Buyamba News
Stories and news from Uganda and the U.S.
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Worship reported that the food outreach team drove more than four hours this past weekend to reach the 100 student families that live in the far end of Jinja. The process required the team to stay overnight to distribute food to all the intended families. The situation in the outskirts of Jinja was far worse than the team had seen for the flood area was far-reaching, and stagnant water filled the area --which can bring more disease. It took awhile to find all the God Cares student families and the students who attended an approved school in Jinja called Blessed Hope School, for some families had been displaced.
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Uganda remains in a lockdown state due to the Corona Virus, thankfully though, limitations on transportation have lightened, allowing God Cares teachers and staff to reach more students. During the lockdown, God Cares administration and staff have continued to work tirelessly, preparing assignments for students to stay on track while they are out of school. Take a moment to hear directly from the headteacher, Ernest, as he explains how the teachers are navigating through this time, and how we can be praying for our students. Since the transportation ban has been lightened, some students have been able to visit God Cares School campus to return their work and receive feedback from teachers. This process has been especially crucial for the "candidate classes" who will have to go through national testing this fall to advance to the next level.
"Allow me on my behalf, and behalf of other members to express our gratitude to the directors, rector, headteacher, and top administrators for the financial, spiritual, psychological support extended to us. We don't take it for granted, especially in this most difficult time of the 'devil' corona pandemic. You have shown that you're caring and loving parents who render service above self. In management, this is first-class human resource retention skills that ensure progress in an organization's continuity. The most valuable yet cheap word to express this is THANK YOU. God bless and stay safe." Buyamba’s latest effort in Uganda to deliver food to our student families was not easy. The Dongo family and helpers went into three villages to reach out to God Cares families living in slum areas where food is scarce, and heavy rainfall has caused flooding. Last week, they were able to reach 110 families in the villages of Bukasa, Nabutiti, and Kitalanga. The next two weeks will see hundreds more packages delivered. The Buyamba Team was well received by the families. Students ran to meet them wherever they went, screaming and embracing. The leader of the village of Nabutiti got on a loudspeaker and announced, “God Cares is here! They are here!” The team delivered food packages and visited with each family. Each package had a variety of food staples that would keep a family fed for 3-4 weeks. The families shared their stories and pointed out the damages that had occurred. Whatever the situation, the God Cares Team prayed over them, encouraging all to keep their eyes on the Lord. Worship emotionally explained, “The children and their families felt so loved, and they were so grateful. It was so hard to see many of them in desperate situations.”
In the past two weeks, Buyamba shared a total of 169 meal packages in two different delivery efforts. The food was a blessing to those identified student families from God Cares School that are struggling during the lock down period with the basic need for food. Ugandan Schools did not start in May as we had hoped, and now our students are waiting, like many students here in the United States, to start school. Yet, Buyamba's mission remains the same, to educate and disciple our children, and that looks a little different during this season. Still, we are finding creative ways to meet the needs of our Buyamba community. God Cares School's administration and staff are finding resourceful ways to educate and feed our students, sharing the gospel in action as we deliver and provide meals for a week for families in need. We continue to pay the teachers, and we are connecting with students to set up an educational plan for as many students as possible, knowing that many will be required to do national testing when they return most likely in September.
We are grateful for all of the sponsors who have stood with us faithfully and to those donors who have also come alongside us to help feed these families. Together, we are standing as a force of support both here in the United States and Uganda. As we continue to endure this season of separation, we see God clearly at work through many of you! Our sponsors and donors are standing firm in faithfulness in their giving, and it has resulted in keeping the ministry stable during these uncertain times. Some of you had even stepped forward to give extra for food for the students' families who are homebound in the slums, and others who are doing well at this time have intentionally given more to make up for others who are not able to give. One long time Buyamba sponsor, Jason Fielder, explained, "My wife and I are both teachers and blessed to have a job right now, and we can give more as others maybe can't right now, so just give us another child to sponsor!"
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