Nursery Project

So I have made a promise to the nursery teacher Joyce to help fund an outdoor play area for the nursery!

No mean feat as it will cost £1000 just to have a suitable concrete flat base laid, that's before any resources but I am confident I will get there.So far I have foolishly swum in The Great North Swim, a mile in the freezing cold Lake Windermere, which raised £250 and I've only just thawed out!!

I'm now in the throws of organising a good old fashioned coffee morning on November 19th to help boost funds. Cake stalls, cup cakes, arts and crafts stalls and good old mulled wine should top the total up! Watch this space!!

Simple pleasures

A drawing of me.......I've looked worse!!

My friend Joyce



Still smiling :O)

Food glorious food

Imagine cooking for over 650 children 3 times a day....

It's a never ending challenge to feed these children and they have a very small budget to use. A staple diet of rice and beans every day is filling but hard to imagine when we have such  variety of unlimited choice available.On my first visit we paid for a children's party and provided them with jam sandwiches and pop to drink, there faces lit up with excitement. On both my visits we have bought a cow for the children to eat! The last cow was bought over breakfast and buy the afternoon it was at school waiting to be slaughtered and the children enjoyed the meat the next day.



Each of these pans cost over £200 ! An expense that the school couldn't afford without support

The school has now started a farm project and greens and fruit will be introduced into the school diet when the crops are ready as well as being sold to increase the schools income. This is an exciting project and visiting the farm leaves you with a real sense of optimism for their future development.





 

 

Fresh greens



Water

Oh how I struggled with the guilt of missing hot running water and showers every day. It's a cliche but it's true, we take fresh, clean running water for granted. The shower was freezing cold from a jerry can on the roof that someone carries up their daily. I tried to embrace this cold wake up routine because you have no choice, but it takes your breath away.

It is not until you see the school well constantly pumping clean water out all day for the children that you appreciate what we have got. The school is fortunate to have one of these pumps as the alternative is using the local well where the water is certainly not clean.When I first saw the children collecting water from the community well for their families it really shocked me, it is so brown and dirty,whilst some families will boil the water, a lot don't and cholera is still a big problem in Uganda .On my last visit we saw  a group of children washing their clothes and swimming in dirty, brown water, I don't think it is a sight I will ever get used to.

Daily life

Fresh water

 Would you let your children wash in this??

The consequences

(image: wow.gm)

My friend Tobito

Prior to visiting Matugga I started to sponsor a young boy, aged 7, called Tobito. His mother was a teacher at The Revival Centre and sadly died of Aids. His father has abandoned him and his grandparents are too old and poor to look after him. Tobito is now a 'champion' and lives at the school full-time. For £10 a month I can support Tobito at the school, to help pay for his food, clothes and education.

Meeting Tobito for ther first time was moving, but I was happy and relieved to see him smiling.These children crave love and enjoy nothing more than to hold your hand or to sit with you. On my first visit he couldn't speak a lot of English but it was such a pleasure this year to be able to talk to him more. I feel privileged to have this little boy in my life and I look forward to supporting him in the future.

Say hello...

                                                          

our first meeting

The realities of Uganda

The Facts ( hard to comprehend in 2011!)

Inquisitive eyes......

 and still they smile....beautiful children

Let's start at the very beginning

In April, 2010 I travelled to Uganda with a group of strangers to spend two weeks volunteering at The Revival Centre in Matugga.  To say I had no idea of what to expect is an understatement! Little did I know the passion and new commitment this would lead to.


Reading my journal of those first few days shows how quickly the country got underneath my skin. The colours of vibrant red clay against green lush land and tin roof's. The childrens warmth embraced me and their constant smiles were overwhelming.


The family I  stay with are so kind and  made me feel very welcome. I  slept in a shared room which is open to the ceiling. When it rains the noise is unbelieveable, drips of rain leak through the roof to our beds but it's nothing compared to those families out on the streets and shanty areas where they have very little shelter. How do they cope with this every day? I have a mosquito net above my bed and have had all my innoculations, these families dont have this luxury and malaria is still a huge problem.The shower is something I hope never to get used to. It is freezing cold water run from a jerry can on the roof, which a poor man fills up and carries every day. It certainly wakes you up in the morning!


Driving through Kampala is a startling contrast to the outskirts where I was staying in Matugga. The city has money, lush green golf courses,  a stream of brash large cars and smart hotels , although I am yet to understand fully who stays in these! This is very hard to see directly next to children as young as two left begging alone on the streets, families who have nothing.


The Revival Centre offers children from pre-school age to secondary a safe place to study and a chance to improve their future. There are currently 130 orphans living at the school, who they call  "champions", which is a very worthy title. Children of all ages that have lost parents through aids, malaria, or families that simply have no choice but to abandon their children because they simply cant afford to look after them. Heartbreaking. But the reality is they are the lucky ones to have a safe place with people who care for them.


I want to write this blog to share my experiences and the realities of life in Uganda. Maybe somebody else will be inspired to try and make a difference somewhere in the world.

For more information:
http://www.revivalcentrematugga.org.uk/
http://www.charitygiving.co.uk/racheleydmann