St. Michael's Children's Home is located in a suburb of Kampala, the capital of Uganda. It was one of three Homes founded by a nun, the late Sr. Rose Muyinza who, as she developed Alzheimer's, was unable to maintain them. An American Charity took over two of the Homes but St. Michael's was left struggling on its own. When I visited the Home in 2001 I was appalled by the plight of the orphans, and with others in the United Kingdom founded the 'Help Uganda Trust', which from 2003, has provided most of the funding for St. Michael's. The money we raise for the Home at St. Erconwald's is channeled through the Trust and Andrew Robertson and Rob Lee from our parish are Trustees.
The Trust aims to raise funds for food, medicine, education, water and electricity and other on-going requirements. When additional funds have become available we have also been able to improve the facilities of the Home by building latrines and washing places and replacing beds, bedding and mosquito nets. The lighting and water supplies have also been improved and offices and a sick bay have been created through alterations to existing buildings. A small Bakery has also been established for baking and decorating cakes for special occasions such as weddings and parties. This helps to generate a small income for the Home and to equip young people with some basic skills in baking and catering.
Over the years it has been amazing to see the developments that have taken place. It has been particularly encouraging to see how the young people have responded to the opportunities they have been given. In 2001 only a few were able to go to school but now all are receiving an education from Nursery School through to University or Vocational Training. In reality, there is no free education in Uganda and the largest item in our budget is for school fees and requirements. All who have completed their education have found some kind of employment, many in catering, and several are doing very well. In the last few years St. Michael's has produced two Priests and several Teachers, and now the a young man is training to be a Doctor. None of this would have been possible without support from the United Kingdom and the Help Uganda Trust.
The Trust has also made a major difference in the provision of food and medicine. In 2001 many of the children were sickly and undernourished. Recently a teenager told me that when he first came to the Home he and others were so hungry that they used to rummage on rubbish tips for good. Now they have regular meals with good nutritional content and there is a trained Nurse to look after their health. As there is no free health care in Uganda the Trust provides the funds for all medicines, hospital visits and treatment. Most of the young people get malaria at least once a year and this requires urgent treatment and drugs. A few of the young people are HIV positive and when treatment is needed it is expensive. Sadly a teenager died last August and this brought home to the others just how vulnerable they were. Last year a young man developed tuberculosis which required a expensive medication. He is sill on treatment. This January another young man received a serious kidney injury while playing football. In hospital he had to undergo expensive scans and treatment. It is not an exaggeration to say that some of the young people of St. Michael's are alive today because of help from the Trust.
When Sr. Rose died in 2008 St. Michael's was put under the control of the Catholic Archdiocese of Kampala. A Board of Management was appointed which, assisted by the Help Uganda Trust, now supervises the running of the Home. The 84 orphans supported by St. Michael's are representative of Uganda's different ethnic and religious mix. Given the history of conflict in Uganda's recent past, this is an important detail. Back in 2001 the situation the Home was in exacerbated tensions between Catholic, Protestant and Moslem young people but over the past few years an amazing transformation has taken place.
One of the most impressive things about St. Michael's is the way in which the young people relate with one another regardless of religious and ethnic backgrounds and deep friendships have been made across the divisions. Visitors often comment on how the young people help, support and encourage one another and that St. Michael's has the atmosphere of a real family home rather than an institution.
As Chairman of the Trust I aim to visit St. Michael's (at my own expense) three times a year during the Ugandan School holidays. This enable the Trustees to assess the situation of the Home on a regular basis and also ensure that our money is being spent properly. My visits have also enabled me to get to know the orphans and to learn about their backgrounds. Many have had very harrowing experiences and all have had to cope with the loss of parents. But as I have watched them grow I have been amazed at the way they have developed and matured. The unhappy, sickly and undernourished children I first saw in 2001 have grown into happy and confident teenagers.
Uganda tends to be a patriarchal and authoritarian society where young people are expected to obey adults without question. Unlike young people in the West they are not used to having their views taken into consideration. However there are signs that things are changing. Until recently the young people of St. Michael's were expected simply to obey the staff or face punishment. Over the last three years the Help Uganda Trust has assist the staff of the Home to adapt to a situation where the needs and views of the young people are paramount. The Trust was also responsible for drawing up a child protection policy. The young people are now involved in the running of the Home and in all decisions that affect them. Staff and young people meet regularly to discuss policy and sort out problems. For they young people, St. Michael's is now very much their home.
I hope what you have read has shown the difference our parish can make the the lives of seriously disadvantaged young people in the Third World. With your help their lives have been transformed and they have been given hope for the future. Sadly this is now under threat. Uganda, like other nations is experiencing an economic crisis, which for a developing country, is having devastating consequences. There has been heavy price rises in basic foods, fuel, water, electricity and school fees and in January inflation reached 31%. With the decline in the value of the poind the rate of exchange with the Ugandan shilling has fallen considerably. Last September £1,000 pounds raised 4,500,000 shillings but now it only buys 3,600,000 shillings. Sadly, the Help Uganda Trust will have to reconsider its existing involvement with St. Michael's unless it can increase its income. The staff and young people are looking for possible areas to cut back on expenditure. This will not be easy as the budget is already tight. If cuts cannot be found the Trust will reluctantly, have to reconsider its policy of providing education for all the children. This would be tragic as a good education is the one hope they have for their future.
We know that these are also difficult times for us in the United Kingdom but the Trust is appealing to its supporters to see if e can increase our income and maintain our level of support for the young people of St. Michael's. Fund raining events can be a great help as can telling friends and relatives about the Home. St. Erconwald's has four retiring collections a year for St. Michael's. If you are a tax payer you can help even more by signing a gift aid declaration with the Help Uganda Trust so that for every pound you give we can claim back an additional 20p for the tax authorities. The most useful way in which people can help is by doing a standing order for the Trust and giving on a regular basis. We are grateful for whatever ways people can help. All who has visited St. Michael's from this country can bear witness that the children and young people are worth every penny we can raise to help them.
John G. Pearson
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