More Opportunities for Change

During these months in East Africa, we are learning so much about our movement together. As we continue to live in Uganda, we are trying to maintain the example we recognize we must demonstrate amongst this community. We are learning how important it is to demonstrate the image of our God to our neighbors. Every little conversation we have, every meal we share, and every project we begin is an opportunity we cannot take lightly. People constantly come and ask what our program is or, what we are doing. While we try to explain our hope for Bombo and East Africa, we are left to Jesus’ common refrain, asking them to ‘come and see’ what we are doing.

Amongst all of this, modern communications within East Africa are a challenge as electricity is sometimes sparse and the internet is unreliable.  However, let us take this opportunity to catch you up on what has been taking place there in the last few weeks!  Enjoy!

Josh stands next to the Lubega's kitchen which is nearly complete!

Francis & Annette Lubega’s Kitchen

Francis’ kitchen is almost complete! We only need to finish the stove and the cloor. The stove design is finished and we are excited. Annette, Francis’ wife, is very excited about the stove being at waist level so she will be able to stand while cooking. Francis and Annette noted how they haven’t seen anything like this in Bombo yet, so they know people will wonder how she can cook standing up. Most families cook from a fire that is on the ground.  Often this arrangement leads to physical health issues later on in life.  Instead of this type of stove, we simply brought the ground up to her waist and made a concrete slab so that she doesn’t have to constantly bend over in order to prepare food. On average, Annette spends about 4-7 hours a day in the kitchen preparing food.  If we can make it a more comfortable and healthy set-up for her back, then Annette’s overall health will be better for it.

While the adults are gaining experience and meeting needs the kids are also learning new things! Here, Jackson Kurtz is surrounded by classmates at a local Bombo school where he attends a couple days a week.

Agriculture…A Step Towards Greater Health

Responding to Immediate Needs

In the last couple weeks we’ve assisted a mom and her two daughters find proper medical care at the nearest hospital. Because of their situation, they were in need of both medical care and legal action.  However, they were not helped because they lacked the money to pay for any services. When the mother came to us and explained her story, we knew she needed someone she could trust in order to receive help. In response, we helped this family find a local non-government organization called ’Hope After Rape’ where they found assistance and proper care for their situation. We’ve kept up consistent contact with the mother and her daughters to check on their mental and physical health. Sadly, we’ve been the only people who have tried to help her during this difficult time.

Volleyball has become a favorite past time amongst the community, allowing for us to build relationships as we participate.

Enhancing the Community Through Sports

Our Bombo Kid’s Futbol League has begun! The first day was spent showing the kids and the families that we are organizing a soccer league.  It was a bit challenging as one of the schools didn’t attend and another school only brought half of their teams. However, we still played and the games went great despite not having full participation. The game commissioners of each school are very excited about the league and were greatly appreciative for this opporunity for their kids. At each game we have focused on loving each other and having a good time. It was a great experience watching the kids celebrate with one another after each goal. They try their best to look just like the English Premier Leauge players and that only adds to the fun! Otherwise, with a 8 week season at hand we are excited and hope this season works out as planned.