Vocation, Vocation, Vocation

What do you do if you’re a poor performer at school, and your family is extremely poor?

Explanatory Note: last year of primary school is P7. Senior classes are S1-4 then you go elsewhere for A’ levels or college.

*Lizzie lives in a poor family home.  Her father died of HIV.  Her mother, sister *Mary, and one of her brothers, are also HIV+.  Lizzie was sponsored by Global Care, but struggled with schooling. When she reached S3, teachers realised she was unlikely to pass her S4 exams without extra support, which her family could not provide. 

Lizzie realised her best option was a vocational training scheme. She spent 6 months training in hairdressing and ‘salon’, a course paid for by GC, then started her own business, paying meagre rent for a room, and dividing it with a curtain so she can sleep at the salon.  GC bought her a start-up kit - mirrors, hairdryer, hair clippers and products. Lizzie’s salon is successful. Located on a busy main road into town, she is making money.  Now she is being paid to train her sister Mary, who also has mental health problems, and couldn’t continue at school.

17-year-old twins *Robert and *Edwin come from an extremely poor family. Their father has mental health problems and at times has been abusive towards the family. The twins are the eldest of 5 children. They moved into S3, but after one term the school dropped them, as their performance was so poor.  

GC supports them on a 1-year carpentry course which includes their training and lunch. In training for 5 months, they are now able to contribute to the business, and receive a small salary, which can go to their family. Today they were making doors…

*Anna lives with her grandmother in a 2-roomed house in a rural village at the top of a hill. Their roof was thatched with banana leaves, but GC replaced it with tin.  When she sat P7 exams, Anna did badly, and because of her home environment, secondary school was not an option.  At 14 years old, she joined a tailoring programme, GC paying for her training and a midday meal.

It takes Anna 2 hours twice a day to walk to and from work. She has to help her grandmother, who is sick and very old, and can’t walk down the narrow, steep, mud path to the road, or back up the hill. *Anna has to shop, and fetch water, although their neighbouring relatives sometimes help. The owner of the business says she will employ Anna if she does well, and GC will buy her a sewing machine.

Today has been a good day. A day of encouragement and optimism. These families live in unimagineable conditions, but they have hope that someone in the family can work, and provide a regular income. The family will eat better meals, and younger children can be supported by their working brothers and sisters. 

Visiting in the rainy season has opened our eyes to some of the added challenges of living in a rural location.  Everything turns to mud, and it’s too wet to walk because the rain comes down in sheets.  It is an incredibly beautiful area, a bit ‘Yorkshire Dales on steroids’! But hidden in the awesome scenery are shacks and hovels, pain and sickness, struggle for survival, and tiny gardens that provide the only food or income for whole families.

As we leave Rukungiri, I am humbled and challenged by the amazing work of the team here.  They travel massive distances on rough tracks, but above any inconvenience, they care for the poor and vulnerable. I am in awe of how they find ways to support families and lift them from destitution.  It has been a huge privilege to meet people who say that Global Care has saved their lives, or their children’s lives.

Tomorrow we travel back to Kampala, and then on to Murchison Falls for a weekend off.  Somehow I think we’ll be talking about our experiences here as much as animal spotting!


* not their real names