walk, so we arrived late. We weren’t the last to arrive.  It finished at 11am.

There’s something uncomplicated about DC – simple faith and belief in repentance, forgiveness and salvation.  There’s no difficult language or words or concepts.  We had a sermon and prayers and an offering. There was also a birthday – one of the leaders was 42 today and had nearly died a few months ago. As we prayed for him then started to sing Happy Birthday, three people came with water which they poured on his unsuspecting head. It was brilliant – spontaneous rejoicing at his life.

We had lunch with Hannah today, who is back from Kampala. Fred came too and we told her about our meetings concerning the Ark.  We went to our friend Sam’s house and visited his wife and children.  There was plenty of laughter and chatter, the older children all have excellent English. In the unlikely event that my sons are reading this, your photos are now in a small photo album in a Ugandan village house. Apparently Chris and I are particularly fat, the other 2 a bit fat! They wanted to keep the pictures. They made us tea and roasted sweet potato.

We’ve done quite a bit of walking today. It is so dusty here. I was filthy again when we got back. We wanted Charles to have an easy day as he has to drive us to Kampala tomorrow. Three of the staff are coming with us, David, Fred and Christine, as they are meeting Paul, Head of Operations from the UK office, then we’re meeting up with all the Ugandan staff at the GC Uganda Conference.

It has been a good day. 
It has been a good week.

We have been reminded of the huge distances people have to travel here, usually on foot. It took us an hour to walk from Sam’s to our guest house.  The heat here is challenging for everyone. You forget how hard it is to walk in heat with no shade. On Friday a grandmother brought her grandchildren for vaccination. They had 7km to walk home – but she kept setting off then coming back because she is old and it was too hot. In the end GC arranged transport for them.

People pass us carrying water, chickens, bags, food.  We’ve seen pigs, goats, chickens on bikes. Yesterday we saw 24 children in a car like ours (Super Custom).  The only cheap transport is a bicycle boda. Many poor people walk miles for water, have no electricity, and often no money for kerosene. Poor people live on cassava or sweet potato – literally, nothing else. This is a hard place to live. Food is expensive because of inflation, and because they are desperate for rain – and drought is affecting the planting of next season’s crops.

We’ve seen disabled children living in what can only be described as squalor. We’ve seen children sleeping on bare earth with only rags to wear – no shoes.  We are tired of watching people struggle to pay for healthcare, and now we have experience of people dying because they can’t afford food or healthcare.  This may be a place we feel at home, where we feel safe, where we can relax, but there are aspects that are frustrating and sad.

On the flip side, it’s been fantastic to spend time again with the GC team, and to take part in the vaccination programme. These people work so hard for vulnerable children, and it’s been a delight to meet children who have been saved by GC. Children who now receive education, safety, food and love, where once they were abandoned or discarded.

This trip has made us even more determined to support the work of GC to relieve the suffering of the most vulnerable children.

Saturday Fixtures

What an excellent Saturday – bit of a contrast to last week, but nonetheless excellent.

We started the morning at Ngora Township – about an hour away.  Actually, we started the day waiting 30 minutes for the medical assistant to arrive so we could set off! There were 8 sponsored children to test and vaccinate. It’s too far for them to travel to the Soroti Centre, so we took the nurse to them. I always wanted to experience an outreach clinic under a tree...

The children are also writing letters to their sponsors, they all have to be completed by tomorrow, so it took a while. 

Our arrival attracted attention from the local children, so Tom started an impromptu game of Rounders. Then we were one child short for vaccination – more hanging around.   Out came the finger puppets…… then the bubbles…. They wanted a photo with their cow....

Eventually we were done, and set off to another school in the area to pay school fees.  After the usual round of introductions, chairs being found so we could sit in the shade, signing of the visitors’ book, we could leave and move to Ngora School for the Deaf.  

Tomorrow is Independence Day – some of our history is very embarrassing.  At Township, the police were practicing a drill, and school children a song, ready for their parade and celebration tomorrow. At another school, the school scouts were practicing a drill. We’re beginning to wonder what it will be like in town tomorrow.

At the School for the Deaf, there is only one sponsored girl – a previous member of the Ark disability centre.  It’s great to see her using sign language and socialising with the other children.  She’s a testimony to the success of the Ark in identifying children with disabilities, whose potential has been missed.  She is a capable girl – but when she came to the Ark, she  had never learnt sign language, and not been educated.  She also has a physical disability – she was born without feet – but this doesn’t prevent her from taking part in all school activities with the help of special shoes.   It’s a great place.  The school has a lovely atmosphere, and the children are always ‘chatty’ – signing away when we’re there.

After that we came back to town, did some shopping, and then Charles, Tom and I came back to the guest house for an hour.  I commented that at the same time last week we were drinking tea by the pool at our Safari Lodge, before taking a bush walk.  Today we had tea in the car park under a tree, at a table they put up specially for us! Today it has been unbelievably hot. Everywhere is dry and dusty. We were filthy by the end of the day, orange/brown earth caked in sweat, and our clothes feeling gritty and hard.

We were invited out for early supper with Michael and Veronica. Once again we were treated to a feast.  Our friends make us so welcome.  This was also the first time we’ve experienced ululation at close quarters – it’s a long story, but Veronica’s mother expressing gratitude to us as she came through the door, made Tom jump! As we were eating, small children were steadily arriving, peering through the door curtain at us, the really brave ones waving.  Eventually it was time for Michael’s playtime. Yay – out came the parachute, and rocket balloons (at one point, simultaneously).

Brilliant fun ...with over 70 children. Tom and Bob the Mouse played it cool, leaning on a wall with the teenage boys.

We’re nearly at the end of our week in Soroti. I’m sad that we’ll be leaving on Monday, it feels like we’re only just getting started. We haven’t managed to finish the things we hoped to do, because of the vaccination programme. However, it’s been brilliant to be part of that, and to get to meet over 150 of the sponsored children.  I am in awe of the team here. They have so many challenges – like Rukungiri, they have less sponsors than 2 years ago, but it was clear today that there is a huge need.

There are thousands of vulnerable children living in extreme poverty, many of them isolated and marginalised from society due to added issues such as HIV, disability, single parenthood.  The work here is encouraging and inspiring, we just somehow need to recruit more sponsors and give more children hope now, and for the future.

My Name is HIV

My name is HIV. I spend my time spreading from person to person bringing sickness and despair. In Uganda I have a battle on my hands, because of TASO (The AIDS Support Organisation). TASO spends his time telling people how to keep me away, and how to fight against me if I get into their bodies. TASO even provides free drugs to increase people’s capacity to live alongside me.  I bring stigma with me. Stigma leads people into fear and isolation, tells them no-one can ever love them and no-one will want to be near them or share their lives. TASO tells them they have hope and a future, TASO tells women they have special HIV nurses who can help them carry a baby who will not have to live with me.

*I try to win and take over people’s lives, leading them to sickness and death. People do not want to be tested to see if I am there, they do not want their neighbours to see them spend time with TASO and find out the truth.  Many people cannot access TASO because they don’t have transport, they are too sick to walk any distance, or TASO does not have outreach clinics in their village.  Taking medication every day is hard, particularly for children and young people.  Young people become depressed, believing they have no hope because people won’t want to employ them or marry them.  They stop taking their medicine. Some even commit suicide.

I have another enemy, Global Care (GC). GC loves vulnerable children so all their children are tested by TASO, to see if I am there.  If they find HIV, TASO follows them up, GC gives them extra nutrition, helps the family with healthcare costs, and makes sure children take regular medication.  I am losing the battle with GC sponsored children.  However, I have a new friend.

Meet HepB (Hepatitis B). HepB is starting to spread, and often targets my people – with HIV/AIDS.  People can be tested for HepB. If negative, they can be vaccinated to keep HepB away. Many people cannot afford testing, and more cannot afford even one vaccination, never mind the course of 3 they need for full protection, or boosters. If they are positive, before they can get treatment, they need further tests – which cost 100s of shillings.  Even if they can afford the tests, they then have to pay for medical counselling and a course of treatment. This is where HepB really wins – HepB medication is not free. So, if someone with AIDS has HepB, or someone poor, the future is bleak.

HepB is also good at stigma and isolation.  Many government jobs require HepB testing. If you are positive, until you have completed a course of treatment and been re-tested, you cannot work in health, catering, or schools.  Some people bribe unscrupulous lab technicians to lie about results. We like them! HepB is easily passed from person to person – much easier than me.  HepB is carried in sweat and saliva so the chances are that if HepB gets to one person, the whole family will be infected. Hiding HepB is as deadly as hiding me – if you can’t afford the tests and treatment, you will eventually have an early death.

GC don’t like HepB either. They test all their staff and children. They vaccinate if results are negative, they pay for treatment if someone is positive. They have tested over 140 children, plus family members. Tomorrow they are even travelling to a school for the deaf to test sponsored children. These children can’t get to the Soroti Centre.  If the children aren’t at school, they will visit homes and find them. They are determined that HepB will not take any lives from their children. The staff at GC went to fetch a child who is on crutches, rang schools, contacted parents, made radio announcements – anything to reach their children.

A healthcare worker said today, ‘It is better to be poor than have sickness in your family in Uganda.’

We really win when poor people are sick.

*Please note, to my knowledge, none of the people in these photos have AIDS or HepB

Shots and Tots

……. and breathe……

We’re still on the subject of healthcare, but today is about positive action in this challenging environment.

Today, 111 children were tested and if appropriate, vaccinated against Hepatitis B. 

Hep B is becoming a major problem in this area. The team from the Baptist Church Medical Centre, who came to carry out the programme, tested 6,000 people in one district, and 400 tested positive. In one village, out of 800, 44 had Hep B, and in 4 families, more than 4 people have the disease.  I also discovered that Hep B is so contagious it is transferred by any bodily fluid – including sweat.  A lot of sweating happens here. It’s very, very hot.  Because of this, children are particularly at risk as they often share a bed, or swap clothes.  If an adult is found to have Hep B, the primary source is frequently a child, the only other positive person in the family.

It was great to be involved. I was on ‘administration’ with Hope – which involves one printout and lots of tiny bits of paper - on which we have to handwrite children’s names and reference numbers. I was crying for a spreadsheet and printer by the end.  I just wanted to press ‘find’ for a number, not scroll manually through over 200, in no logical order! Most of the children were Ok with ‘having a prick’, though we had a few tears and a couple of screamers.

The children in the Ark were tested for HIV and Hep B. Tom was on Ark duty today. Tomorrow we repeat the whole process again.

At lunchtime we had a break and visited the home of Fred and Viola, familiar friends to some of you. I think we’re going to put on weight this week – it was a feast.

Another treat today was meeting one of our sponsored children, and 2 children sponsored by friends at our church. It’s great when you actually meet sponsored children.  Even better when you ask, ‘Do you know your sponsor’s name?’ because you think you recognise the child’s name, and they reply, ‘No, but they have two sons called Tom and Noah.’  Love it – they really do read your letters!

We also finally visited the wonderful Amecet today, and their ministry leader, Els. The YWAM home currently has 28 children. There was 1 very sick premature baby on their medical unit, I think 4 tiny babies, and another 5 slightly larger babies (they all looked miniscule to me).  Most of these babies’ mothers died during birth.  After a few months, when they are strong enough, the majority will be reunited with their family.  They also take children referred by the police for child protection reasons. The babies and toddlers all had quilts on their beds – thank you so much to those of you who sent them.

Els says they are looking for nurses – so if you fancy a few months volunteering at Amecet and you’re a qualified nurse, we’ll put you in touch!

This was all a great encouragement after yesterday. Seeing hope and healthcare in action.  A Hep B test and vaccination are not free – GC is funding the programme.  All the staff have been tested and the majority already completed a vaccination course. The medical team today offered a reduced rate for families of staff members – it usually costs around £6 per person, the same as a night in a cheap hotel.  It was a privilege to be here and see it happen, I never doubt the truth of what GC tell us as supporters, but I can vouch for it too.  It is also fantastic to see the work of other NGOs, to meet incredible people like Else, who have literally laid down their lives for sick children.

It doesn't have to be this way

I’m taking you to a place that reeks of suffering and pain.
The fetid airless rooms swelter as the sun hammers down on the walls and roof.
Rooms jammed with beds and people, sometimes on the floor.
Senses suffer with the overwhelming oppressive atmosphere.
People queuing on seats, on the floor, in doorways.
Families outside in the shade, washing clothes, cooking food.
The smell of decomposing wounds causes me to stifle a flinch.
My whole body feels the weight of decay and desperation.
It feels like my worst idea of a field hospital in a war zone.
It’s the district referral hospital in Soroti.
The only option for people who can’t afford to travel.
The only option for people who can afford hospital treatment.

A place where babies and children with fractured limbs lie in traction for weeks.

Where a child with osteomyelitis is stabilised so he can go home, the likely source of his infection. He’ll return when the one orthopaedic surgeon has space to operate.

A man’s diabetic gangrenous foot decays – how can he afford treatment or surgery?

Children with malaria, HIV, anaemia, malnutrition, cram together, sharing beds

A homeless man on a trolley, parked in a corridor, slowly dies as his leg rots. He has a compound fractured femur. He has no money and no family, so no food, no painkillers, no possibility of conservative or surgical treatment. 

I can’t sanitise the awful truth.

I can’t pretend this isn’t happening.

The hospital only has paracetamol, septrin (used to treat infections), and antihistamines readily available.

Doctors write prescriptions for other drugs, relatives go to town to buy the medication.

You have to pay for every test, doctor, operation, aftercare, medicine, night in hospital.

Many can’t afford it. 

And they die.

This is the reality of secondary healthcare for people in this County.

There is no primary healthcare.

This is the reality of healthcare in many poor areas across the world.

I want to run away.

I want to help.

I want to capture the horror, take it away on my sd card.

I can’t bear to photograph people’s suffering, exhaustion, fear.

But there is a glimmer of hope - people with courage and vision.

A physiotherapist working with GC to try and find a way to provide physio for children at the Ark, and advice and training for staff and guardians.

Doctors and nurses struggling with minimal testing and investigative facilities, developing ingenious contraptions for children to share oxygen as they don’t have enough concentrators. 

Families coping with the challenges of looking after children with disabilities.

Single parents and elderly grandparents coping with the added burdens of preventative health measures - good hygiene, nutrition, bathing, extra laundry, check-ups.  But without easy access to water, no transport, no mobility aids for the child, no source of income.

Staff at the Ark who provides guardians with opportunity to work, and disabled children with a safe, secure, loving, healthy environment, and nutritious food.

An uncle who carries his disabled niece twice a day along narrow paths to meet the Ark bus – a path too narrow for transport. She doesn’t have a wheelchair.

The awesome Atiira disability action group who work incredibly hard to create income generation schemes for their members – all of whom are disabled or care for disabled children. 

Staff at GC who rescued a sick child and took her hundreds of miles for specialist surgery (funded by GC).

I took some photos. I won’t run away. I’ll try and do something.

Three Meetings and a Funeral

I am sitting in the shade at our guest house with my cup of African (spiced, milky) tea, after a long day of meetings. I was greeted this morning by the offer of a school table, having blogged yesterday about the lack of surfaces in our room – one person is reading my blog apart from my mother… There are morning prayers at the start of the day, and I’m beginning to think someone’s trying to tell me something.  Today’s message was about humility!

We started today planning our programme, and catching up with Hannah, who has been helping out at the Ark disability centre.  Our timing for a Soroti visit is not perfect. Firstly, Hannah has been called to Kampala to complete immigration formalities. When they call, you go. Hannah and her husband Aaron work for US charity, Water for All, which partners with Global Care in Soroti. Hannah’s background means that she has been able to support the team at the Ark with practical and administrative ideas. The most impressive of these visually, is a walking frame, designed by Hannah, built with local materials, using the skills of the GC tailoring workshop, and the welding facility at Water for All.  It was great to see it in use – children we haven’t seen standing on their own before, now able to move freely in an upright position.  

Our second clash is with a Hepatitis B vaccination programme. Deaths due to Hep B have been increasing locally, so the team have arranged for all the sponsored and Ark children to be vaccinated (it’s not free).  This will take place on Thursday and Friday, then on Saturday we’ll visit the school for the deaf, so sponsored children there don’t miss out.

Today we looked at how to evaluate the impact of the programmes here.  It is exciting to hear the staff talking about their aims for vulnerable children in Soroti. There’s a real desire to see households lifted out of extreme poverty, and for children to gain education and skills for self-sustainability.  The team's heart is to build self-esteem, raise expectations of families and children themselves, and counteract negative attitudes towards those who are poor or disabled.  They want to empower sponsored children to believe that like others before them, they can be leaders, doctors, lawyers, teachers and managers.  Inspiring stuff!

We haven’t had much time to visit the Ark today, but we managed to greet the children and staff. They loved some of the sensory toys I took, although not everyone appreciated the fluorescent flashing hairy rubber caterpillars.  We had a great time discussing long-term plans and ideas for the Ark. Once again I was impressed and humbled by the love and care of the staff for children with severe physical, sensory and intellectual disability.  There are many challenges working with this group of children, but the team want to tackle them, and ensure that children are not isolated or neglected at home.

Some of you have been a tremendous support and encouragement to us, so here’s a quick update:

S had her operation last Monday and the fractured bone has been plated at a hospital in Mbale. It will be another week before the biopsy results come back.  Thank you so much again to those who donated for her surgery. There will be aftercare and rehab to follow, and probably more treatment – so watch out, more fundraising will take place.    

      Thanks for the clothes. Most of these were given out in Rukungiri after seeing such terrible need.

·        

•        Thanks for the sensory toys – I can’t wait to have a proper session with them later in the week.

Thanks for the footballs and Frisbees – mostly given to schools already, but I have a few left for here and Kampala

Thanks for the quilts made for the babies at Amecet. This was our worst timing. As they are near the guest house, we called in on the way home.  Unfortunately, a baby died today. It is a common occurrence at Amecet so they told us we could go in and see the manager.  Imagine our horror when the girl taking us in said, ‘Please, you can come in’, and we found ourselves in the baby’s room, the grieving mother at the side of the cot. The tiny baby coffin was on the floor waiting for the body.  We arranged to go back another day…

That’s the reality of life here – and we know we are going to have to face it. It’s great to see our friends, and spend a day listening to them planning and evaluating, being encouraged by their dedication and love, excited by the way they work together supporting and appreciating each other. But the reason for it all is the extreme poverty and vulnerability of children with no hope. We have to understand where they have come from, to understand why GC is so effective in changing lives.

It's not about me

Here’s a question - why was I so surprised to find a quality hotel in Uganda?

I’ve been mulling this over during our postponed game drive this morning, and our journey to Soroti. The Safari Lodge was probably the cleanest hotel I have ever stayed in anywhere, including the ‘public’ toilets!  The staff were definitely the most helpful and friendly – they couldn’t do enough for us, and sorted our trips and gave us advice with good grace and lots of smiles. They treated Charles exactly the same as us. The catering staff were the most accommodating and flexible we’ve come across in a hotel, in relation to Tom’s awkward diet.

It just wasn’t what I was expecting. We’re now installed in our guest house in Soroti with a trickle for a shower, a cramped room with no bedside tables or any drawers, electric wires hanging off the wall – but its clean, the water is hot, we’ve had a good meal, the bed is comfy, and there’s free wifi. And guess what? The people are friendly and helpful.

So maybe I have some sort of prejudice – an expectation of poor quality and an inability to provide what foreigners expect. How wrong. They do it much better here than the place we stayed for 2 nights in Tenerife.  We may have had problems last year – but when we were prepared to pay what we’d pay in the UK we got something far, far better.

But the main factor is the people.

I think I need to go back to where we started in Rukungiri. As we visit people here and spend time with the disabled children in the Ark, I need to consciously treat them with dignity, humility and respect each and every adult and child.  No preconceptions, no poor expectations, no patronising attitude, no self-righteousness or superiority. It’s not about me.

Yesterday I read this in my daily devotional notes: ‘There is the hidden face of God in the faces of widows, orphans, strangers, aliens, prisoners, refugees, immigrants, the hungry, the thirsty, the sick, and the naked of the world around us (Matt 25:31-46)’. The author went on to suggest that these vulnerable groups are so special to God, they have almost divine preferential treatment. The most challenging idea was the proposition that caring for the marginalised is not only a true expression of faith, but likely to be the greatest factor taken into account on the day of judgement. I have a lot to learn about caring for the most vulnerable in society here and at home. It starts with dignity and respect, moves to listening to, not deciding what’s best for someone, and definitely goes as far as sacrificial service. 

The people in the hotel went above and beyond to make us comfortable and relaxed. Do I do the same for everyone I meet, whatever their circumstances?

And for my friends who love them, a picture of giraffes from this morning!