Our beautiful Buyamba/God Cares School/Dongo Family journey began 2006 when our daughter, Ashley, went with the Calvary High School Team to Uganda, upon returning we all started sponsoring children. 2007 Peter joined the board and I began volunteering as needed with the ministry. 2008 our daughter, Jennifer, went to Uganda with the HS team and Ashley, Peter & I went to Uganda to serve, 2017 Peter & I lead a team and we were blessed to lead another mission trip in 2023 and our son Mike and daughter-in-law Katia joined us as well.

We are currently blessed to assist with the College and Trade school Fund to help facilitate these young adults to become educated, skilled and give back to their families and community. Our lives are forever blessed and changed because we leaned in and yes to God's calling.

We learned about God Cares School, Buyamba, in late 2005. Our church at the time hosted the late Pastor Betheul Dongo in Sebring, Florida. My husband I were blessed to provide his transportation during his stay in our town. To know Pastor Dongo was to love him! He enthusiastically shared his vision for the school with our church and several others.Our church at the time hosted the late Pastor Betheul Dongo in Sebring, Florida. My husband I were blessed to provide his transportation during his stay in our town. To know Pastor Dongo was to love him! He enthusiastically shared his vision for the school with our church and several others.Our church at the time hosted the late Pastor Betheul Dongo in Sebring, Florida. My husband I were blessed to provide his transportation during his stay in our town. To know Pastor Dongo was to love him! He enthusiastically shared his vision for the school with our church and several others.

Afterward his presentation to our church, we selected Deborah, age 10, from his display table. We committed to supporting her education with additional support for extra events. It was wonderful receiving letters from her, regular photographs and her report cards.

What a joy for her to graduate in 2016. She wanted to earn a college degree. We were grateful we could continue to provide support. She then was accept to attend Nsamizi Training Institute of Social Development for a Degree of Arts in Social Development. She graduated January 2022.

They say a picture is worth 1,000 words. Her progress was amazing and such a joy to watch her blossom and develop into a well-educated citizen of Uganda. Her heart was set to help others.

We thank God for the privilege of providing support while Pastor Dongo’s dream grew and flourished into 25 years of untold lives being enhanced. We praise God for his family that has continued to serve Jesus, one child at a time!

We praise God for this privilege. We are enjoying our second child, a young girl. What a joy to help support this fantastic ministry.

Bill and Debbie Lees

I was first introduced to God Cares School in 2010 by a friend in our life group at Calvary Community church in Thousand Oaks, Ca. She had been involved in helping Pastor Dongo with his traveling ministry. She invited him to come to a home and share sponsorship opportunities. I was so moved by the stories and excited to be able to sponsor 2 students. One of them has since graduated from university, so now I am sponsoring a different student who was new to the program.

Julie's story of how she came to Buyamba ...

It was around 2002 when I first met a visiting Pastor Dongo in the halls of Hillcrest Christian School through the computer teacher, Degna Horton. I was working as an administrator and teacher, and Pastor Dongo shared with us during a chapel about his children in Uganda, and I felt God's leading to open the door to help. I didn't know then that a few years later, in 2007, God would call my husband David and I and a new Board of Directors to take over the Buyamba ministry from the beautiful hands of Jerry & Pat Lehman, who had started Buyamba U.S. ministry in Kingston, New York. Together, we reopened the ministry in California, and from there, God continued his work of expansion into the lives of many churches, schools, sponsors, and donors.

In 2010, I was still teaching at HCS and running Buyamba, and the ministry became so big I could not handle both jobs. The Lord led me to pray about which job he would call me to full-time. It became clear that although I was still passionate about Christian education, God was doing something different. He called me to help God Cares School in Uganda and continue expanding his work in the U.S. as the Executive Director.

It has been an amazing adventure with the Lord that has led me to Uganda and back 11 times and the ability to interface with thousands of sponsors, donors, and volunteers in the U.S. that God has called to help! I have never looked back, and I am grateful for the blessing of Buyamba and working sponsors and donors who are making such a difference!

We were happy to be a part of Tim's big day. We were able to highlight some of our "Buyamba Love Gifts," such as a goat named "Surfer Dude" (to represent Tim's lifetime love of the sport). There were other choices of gifts his guests could choose from, such as a cow, chickens, school uniforms, shoes, bibles, and even a child's sponsorship could be given in honor of Tim's birthday.

At the actual party, Tracy Lynn, a Buyamba representative, was invited to set up a "Buyamba Table," highlighting a few of the students we needed to be sponsored and the additional Buyamba Love Gifts that his friends could choose from. Some guests had contacted us directly weeks before through Tim's birthday invitation and had designated a Love Gift to Buyamba. We sent Tim a Buyamba Birthday Card for each gift to say that a donation had been given in his honor on behalf of a particular guest for a specific Love Gift chosen with care.

Tim’s efforts were fun and productive, for among many gifts were 11 goats, 5 bibles, shoes, a child named Samson sponsored, and many general gifts to help the children given in Tim's name. Tim loved the part that his friends were excited about giving, and some who are not Christian got involved in the ministry he cared about.