Snapshots

It has been a little while since I wrote an update on my blog. I thought that I would post some pictures to show you a little bit of what I have been up to. Consider these as snapshots into my life as it has been of late.

 

 

Cooking with the Hope House ladies

 

 

For the last few months I have been meeting with these ladies. We have had a sharing time/bible study together Sunday afternoons. I have loved getting to know them. They have beautiful hearts. They also have painful stories. I have had the privilege to learn bits and pieces of these stories.  The ladies have all been through the API Hope House project. This project was offered to women who felt hopelessly trapped in prostitution in the slum of Kivulu. It lasted two years and taught them jewelry making and small business skills encompassed in God's message of love and hope.  API is hoping the run another project like this. If you want to know more check out this http://www.ugandaarise.org/ you can also read a little about of some of the ladies I know.

 

A few weeks ago we got chatting about cooking. The Ugandan way to cook is to use charcoal on a little cook stove. They cook a lot of beans and rice. Hardly anyone knows how to use an oven. They just aren't practical. We talked about things we liked to cook. They ladies wondered if I could teach them to make chicken soup. I wondered if they could teach me to make japati. So a few days later we had a cooking date. We ended up eating the chicken soup over rice, instead of putting some rice in the soup. . It is very Ugandan to put any type of sauce or broth over rice and eat it that way.  We decided this was a mix of Ugandan and Canadian way. It was delicious.

 



 

A Treat at Program

The last few weeks there has been a team here from the states. They have been helping out at the street program. On one of the days they decided to bless the boys and get something special for them to have for their meal.  Fish it was. But here in Uganda they eat all the fish pretty much. The head is good part of the fish and is used! This is Benjamin, happy with his fish supper. The boys always share their food saying "Auntie, you take!" On this day Benjamin was no different. These boys want to share with you especially if it is special.  And in case you are wondering, the fish is rather good here!

 

 

A Birthday Gift

 



 

I have been helping teach Sunday school in Grace Church which is in the Kivulu slum. Uncle Abdul translates for me. I love having him translate for me because he does such a good job. His heart of the street boys is amazing. He knows what it is like for them since he spent time on the streets himself as a young boy. The boys respect and listen to him. African church is a strange mix of noise and worship. They louder the better I think must be their motto. I am the only white person that attends this church currently. They have translators, but most of the worship songs are in Lugandan. Last week I decided that singing in Lugandan is practically speaking in tongues for me. I know a little of what the songs are saying, but mostly not. So I just make up what they mean in my heart!

 

After church is finished I walk out of Kivulu. Some of the boys often walk with me. They say they are my body guards. Sometimes they even puff out their chests and strut a little to fit the part! I do feel safe with them though. At this point there is a lot of trust that has developed on both our parts. It is probably a little bit of a funny sight, a muzungu walking down the streets trying her best to communicate with a small pack of grubby boys who are her friends. People sometimes give us strange looks. On this particular Sunday there were four boys walking with me. One of them pulled a branch off a tree that we walked by (there are so many beautiful flowering trees here in Uganda) and waved it around and repeatedly yelled rather loudly "happy birthday!" We started getting some even stranger looks! I am not sure that he knew my birthday was only a few day away. I think he just thought it was a funny thing to say. But regardless when he gave it to me it made me happy.

 

 

An Afternoon of Swimming

 



 

One program day the boys got to go swimming.  We rented the pool. The boys were very excited. The problem is that most of the boys can't swim at all. We kept them to the shallow end for safety sake. I got in with the boys with was an adventure in itself.  There was a lot of splashing!

 

 

The Van

Another adventure that happened to me in the last week is that the API van got stuck on the way to the land. We are in the rainy season now. Because of this the roads have gotten quite rutted and hard to drive. While trying to avoid ruts on one side, we slipped into the ditch on the other. Unfortunately the ditch was filled with the neighbours crops... It took a good hour and most all the boys from the boys house man power to get us out! The neighbours were understanding and we made compensation for the mishap.

Jethro

 

 

For over a month now Amy and I have been living with a family we know as API looks for a new volunteer  house.  Shawn and Sarah have the gift of hospitality. They are easy to hang out with. Sarah is due with their second son in August. Jethro is their other son. They adopted him from here in Kampala over a year ago now. 

 

Jethro is a character. He loves to joke and make funny faces. He is my little buddy and time I am cooking. I do no think a day passes were we are not laughing at something he does or says. I am really grateful for Shawn and Sarah and their family.

 

 

Another Resettlement

 



 

Yesterday I got back from the far reaches of western Uganda. We were talking a little boy named Felix home to his family who lived in the hills near the great lakes. This trip involved two overnight bus rides. We rode ten hours in a bus from Kampala and then proceeded the next hour or so in the back of a little white Nissan pickup. This picture was taken before the other twenty people joined us in the back! This was a whole new African adventure for me.

 

Felix with some of his family. They were happy to see him. We are praying he stays home.

 

On the way back the ride got even more exciting. We didn't want to wait for the evening bus as we were hoping to get back to Kampala sooner than later. The only other option was the pickup. But it was loaded with beans and the front was already occupied. So we perched up on the sacks of grain for the three hour trek out of the hills back to paved roads! Secretly I was hoping to have the opportunity to ride in the back of these trucks so I didn't mind at all!

 

At one point we got stuck on a hill. The weight of the beans plus us was too much for the truck. We all unloaded except grandma (jaja as they are called here) who continued to perch in the spare tire. I love doing resettlements. I love meeting the families of the boys. I love seeing their expressions when they first see their child again.  I love seeing more of Uganda. It is a truly beautiful country. The area we were in was all hills and farms. I love seeing grandmas in spare tires and all the Ugandan culture that comes with that. It makes me happy!

So there are a few snapshots of my life over the past couple weeks. I am blessed to be here.

Two of Their Stories

Abby often does prayer updates on some of the street boys on her blog http://aperfectinjustice.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2013-03-01T14:30:00-08:00&max-results=7. Lately I have been helping with this. I get the opportunity to talk with some of the boys (one of the uncles or aunties translates for me) and hear some of their stories. I take a picture of two of them. We pray together. Later I type up what they told me and send it to Abby.

 

I talked to couple boys yesterday. Abby will probably put their stories up on her blog soon, but I thought you might be interested in reading it here since I had just finished typing them. I really love doing this type of thing!

 

 

 

Fred Natovu

 

 

Fred is a small boy. He says his age is ten but he looks to be maybe seven at the most. What he lacks in size he makes up with spiritedness. He seems to hold his own fairly well with the other boys at program although he is definitely smaller then them all. This is part of his story.

 My mother's name is Coleen. I have never known my father. I came to the streets of Kampala sometime in April and I have been living on them for a month now. I ran away from home because of my mother. She used to beat me and sometimes deny me food. When I left my home in Waskiso and started traveling to Kampala I was helped by a man. He was on a boda boda and he let me ride with him to Kampala. My plan was to visit my uncle. He lives in Kampala. The problem was that when I got to his house it was locked and no one was there. The neighbours told me that my uncle was in prison but they didn't tell me why. I didn't know anyone in Kampala other than my uncle. I came to the streets because I have nowhere else to go. I do not want to go home. Life on the streets is not good. It is hard to get things to eat. I don't have clothes like I did at home. I sleep on the ground with other boys and sometimes we get chased away from where we are sleeping at night.  When this happens we have to walk in the dark to find another place to sleep.

 Please pray for me. I want to go back to school. I also want to have a safe place where I can live and be happy.
 

Before he came to the streets Fred reached primary 3 in school. When he grows up he dreams to become a teacher. He explained that teachers teach people new things and help them become what they dream of through education.

 

 

 

Kiyemba Henry

 

 Henry says he is 12 years old. He has started coming to program in this last month. He cut his foot and heard about the clinic through a friend. Since getting treatment there he has been coming often to the street programs. He is a friendly and engaging boy with a quick smile. This is part of his story.

I have no interest in remembering my parents names. They are both living. My father is living with my step mother. My mother lives in Kampala. I was living with my father and stepmother. We used to live in an area of Kampala called Karerwe. My father decided to move from the city to the village. The village we moved to was called Kiti. When we moved there I lived with my family for three months but all this time I did not go to school. In the morning I would do my chores but then after that I would have nothing to do. I was bored so I would walk around and often go to visit my aunt who lived not too far away. When I came back home I often found I had missed meal time. My family never kept any food for me.  I would ask why they didn't leave anything for me but they would never reply to me. Instead they would tell me to get water. Sometimes I had to fetch water three times a day. often my family only ate one time a day so it was not a good situation for me. I was hungry so I would looked for jackfruit in the bushes.  My father and my stepmother sometimes threatened to send me to Kampiringisa because I was stubborn.  One day I was out with some friends. I stayed out too late and when I came back I found that my house was locked and my family was all asleep. I was afraid to wake them up since I knew they would be very upset with me. So instead I made a makeshift bed using a sack and string. I hung it in a big tree near our house. In the morning my father was very angry with me. He beat me with a stick that also had wire on it. He also hit my foot very hard. My foot was hurting me a lot and it took some time to heal. I waited some time after this at my home but things were not getting any better. I decided to come back to Kampala. My mother lives in Kampala, although I do not often see her. When I came to her house she was angry at me for coming to her and told me that I needed to go back to my father. She refused to let me stay with her. I did not want to go back to my father's house so I stayed on the streets. I found a plastic container and started fetching water to make some money. Slowly I learned more things about street life and how to survive. I met a boy named Big who brought me to Kivulu.  I did not like Kivulu though so I did not stay there. I have been on the streets of three years now.  Right now I sleep in Wandegerya in front of a restaurant called  Chicken Tonight.

Please Pray for me. I have an injured foot right now. I would like prayer for healing. I would also like prayer for an opportunity to go back to school.

Henry's dream is to become an engineer when he grows up.

 

What about Sponsoring?

Some of you have asked me about sponsoring boys through A Perfect Injustice. I thought I might as well give you some details here in case any others of you are interested. API has two boys homes, each with the ability to hold 15 boys. Right now there are a few empty spaces and we are hoping to bring in new boys. The boys already in the homes have sponsors, but the ones that are still on the street (who we want to bring home) do not. Here is the information that Abby sent to me in an email today.

Child Sponsorship FAQ

Want to Sponsor?

 

If you are interested in sponsoring a child in our home, please email me, Abby at aperfectinjustice@gmail.com and I will send you the bio of a boy in our home, his prayer requests and his picture so that you can get to know him better.

Why become a sponsor?

All of the boys that are available for sponsorship have been living on the street in a slum in the middle of Kampala, Uganda, some for over a year.  Daily they are subject to abuse at the hands of the community, the police, and boys that are bigger than them.  They do not have a safe place to sleep nor do they always have food to eat.  To survive, they wake up very early in the morning to begin their daily work of walking the city to look for scrap metal or plastic to sell.  For every kilogram of metal they pick they earn a quarter.  This small amount of money will give them at least something to eat and maybe allow them to pay 10 cents to sleep inside a small room with 20-30 other boys. 

The reasons the boys left home are varying but the common reason is abuse or loss of parents from AIDS.  The boys have suffered from a lifetime of abuse, starting from the time that they were at home.  Choosing to be a sponsor would allow a boy to leave the streets and come into a loving home where all of his needs would be provided.  He would no longer need to work all day or fear for his safety.  He will have people that love him, mentor him, teach him about Jesus, and finally have a safe environment where he is able to begin healing. Please note, to cover all costs of the child's care in our home requires three sponsors per child of $50 per month each.

 What can you expect from your sponsorship?

1.      Your child will write to you at least twice a year. 
2.      You will receive an updated photo twice a year and prayer requests for your child at the  home
3.     You will be able to go to our homes blog at aperfectinjustice.blogspot.com to see periodic updates of your child.
4.     If your child leaves the home for any reason, you will be notified within thirty days.

 

 What are you committing to?

 

  1.       Writing to your child at least two times a year and send at least one photo.
  2.        Praying for your child.
  3.        Committing to sending your pledge per month and if your financial situation changes for any reason, please notify us of no longer being able to continue with your sponsorship. 

Where does your money go?

Your ponsorship will cover the following costs:
    1.       Daily upkeep-food, clothes, toiletries, housing, utilities, medical care, etc.

2.       Christian counseling once a week
3.       School fees, supplies, and tutoring to help your child catch up in school.
4.       Fun-special outings, birthday parties, games, movies, etc.
5.       Staff-caregivers, mentors, cook, homework tutor, music/dance lessons, etc.

 Where should you send the money?

Please send your monthly checks to the below address send a note to indicate it is for the ministry of Abby and David Kakeeto, child sponsorship of (include name of your child if possible) and in the memo line of the check write the number 443.01 .

Global Training Network

7558 W. Thunderbird Rd., Ste. 1
P.M.B. 449 Peoria, AZ 85381

You can also give online at www.globaltrainingnetwork.org/support.  You can find an automatic monthly withdrawal form there also.  Please make sure to preference my ministry.

**All donations are tax-deductible. Upon receipt of your check/donation, GTN will send you

a receipt shortly. For tax purposes PLEASE, do not mark my name/your child’s name anywhere on the check, just the number 443.01 in the memo line. This makes it a personal gift, which is NOT tax-deductible.  Instead you must include, with your check, a separate  note saying that it is for child sponsorship  through David and Abby Kakeeto.