Ahhh, Hope For Youth!

On Wednesday, I travelled to the Hope For Youth School some 15-20 minutes from my hotel.  I had visited this school on my last trip to Uganda with the CanAssist crew.  The school impressed me then and continues to impress.  The school, while quite dilapidated, gives the impression of good management.  The students are bright and vigorous.  They were genuinely happy to welcome me back.  I told them in 2016 that I would be back.  Now they know that I am true to my word.

This dilapidated school is currently being replaced with a new facility.

Open to the elements

I was pleased to see that the teacher's quarters was now fully occupied and even contained a sick bay unit.  The new school, our most recent project, is currently under construction and we are actively seeking donors to complete one new classroom at a time.

Teacher's quarters opened in 2016

Two female teachers who share one unit.

The start of the new school.

I was well received with song and dance (not necessary for me, but it is their custom).  I was able to see how the school has developed since my last visit.  The teacher's quarters that we opened on my last visit are now fully occupied and one unit has a sick bay.  The school is now raising rabbits, chickens and pigs on a fairly large scale.  These animals allow for supplements to the children's feeding program and are also sold at local market to help support the school.  The water tanks and latrines are still fully functional.  The students appear healthy and robust.  Most or all wear shoes, something that John insisted on.  Concrete floors and shoes mean that children are no longer troubled by jiggers.

The drummers

The choir

Traditional Dancers

After a full tour of the grounds, I was lead into one of the old classrooms.  The choir and dance teacher had the students well prepared and they performed a number of songs and dances.  After the performance the children had lunch and recess and we were free to converse.  Here is what I wrote on Facebook to describe what happened next.

The final image I want to leave you with tonight my friends is one that you need to conjure as there was no way for me to document it. After the students performed we went outside and I went and sat on the ground. "Come and talk to me", I called. They came. Soon I was in the middle of a "kid crush". I felt like the heart in the centre of a living and vital organism. It was, as if, the children were one. It is hard to describe the experience but I looked up and all I could see were children's faces and a small patch of blue sky. Like a dream. Close your eyes and imagine it.

I was so delighted to find two girls who had made a big impression on me on my last trip.  Hanifah and Rhoda are doing well. Rhoda is in P7 and wants to be a lawyer. Hanifah is in P6 and wants to be a nurse. In the picture below Hanifah has the yellow shirt and Rhoda is in red.  I am proud of these girls and the young women they are to become. They are the future!

Hanifah in yellow on the left, Rhoda in red on the right.

I also had the opportunity to visit with Edward who I had met in 2016 and Venna a former H4Y student who was financially assisted to attend University by two CanAssist supporters.  It was a great visit and a testament to what can be accomplished when we all pull together.  Together we are stronger!

Edward

Venna

Before I left I was given some lunch consisting of rice, beans, pork and carrots.  I toured the new kitchen funded by CanAssist in memory of Dennis Sserugo who was killed tragically just after my last visit.  He played a whistle for us during a dance performance so the kitchen has been named the "Whistle Stop".  After that, a few quick pictures and my visit had come to an end.

Hanging out with the teachers.