News of January 2023 trip to Uganda

Last month, Trustees Bridget, Steve and Terry, together with UCUK supporters Barbara, Penny, Janelle, Pete, Mark and Charlie spent a busy and fulfilling couple of weeks visiting some of the individuals, families and projects supported by UCUK.  We had a wonderful time meeting the staff of UWCM again – most of us for the first time since Covid – and, as always, we came back encouraged and amazed by the huge difference such a small team of (9) staff are making in people’s lives in this region of Uganda. 

We spent a lovely afternoon at Lwangoli Prayer & Porridge listening to the children and young people sing, perform drama and recite Bible memory verses and it was wonderful to witness their increased confidence and sense of belonging from being a part of this very effective project.  We also enjoyed helping serve over 100 cups of porridge and to see the younger children enjoy this weekly, nutritious treat.

We visited a Women’s Group in Kibanda community and a Teenage Parent group in Bududa where members of our team taught them how to make re-usable sanitary pads and supplied them with lots of materials, scissors etc.  The women and girls were very keen to learn as they will then be able to supply pads to girls and women within their communities and schools which is life changing for some who would otherwise not be able to go to school during their period.  There was always plenty of singing and laughing at these sessions and we were also very well fed with matoke, rice, beans, chapatis, chicken, peanuts etc!

We were also able to get our hands and feet dirty and help with some ‘mudding’ of a traditionally built shelter which the local community in Bududa were building for a family whose home had been washed away in the recent floods and landslides.  The family have 7 young children and had been given a small plot of land on which to build a new shelter.  The community donated the wooden poles for the frame and we provided the funding for the iron sheet roofing, window and door frames, nail & tools. Once the shelter is complete and dried out, UWCM will provide mattresses and household cooking items for the family and, possibly, a goat to start them off with an IGA. Fortunately, we were able to wash our hands/feet before leaving as we were then off to attend a wedding!

During our visit we also met with members of a cluster group to hear more about their revolving fund for rainwater harvesting water tanks and visited a community where a gravity flow system had been installed; met many of the children and young people we are sponsoring through school; spent time at the children’s and parents conferences; visited families in their homes – some of whom we have known for years and it was very encouraging in some cases to see how well they were doing but for others it was heartbreaking to hear some of the challenges they continue to face. We were able to assess the state of UWCM’s Landcruiser and discuss various options with Tom (Driver) and staff. All 4 of the tyres had to be replaced during our visit. More photos and news of some of these topics will be included at a later date and also in our Spring newsletter.