YES Uganda Program Videos

We would like to thank Rinna Lamalo and Monique Martin-Parent from Mount Royal University’s School of Nursing for putting together these videos for YES Uganda. We hope you enjoy them and share them with others to spread the word about the important work YES Uganda is doing.

This video highlights the program as told by Carol Adams, Director and Founder of YES Uganda:

This next video highlights the story of Chris, one of the graduates from YES Uganda:

YES Uganda Children and Nutrition

Almost all of the children that come to the YES Uganda program typically only eat one meal a day. This leaves them not only hungry and tired while trying to learn at school, but stunted in growth and very weak nutritionally. They are more prone to sickness, especially malaria which is rampant at this time. Because of this issue we at YES Uganda started a lunch program for the kids a few years ago so at least they could get some added nutrition during the day.

We can feed the children a reasonably good lunch for 50 cents a day but with over 200 children being supported by the program, that cost adds up very quickly. Some of these photos are of the children receiving school lunches and the other photos are of the kitchens of the homes and the difficulties faced by most people and children on a daily basis.

A plate of nutritious local food for lunch at school

Children enjoying a lunch-time meal at school

To cook a meal at home, children and families need fire wood, water and food. They often have to walk long distances for the water and wood and they then need to start preparing what they might have available. Again, they do not have electricity or refrigeration. It can take a long time to prepare a meal.

It can take many hours to find and collect fire-wood for cooking

Preparing a meal in a typical kitchen

A typical kitchen

Again, the children and caregivers often have to weed, plant and dig their land to grow food as well. There are many reasons why the children being supported by YES Uganda struggle more than most in school, especially if they are total orphans and living on their own. We always welcome any donations for these kids to be able to continue to receive lunches at school to support their growth, health and learning.

Rose’s Story

We want to try and highlight some of the stories of children and youth that are part of YES Uganda. This month’s profile story is about Rose Kyakyo.

Rose's cousin, Rose, her younger sister Flavin, and her 7 year old cousin (boy).

Rose is 15 years old and desperately wants to do something with her life. She has a 14 year old sister still in primary school while she is in secondary school in senior 2. She was five years old when she lost both her mother and father and was taken in by her late mother’s sister, her aunt.

Flavin, and their boy cousin (7 yr old boy) in background

Flavin, Rose and one of their cousin's they care for.

Rose’s aunt has been in the city desperately trying to raise some money for all the kids. She wants to return to the village as soon as possible, but the family is in a land dispute that she is fighting. So the aunt has left Rose and her sister to care for her own two children aged 4 and 7. They all live in a mud house deep in a rural village. The boy is 7 and the girl 4. The YES Uganda program has started paying the school fees needed for them all, and has helped Rose go to school. Her sister Flavin is studying in primary 6 and the seven year old boy is in primary 1. The four year old girl is left unattended during the day.

When Rose returns from school she has to search for firewood to cook food and walk some distance to carry water for washing and cooking. She and her sister have to prepare meals from the garden, which is sometimes very little. As well they have to wash clothes, dig in the garden and do all the other duties that would be done by a mother. In spite of that, Rose is doing well in school even though she is without reading lights to study at night and has so many household duties and work to be done. We would love to be able to send Rose to a good boarding school where she could have plenty of food to eat, a bed of her own to sleep in and lights for night studies, but the problem would be the care of the small kids left by the aunt. Rose hopes to be either a school teacher or a nurse in the future.

Rose

Rose's Aunt and a cousin

The 4 year old girl was not around when David took these photos and the other girl in the photo is a close cousin who is more like a sister. The older girls are very bright in school and if they could possibly go to a boarding school for senior 3 and 4 they could have a chance to do something with their lives. Staying alone in the bush and going to a local school leaves them very vulnerable.

It would be so good if we could help these girls who have wonderful attitudes and behave very well.

New photos from recent adoptions

Carol wanted to share this photo of Bagum with his new siblings!

As well, these are photos of Dorcas making the transition from the hot climate of Uganda into some cooler temperatures and even snow!

At the airport

 

Fresh snow on the ground.

Experiencing snow!!

Carol says “these kids now have a chance for an unimagined life after coming from
the severe poverty of their homes. They both now have families and joy
beyond measure. God is so great and I thank Him so so much!!!”

My experience with YES Uganda

Hello friends of YES Uganda. My name is Andrea Bridge and I wanted to share a bit about my experiences in Uganda and working with the YES programs.

I am a paediatric nurse, and have been also doing some global health research as part of my role in an academic institution in Canada. I have been to Uganda three times now, the first in 2003, and fell in love with the country and people immediately.

I was privileged to be connected to Carol and her work through colleagues and friends in Fort Portal. I travelled to Uganda in June 2010 for 9 weeks and then again in 2011 for 3 weeks. I am so thankful and blessed to know Carol and all the staff at YES. The work they do to support vulnerable children and families in the Fort Portal area is invaluable and so desperately needed.

David, Bonnie, Rose, Carol, Andrea

I wanted to share a few stories about the volunteer/project work I did with some of the children at the Manna Rescue home, and also with some of the orphans in the YES Uganda program.

In a nutshell, I partnered with some wonderful Ugandan women, the Manna Rescue Home staff and YES staff to carry out a photography project for the older adolescents in the Manna Rescue Home. The project was a way to help them reflect on their lives and experiences, consider their strengths and challenges, and then use photography as a tool to explore their feelings and share with others about their experiences. The children were given disposable cameras to snap photos of the themes they wanted to share with “the world”, and after about 3 weeks of taking photos, discussing the meanings and messages in their developed photos in groups with Ugandan facilitators, the children were able to share many important messages and experiences with us. We have shared those messages with YES Uganda and staff, as well as others who work with orphans. They also created a photo display of their work that they chose to share with the younger children at the home and staff. This was a great way to end the project and celebrate their voices and accomplishments.

Taking photos

Chidlren working with their photos

Photo Display and celebration lunch

The display and celebration ended with some time to dance and enjoy music!

The children at the home have faced so many challenges and still do face many challenges, but they wanted to focus predominantly on their strengths and blessings that are nurtured by the rescue home – most significantly social support, love, friendship and basic life needs that are met. Their resilience is astounding, even when faced with the challenges of living with HIV, facing stigma and discrimination, and coping with the grief and loss they have and still experience.

One of the children described this photo's meaning as - "It shows that it is important to have friends."

The children enjoying a fun field trip day to a pool.

The rest of my time I volunteered helping Carol, David and Rose prepare for the start of the school year with the hundreds of orphans and vulnerable children that they support. It was an exciting time to see them all come into the office and leave with their new supplies, ready to go!

On the weekends, I did some tutoring for children that were struggling. I spent time helping them with English reading, speaking and writing, as well as mathematics. This was such a wonderful way to get to know these children. On our final session together, I presented them all with a “Certificate of Achievement” and we had a small celebration of their successes and strengths. Without the YES Uganda programs, these children would not be in school. It is frightening to think what their future would have been without this opportunity that YES provides them.

It is hard to believe that there are between 1 to 2 million orphans living in the small country of Uganda. Extended family used to be the safety net to take up these children, but now those extended family members have been extended beyond their capacity, some grandmothers left with up to 20 orphans to care for and feed. The YES programs help these families who are in desperate need.

Carol and a successful graduate. He told me he had almost given up hope when he lost his parents, then found a new beginning with YES.

We have all heard about the recent economic crisis in North America and Europe, but its effects reach across the globe. I was so shocked to see in 2010 and 2011 the staggering increase in the cost of food, fuel, basic life needs, education and shelter. The cost of sugar and staple foods has doubled this year – 50% increases. The average person or family in Uganda cannot bear such an increase. And we all know from the famine in Somalia that the most vulnerable to these changes are children. The risk of malnutrition is great. Malnutrition makes children more vulnerable to illness and death, but chronic malnutrition also causes poor growth, poor brain development and altered future life outcomes. The YES programs make sure the children they send to school have daily lunches at school. This is saving lives.

So the most important thing we can do, even though we are all feeling the crunch of the dollar, is to reach out to those most vulnerable and offer whatever support we can. Carol and the programs at YES Uganda are not immune to the current rise in cost of living and inflation. I wanted to make a call to you all: please support them with the best financial support you can offer so that they can continue their essential, important work. They are truly saving lives. I have seen it myself!

Perhaps we can even work together to think of creative ways to fundraise in these tough times.

Wonderful updates on recent adoptions!

Dear friends,

It is with great joy that we announce the adoption of two children from Fort Portal into loving homes in the USA.

Dorcas Linda was recently adopted by a family – see their blog for their story and photos here: http://brittonadoptionjourney.blogspot.com

As well, Baguma - a baby that Carol rescued and took to the Toro Babies Home (orphanage) also was adopted by a family. Their story can be read here on their blog: http://thehappyneills.blogspot.com

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