Safely home

Unfortunately the intermittant nature of the electricity supply has meant that it has been incredibly frustrating to try and use the internet, so I gave up! Sorry to everybody who got bored with the lack of communication and enormous thanx to all of you who prayed for us all during the visit.

Highlights:

• The new buildings and developments at Rock of Joy - as well as three new classrooms they have a new "institutional stove" paid for by donations from Ash Green Primary School in Trentham. This has resulted in an enormous saving in firewood costs - last term cost was 450,000, this has been 150,000!


• The boarding house now provides shelter, care and food for 29 children from the most deprived of families; this is such a challenge- it was desparately sad to see the children whose families/carers did not bother to come to pick them up for the Easter holiday when all the others had gone home .......but a delight to meet Edward again (see last years blog) who is now a cheerful, lively 12 year old who, since he has been able to attend school regularly, speaks amazingly good English. His injured back still means that he cannot stand straight but it was incredible to see him cheekily climbing the shelves where they store the children's drinking cups..... an amazing transformation! Praise the Lord!


• We ran some workshops for the teachers to help them recognise and understand the importance of what they are doing and to show them how much we value their role - it is so important to encourage them - they are doing an amazing work with 300 children who would otherwise not be at school. We also worked with the teachers and the children to take part in the Joined Up campaign (www.sendafriend.com) and had a wonderful time creating "buddies" to be returned to Abbey Hill School in Stoke and then to Germany to the G8 meeting in June.


• I spent a blessed time working again with the womens group I helped set up last year. It has now grown to 50 members who this year I worked with to create a banner celebrating the importance of education for them and their children. We used Proverbs 22 v 5 (teach a child the way he should go) and had a wonderful time sharing our stories and experiances. It was a joy that several of the women had recently become Christians through this group, one of whom had previously been a moslem. Gordon ran a health seminar for them and it was a pleasure to hear their enthusiam to learn and understand more about looking after themselves and their families.


• At Nansana we have helped to develop plans for their chicken project, the future of their orphaned calf, a new water supply and have ordered a new set of purposed made mosquito nets for the boarding houses.


• Lots more things too numerous to mention.....

And unfortunately I have returned with Shingles so will lie low for a bit to recover. Thanks for all your love, support and prayers. Till next time.... x SUE

The Kabanda Children

Since the deaths of Vance Kabanda,his wife Harriet and the childrens brother, Ellie, in 2005, Paddy (12) has been a boarder at Nansana Royal Primary School, which was founded by his father, where he has been provided with free schooling. His younger sister Sandra (aged 7) was removed by a relative to an orphanage. I have been working with Topi our adminstrator to bring Sandra back from the orphanage so that the children can be reunited and for her and husband Alex to bring them up with their own4. This is a complicated business and has involved several meetings with distant family members, lawyers, pastors and managers at the orphanage. One lawyer suggested that I might adopt the children and bring them here! I would love to do so :) but pointed out that i believe it to be in the best interest of the children to brought up in uganda by people who care for them and that i am prepared to do whatever it needs to make that possilble. It was all quite emotional as I am sure you will realise !!!! Please pray that these children who have during the last two years suffered multiple losses, including being separated from each other may soon been reunited with loving family friends who want to care for them.

A trip to Masaka on Tuesday

We visited Rock of Joys sister school in Masaka - a three hour drive away over "challenging" roads!! Set up by a young man who had become a Christian through Pastor Stephens teaching (they met at the village well) They do not recieve direct support from The Kabanda Trust but had two cows one paid for by donations raised by Fliss my niece at her school in Gloucester 18 months ago and another from The Kabanda Trust. Sadly, just before our visit the two cows had died from a rare infection and everybody was devastated. Milk from the cow provided a much needed supplement to the childrens diet and the income from the extra helped pay some of the teachers salaries (no more than £30 per month each). They teach the children in the most basic of conditions. Ann and I wandered round what appeared a derilict building with few desks, no floors, no anything and then stood and cried together, no words could describe how it felt to be there and yet they teach 300 children!!! Despite the appalling lack of anything and the poor conditions they work in they get very good results with the children, the parents are supportive and the lovely teahers are so enthusiatic..... it was a privilge to be with them and to spend a wonderful afternoon together.

This area has been particularly devestated by the HIV/AIDs virus. It is thought that 1 in 4 people are effected and it has resulted in a large number of children being made orphans and suffering the effects themselves. Whilst this is a rural area the poverty is most telling here and the effects of the combination of these two scurges blatant to see. They particularly asked us for support in setting up a health project with them. The nearest clinic is 7-8 miles away - an impossible distance in their terms. We hope that the Trustees of TKT will agree to a proposal to support this school and its most desparately needy children.

Catch up

It has been difficult to use the computers for the last few days so here is an abbreviated version of events. Gordon, Lizzie, Ann & Keith from Trentham with Tim from Uttoxeter all arrived safely. Over the Easter weekend we all relaxed together. Some of us went the 8:00 service in the Cathedral on Sunday morning which was a wonderfully joyous blend of traditional Anglican and exuberant Ugandan. This was followed by a service at Kingdom Gospel Church where we worshipped with old friends and enjoyed the excitement of their Easter celebration – it felt like a truly wonderful day and a real celebration of the fact that JESUS IS ALIVE

Monday we relaxed with Pastor Steven his extended family and Paddy Kabanda the 12yr orphaned son of Vance our charity’s namesake. We have adopted Paddy in spirit and it was a delight to be able to spend time with him for a couple of days - I would love to bring him home, he is such a beautiful, tender child who has been through such sadness…. But, Topi our lovely administrator and her husband have asked if they came take him and his sister in to bring up with their 4 other children and we are keen to support this. Later today Topi and I are going to the office of the Attorney General to see a lawyer about this. In the meantime I am waiting to meet some of their relatives to talk about the children’s futures and how we are able to help.

Yesterday I was a Nansana meeting the guys from Wateraid to plan a new rainwater harvesting system for them – now I’m an expert on water & sanitation and in the evening we had a wonderful time with all the teachers from Rock of Joy School looking at the Joined Up campaign (Jane!!!) and how we will use it with them next week. They had some brilliantly creative ideas and it was great to be able to encourage them and to spend time together.

Today we have met up with a couple from Lizzie’s church in Bristol who may begin to support ROJ, they were called Barbara & Trevor Harrison and had been missionaries here a number of years ago – they knew Peter Mockford’s parents and remember him as a little boy!!! We were also introduced to the Archbishop of Uganda and spent a while chatting with him - Nice man…..

Another breakage and outbreak of Susans !

Yesterday I met the Lungujja ladies again. The group I set up for them last year is still meeting, there were 15 from last time and 15 new ones who I didnt know. One of the ladies had been a moslem and had converted to Christianity which they were really pleased to relate to me. They were really excited to see me which was lovely, there were great whoops and screams of delight - I had to shake every bodies hand and then sit down. As i did so the chair completed collapsed - they were mortified (its because I'm a lady of traditional build ... who needs to loose weight I think!!) and i laughed uncontrollably from my position of disarray on the floor!! Winter (see last years blog) brought her new baby to see me, another one called Sue. Pastor Steven said he thought there would be an epidemic - its such an honor. Anyway, we talked to them about the importance of school for their children and asked them to complete a questionnaire about their children & their experience of school - the responses were very salutary and a reminder that we take so much for granted at home. The good news was that of the 15 ladies from last year who we had given mosquito nets, 12 had not had a bout of malaria since - amazing. We had also taught them to make paper bead necklaces (if I havent sold you one yet do ask... ) - 8 of the women were now making an income from this and previously had no source of income at all.... Praise the Lord for beadmaking. Where ever you turn there are small groups of women making paper beads! Next week we are going to make a banner together - I have brought lots of felt & resouces - it will depict their children and celebrate their opportunity for schooling.

We were promised that the sanitary repairs would be completed by 2pm yesterdasy (which is so precise as to be worrying) and of couse it was not, so we are still in our temporary accomodation, hey ho, at least we have a bed, occasionally electricity and water if we are lucky.

Yesterday was spent with Pastor Steven touring the Rock of Joy School - amazing changes have taken place and the school is transformed. They have a new "cooker' which means that they no long cook over an open fire - previously their firewood bill was 450,000 shilings per term. This term it has only cost them 150, 000 which is an amazing saving for them. Thanks go to Ash Green primary school whose Harvest Festival collection funded the new cooker!

They have 3 new classrooms all fully equipped with desks benches, blackboards and book shelves, with books to go on the shelves. The nursery class (previously 60 children) has been split into two and it was a sheer delight to go into the classroom and be greeted by 30 gorgeuos little children jumping up and down in excitment to see us. They were all resplendant in their new uniforms and proudly vied with each other to show us their new school badges embroidered on their clothes. We were treated to several choruses of "we are happy to receive you welulcome" (sung to the tune of she'll be coming round the mountain) which was wonderful!

My joy at being their was tempered though to hear their sadness at the recent death of two children, one aged 5 a girl called Topi from asthma (we think) because her parents couldnt afford to take her for treatment and the other a 3 year old, Sammy, who lived next door to the school and who they had adopted although he was too young. Sammys parent had shut him outside the house everyday since he was old enough to walk whilst they went to work. He spent a lot of time wandering around the school and the children looked after him whilst Gladys, Stevens wife fed him..... so sad, they think he died of measles. There are so many difficult stories here.... it is very easy (a nd necessary) from home to concentrate on all that we need to do to keep the kabanda trust running and yet, here we become involved in the difficulties and struggles of peoples lives - it is very challgenging.

Water water everywhere (again!)

Yesterday afternoon we went to Nansana Royal Primary School to a celebration and official welcoming of the new sportswear. Lots of parents sat in a tent to listen to a long round of speeches including an unexpected one from me (unexpected by me that is) there was a tour of the projects (inc 400 chickens), a drama, some singing and then kids clad in their new in sportswear paraded around and around and around.... the school. It was very hard to cope with their overwhelming gratefulness - quite embarrassing.

In Lungujja Rock of Joy school owns a small house which is half built and which they purchased through private donations before The Kabanda Trust existed. They plan to use it as an additional boarding house. The churches together in Uttoxeter have raised money to pay for the conversion. Today I went with Pastor Steven to meet an architect, to make final alterations to the plans - he is going to get a quantity surveyor to look at the revised ones and we will see him again soon to hear the proposed costs.

I also had a long meeting with Topi our adminstrator here to look at how all the projects are developing. She is a wonderful woman, so inciteful and honest, it is quite inspiring to be with her. We now have lots more things to do including to visit the office of the attorney general with some legal stuff, so we will need wisdom for the issues we need to discuss there.

Todays entetainment: bex & I are trying to conserve water and only flush the loo when absolutely necessary if you get my drift. anyway, mid afternoon I pushed the flush handle and the whole toilet, cistern, pipes, sitting bit EVERYTHING including a lot !!!!! of water came away in my hand. The lid landed on my foot which is a little sore but ok and my dress was soaked, so suddenly;y was the whole bedroom floor as the pipes were pouring water. After calling for help we went out to lungujja and when we came back our room was filled with people.... Q: how many ugandans does it take to repair a broken toilet? Ans: 1 to do the work, 2 men to discuss what he is doing, at least three housemaids to sit on the bed and say sorry a lot and a housekeeper to be busying around. We are now moved temporarily to another room for the night.... hey ho...really quite entertaining.

A new baby & sportswear

We arrived safely despite the catering supplies lorry crashing into our plane in Amsterdam. The pilot declared the plane unsafe to fly and we had to wait four hours for a replacement. Finally arrived in Entebbe at 1:00am their time. Quiet day relaxing and recovering yesterday then out to Lungujja to see Pastor Steven & Gladys. We were greeted by a welcoming committee consisting largely of the family of one of my ladies from last year - I was to meet her new baby named after me (Ah!) Baby Susan was gorgeous. Another of the ladies, Stella, is now house mother to the excited 30 children who are living in the boarding house and who rushed to hold our hands and tell us about their new home. The school now has more classrooms but it was dark so the official tour must wait till tuesday - it was all very exciting to see how things have developed and changed.

Today i went to the Palm Sunday service int he cathedral on the hill behind where we are staying. Unfortunately I missed the English language service so during the sermon mussed on how strange it felt to be the only white person in a packed cathedral and then on the story of Jesus riding into Jerusalem. Then came communion and which seemed to take a similar pattern to what I am used to so I just said the prayers and creed in English whilst they spoke in their own language.

This afternoon we have been out to Nansana Royal Primary school for a celebration of their new sportswear supplied by The Kabanda Trust.... what excitment - they had gathered 100 ish parents, hired a sound system and put up a tent for everybodyto sit under. We all had to tour thje school and inspect the calf, the 400 chickens, new computer and admire the newly painted classrooms. Then after much singing, drama, speeches (including one from yours truly - completly unplanned)all the children paraded round the school several times in their new kit! they were very smart and it is easy underestimate the importance of such things when they rarely have anything new.....

It is incredibly hot here at the moment and so we returned to the guest house where we are staying feeling warn out, but with a warm glow inside having seen such enthusiam !!

By the way, I met up with Edward last night - he is looking so well and his English is much improved.... he told me he was very happy in the boarding house and feeling well. (see last years blogs)