Show Mercy at work at the Christian Mission Acadamy!

Thumbs up for deworming!

Posted on November 22, 2013

This morning Kristy and I headed out to Bakka. I called up one of my trusted boda drivers, Hamsa. He came to pick us up and drive us to Christian Friends Academy. I love the boda ride to Bakka. Fresh air blows through my hair as I look up to see a beautiful view of eucalyptus forests amongst the hills and valleys. Fresh rain last night ensured it was lush and green! Villagers are out and about as we cruise by. We wave and respond to the chanting “Bye Mzungu!” (white person) with a Lugandan greeting “Muli Mutya!?” (Hi, how are you!?).

As we pull up to the school the teachers have already arranged the students in lines by class. The children here are getting to know us as we come every three months to deworm them and many of them have visited our clinic as well.
Today we were there for the deworming program. A majority of the population in third world countries is effected by intestinal worms. They get into the intestine through the mouth from uncooked or unwashed food, contaminated water or hands or by skin contact with infected soil. Parasitic worms can consume as much as 20% of what an infected child ingests!
The treatment is simple! One chewable tablet of a drug called Albendazole. This can be taken every three months to treat this specific intestinal worm.
Today there were 301 students at school. They all got dewormed!


We are so grateful for our partnership with Sandra Gannon and Trinity Covenant Church. This partnership enables use to provide health care to all students and their immediate families! What a blessing!

CMA November 2013

The end of the school year is fast approaching the children are taking there exams this week, plus being dewormed.  Next week they will be writing letters to their sponsors and creating crafts, baskets, mats, chairs and more. I asked for them to send pictures. I plan on purchasing some of their crafts to sell!

Their end of year field trip will be on the 13th of December. Please pray for good weather safe travels and peace for the chaperones.   Thank you to everyone that made this happen!

The children will be visiting

v     Coca cola,

v     Shumuk group of

v     Mukwano group of companies 

v     A polythene (plastic) bag recycling company.

The  Christmas eve the children will have their Christmas meal~ the cost is $1200.00 $3.00 per meal.  The meal consists of meat – rice – sauce- cake  and the special gift they all look forward to a soda.  Many children will save their soda or some of their soda to bring home to share with their family. While we have not raised all of the funds yet I am praying we will. Thank you to everyone who contributed.

Show Mercy  Medical Center Treated 70 children and family members for a wide variety of illnesses, abbesses, infections,  Chicken Pox and Measles  plus 41 malaria cases.   We will investigate vaccinating all of the children.  The  monthly bill $419.00.

They will all be dewormed in the next week or so before they leave for their holiday.(digging on the land)

89 children sponsored ! The children now receive a meal of rice every Friday.  When 114 children are sponsored we will be able to  improve the quality of their meals.  

I am forwarding the information for 15 children that need sponsors.  Please pass them on.

It would be an answer to a child’s prayer to know that someone  in the US cares about them!

love,  mom sandy  gwoyagala  (my Ugandan name)

SandysUgandaAdventure.blogspot.com

Face book  Sandra Gannon

Twitter @Gannon_sandra

In the News

            This article is in the Lexington Minuteman today.               

          Human Trafficking Victim Recovered by Trinity Covenant Members

A 14-year-old Ugandan girl named Rachel was rescued from forced prostitution and slavery through the efforts of Sandy Gannon, a member of Trinity Covenant Church in Lexington, during a recent trip Gannon made to Uganda.  Gannon was visiting the homes of children who attend a school in Bakka, and while at Rachel’s home, Rachel’s father received a phone call from her.  Gannon was able to convince the father to ask for Rachel’s return.  A day later, Rachel returned to her home. 

The definitions of “family” and of “orphan” differ greatly between the United States and Uganda, Gannon said.  In Uganda, an “uncle” may be any man who plays a role in a child’s life.  One of Rachel’s “uncles” had sold her for $25 to someone in the sex trade.  Rachel’s father saw this as a way to reduce the number of mouths to feed.

Gannon and Trinity’s Pastor, Christopher Haydon, and Todd Klipp, another Trinity member who traveled to Uganda in late September, decided that no money should exchange hands to reclaim Rachel, because doing so might encourage more children to be sold.  Instead, they offered to provide food for the family each month.  Gannon also reminded the family that Rachel would be able to help support her family for many years in the future if she got an education.  She also told them that free medical care is provided for the students and families that they live with, at a nearby medical clinic run by Show Mercy. 

In Uganda, families may agree to take an orphaned child, but there is no government money to help care for the child and no oversight of the home. Children that we regard as orphans are often given to families in the village, who may use them as servants or even sell them.  The prevalence of AIDS and extreme poverty has left many children with no loving families, Gannon related. 

Many children are taken in to be put to work or to be sold.  Rachel is one of the 90 children currently being sponsored by Trinity members and others in a program set up by Gannon.  A child can be sponsored for $25 a month.  A sponsorship gives the child a mosquito net, shoes, school fees and supplies, and a meal at school every day.  “Sponsored children have the added benefit of the oversight by The Christian Mission Sponsorship Program to keep them safe,” said Gannon.

Another sponsored girl, 14-year-old Winnie, is still missing, but Gannon is working with people from the Kampala church who run the school to try to locate her and bring her back.  A third 14-year-old girl, Miracle, who ran away several times to avoid being forced to marry, was brought back to her grandmother’s home through Gannon’s efforts.  Food and medical care were promised to the grandmother if she would keep the girl at home and in school. 

Anyone interested in sponsoring a child or making a donation to help prevent children being sold into slavery may contact Gannon at:  s-gannon@hotmail.com  or visit her blog sandysugandaadventure.blogspot.com

By Nancy E. Leskiw

Loving a Village One Child at a Time

A question I was asked not too long ago.  "Sandy is there going to be an end to the need at Bakka?   It is a bottomless pit with no end in site."
While the need in Bakka is overwhelming and very disturbing to witness.   We have made a change and we are providing hope. The families and children may be in a bottomless pit but when they look up now they see light.
We started working in Bakka in 2008.  No  Child had ever graduated from the school,  there were no children in the 7th grade.  The older children's eye's were dead, they had no hope, they did not even know how to dream.   In 2010 we had our first 3 students graduate from CMA. They now going in to the 11th grade.   We have a total of 15 children in secondary school.  This year our graduating class has 22 student in it.   Last week they were transported to another school to take an entrance exam.  A requirement  to determine if they would be qualified to go to middle school.

When I visited our secondary students this year they gave me this letter .

To Mummy Sandy

Letter of Appreciation

Dear Sandy, I greet you in the name of the almighty God and how is your Life? We are okay with our studies at school.

We humbly appreciate you for all things you do for us and we are very happy with you dear our mummy. Most especially in paying school fees and other school requirements like recam.  Definately  we all look a vibrant life because of what you have done for us.

To be precise, we are very glad to that and we are having nothing to do except excelling well in academics

May God bless you,

From your children

at Mwebeza High

It is my hearts desire to give every child the hope  and dreams of continuing their education after the Christian Mission Academy.   It takes a Village to Love a Village.   When the children start school in February every child will need a uniform and school supplies.  $100.00  each $2,200.00 

As always 100% of your donation goes support the children and their families.

 

Dear supporters friends,  

I thank you all for your the support provided!  2013  had been an amazing year filled with miracles, joy and hope. During my visit in 2012 God gave me a task that was incompressible to me. Improve the children’s health.    I prayed made the commitment tried setting things up, tried to raise funds to visit in February. None of the things I worked on were successful.  BUT  God was so faithful in answering my prayers. In the Spring of 2013 we connected with Show Mercy International.  

Show Mercy built a medical center in a village not to far from Bakka.  An arrangement was made.  The children from the Christian Mission Academy, their siblings, parents and guardians could all go to Show Mercy Medical Center and they would not be charged. I would receive the bill

All the children were treated for worms, any child with jiggers, malaria and any sickness could go to Show Mercy and  be treated.  We provided every child at the school with a mosquito net, every child received a pair of najina shoes.   This is wonderful all the easily treatable diseases taken care of.

Now the hard stuff started surfacing, I knew it was there but there were no faces connected with it yet, HIV.   A child 5 years old had been at Show Mercy very sick every week.  The nurse at Show Mercy told me she should be tested for HIV.    The Mom did not want to face the pain and the stigma having  HIV would add to the already desperate family. 3 young children and a  struggling mom.   After a commitment from me that we would provide, she took her family to be tested.  When the results came back she was devastated.  She was HIV positive and so was her young daughter just as suspect by the Nurse at Show Mercy.  She now knew what took her husbands life.   This family is now provided with food and transportation every month.   The cost of this care $60.00 per month. This provides food that they NEVER dreamed of being able to afford, but will help them from being ill from the treatment.

Fundraising for 400 children and all their family  receiving medical care is not a small task. Fundraising to providing food for the 3 families identified with HIV monthly is also not a small task.

In addition to medical treatment I am also working on protecting children from being sold traded or arranged marriages.  This is also not a small task. I feel very strongly that I need to go to Uganda in February when the children return to school.  This is when most children do not return and we have to spend a year trying to get them back.  I will be on the ground and working on it.  An American on the ground can make a difference, 3 out of 5 children have been returned during my visit.

100% of the funds raised go where they are dedicated. This project has NO OVER HEAD,NO ADMINISTATION.  100% of your money goes where it is designated!

My time is volunteered, my vacation time is used for my trips.  I need support for my airline ticket, the place I will stay.~ 2800.00

 Please consider sponsoring me in the work that I do or donating.   

If designated to a specific item pictures will be provided

Medical treatment $5.00

Mattress $25.00

Blanket $25.00

Food for a family $60

Sponsorship $300 per  year $25.00 per month

Sandy's visit any amount will help:)

 Loving a Village one Child at a Time!

Much love,

Mom sandy gwoyogala

Amazing Journey and the next steps

My trip to Uganda  in October was absolutely amazing.   Rescuing Rachel - confirmed she has returned to school.  HIGHLIGHT of the week!

Catherine's grandfather heard I was in the village, an looked for me.  He wanted to thank me for the goats our project provided for him. They now have 4 goats and one of them is pregnant.  The gift of the goats has blessed their family abundantly.  He is praising God for such a gift.

Farouq is doing well and preparing for his surgery in December.

During my visit and while attempting to rescue Winnie.(I have not given up)  finding out Hamila was taken by her uncle to work in his store, talking to Francises mom and getting him to return to school.
I have identified a pattern.  Kids are taken,sold and traded during the long holiday stretch from November to February.  I am planning a return trip in February.   This trip will be different from other trips.  (I will still be going in October)  this trip is to set the stage for the year and encourage the parents/guardians to allow the children to return to school.  Hopefully the trip will help prevent the need to try to rescue kids for an entire year. 
This is a very  aggressive plan as it  usually takes me a year to fund raise for the trip.    Air fair has dropped and is now around $1,300.00 reducing the cost by ~ $200.00so the amount I need to raise is ~$2,800
Any end of the year donation (tax deductible ) would be appreciated more than you could ever imagine.


 

Visit 2013

The week went by so fast!
We arrived Monday morning-running errands all day.  Exchanging money, picking up a shipment, shopping for the week.

Tuesday we delivered gifts to the Baby class,Top class and the 7th grade.
The students in the 7th grade are preparing to take their final exam.  They will leave for the exam on Friday boarding at the exam place from Friday - Tuesday.
Transportation and lodging fees have already been provided.  Keep the children in your prayers.  If they don't pass it will mean another year in 7th grade.
We also visited the homes of Winnie and Rachel.  Winnie's mom provided a cell number to contact her on. The phone has been turned off, we will continue to try but for now no rescue made.

Rachel's home visit amazing timing!   Rachel called her dad right when we arrived. She was returned based on our promise to care for the family. But the situation Rachel was in has broken her.  She was working in a hotel.  Prayers are needed.

We visited Miracles home too.Thanking her jaja (grandmother) for allowing her to attend school.