I have officially been in Africa for 4 full days. Joining this trip for me meant an opportunity to help, have an adventure, and see the place I have heard so much about, Uganda. I want to share a few main points of our team's trip so far and about how Fields of Dreams is spreading hope everywhere we go.
The first school we visited this week was Wakiso School of Hope. I had heard about the joy that these vulnerable children had, but it was hard to believe until I saw it with my own eyes. As we climbed out of the van, children greeted us with warm smiles and hugs saying the Ugandan greeting, "you are welcome". Within the first ten minutes I had about 5 children hanging on each of my arms. Three girls in particular, Belinda, Juliet, and Rita stayed close to me all day. Belinda shared with me her story of how she has lived at Wakiso for 1 year because her mother is sick and cannot care for her anymore. She said,"we used to be happy and then when she got sick we were not happy anymore." Belinda dreams to be a nurse. I want so much for her to be happy.
The second school we visited was Vision for Africa. What stuck out most to me during this short visit to drop off football gear, was how thankful the young girls were for the hygiene kits Fields of Dreams gave to them in February. One girl that spoke said that, "we now have self confidence because we can use the hygiene kits once a month". That for me was so important to hear because for preteen and teenage girls self confidence is everything.
Even today, as we took a day to go exploring in Mbale on Mount Elgon, our wonderful national director, Jonathan, spoke to a young boy from Sipi Falls named Thomas Sam about his education and dreams. Within this 10 minute hike back to the van I learned that Thomas was good at English and in P5. When Jonathan asked what his dream was, Thomas answered, "to be like you." Even though Jonathan giggled and was embarrassed, I could easily understand the admiration that this young boy had for him after only knowing him for a short time because Jonathan had showed interest in his dreams. He gave him hope.
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