Milly, Minsa, Angela, Stella, Nalugo, Maureen, and Annet. Seven nurses. Seven daughters. Seven arrows now sent into the world. Seven miracles.
On August 6, 2010 our staff rejoiced as they watched each of these girls receive their certificates in Comprehensive Nursing and Midwifery from Kiwoko School of Nursing. Then, the next day, their Kasana families and their biological relatives gathered to give thanks for all God had done in their lives and to celebrate this monumental accomplishment. There was not a dry eye in the room as the girls one by one gave their testimony of God’s faithfulness to them over the years. Each of them has lost at least one parent- four of them lost both parents. In the world’s eyes, none of them should have succeeded for countless reasons. But, each one is a beautiful testimony of how God doesn’t see us as the world does, nor does he allow our circumstances to determine what He is making us to be. As Uncle Fred, Nalugo and Angela’s Calvary family father shared, “It is not because of their wisdom; it’s not because of the parenting we gave them; it’s not because of how good a school Kiwoko School of Nursing is; they completed and stood strong because of God’s grace.”
As I sat and looked at each girl, my mind raced through the stories of their childhoods at New Hope. I remembered what they looked like when they first came, remembered the struggles they had… and the victories. I remembered the dear girls in their class that gave into the pressures of the immoral society around them and didn’t make it to the finish line… at least not yet. I remembered the countless sacrifices made by New Hope parents on their behalf, but also the ways ways we’d failed them. I remembered the personal struggles they had each had, but also all the inside jokes and times of craziness and laughter we’d shared with each of them. And I praised God for what He had done in these seven. I praised Him for His grace that covered our mistakes and their mistakes, and that gave us something to offer them in the first place.
Each of the girls is now employed in hospitals across Uganda. Each of them knows she is loved, knows there is a family who will be praying for her, and most importantly, knows the Way, the Truth, and the Life. As Uncle Jonnes prayed a father’s blessing over them, he also launched them out to the “real world.” It’s time for you to stand, girls. Time to put into practice alls the things you’ve heard over the years. Time to go out secure that you are loved daughters- not orphans- and begin to walk the path God has for each of you. It’s time to forget the pain of the past; time to fix your eyes on Jesus and walk into the “joy set before you.”
And with that, seven arrows were shot out- launched into the good works God prepared before hand for them to walk in and launched to make a difference for the kingdom of God in the nation of Uganda. And we at Kasana rejoiced!
Jennie Dangers
Once a year our primary school has a Parents’ Day in which we invite the parents to school. In recent years we have made this a more active day by starting out with races between the various color groups the primary school is divided into. The kids love the competition and they also enjoy watching their parents compete in each race after the students have competed. The race I like to watch the best is when we carry a soda bottle full of water on the head. It takes real skill and grace to do this. For some reason our Ugandan brothers and sisters are much better at this than those of us from other places. I think it has to do with the fact that their hair helps hold the bottle in place while on me, my hair helps the bottle slide right off. After the races at the field we went back to the primary school so that parents could visit the classrooms, meet the teachers, and look at mid-term exam results. The day ends with the announcement of the winning color group. This year the pink team won. As I was going home on Friday evening I was thankful for the good attendance by parents and the ways in which they were delighting in and enjoying their children. In Isaiah 9:6 one of the names given to the Messiah is “Everlasting Father.” What a comfort to know that even as we parent our children here we have Father God to go to when we need help and need a parent ourselves.
Our school has 349 children in preschool through Primary 7(P7). They range in ages from 4 years to 18 years old. A bit different than your average primary school in the West? But, not so different here. Some schools even have students who are older! Our kids really get along well, in general, which is such a blessing. We rarely have fights, in fact so rarely, I can’t remember the last one! Oh, we have our mischievous ones, believe me! Variety is the spice of life!
On any given day, we have our routine like any school. Devotions in the morning at 7:30 am, the classes up to our Bible reading time at 10:30, when everyone at Kasana reads the Bible or listens to Bible story for ½ hour. The kids really love this time as does the staff! We are all reading a daily chronological Bible; it has been such a blessing! Then we have break and our compound sounds like schools all over the world – children laughing and playing, enjoying a bit of break in their routine of studying, plus a cup of porridge to refuel, ’til lunch.
Our remedial classroom has just started being open during break for kids to come and visit, read, help out, color…. This is new but I am sure the number of activities will grow as the number of students coming increases along with their personal requests for activities. There are also those who would rather run ( there always seems to be time for a quick game of football(soccer)! Or swing on the cross bars or an actual swing. The students pictured here are “reading the room” together in the remedial classroom.
Our day continues with more lessons, then, lunch here at school, with more lessons after lunch. And as we close at 4 pm, most of our students ‘enjoy’ a long walk home with friends ( our kids come from one to seven kilometers from the school).
At Kasana, we are blessed to be able to feed our students twice a day. We also have electricity, a medical clinic and a good supply of books, which is quite a contrast to our neighboring schools. The Father looks after the fatherless in so many amazing ways!
Like most children at any school, our kids probably give these things little thought. But if you spend even a little time in our school yard, you will notice right away that our children are happy, learning and growing in the Lord….without even realizing it, at this point.
When you talk to our older sons and daughters, those who have gone on, you find that they DO know that Essubi Eppya gave them a good start and that it was the Father’s doing! “Train up a child in the way he should go and when he is old he will not depart from it(!).” Proverbs 22:6
- Constance Dobbs, EEVPS Remedial and Counseling Program Coordinator; NHU Staff member since Aug. 2003
Usually as people head into the weekend, we think of what we will do with our time away form a job or school. So, what do Kasana kids do on the weekend for “fun”. By the way, you don’t hear people here talk about what they are going to do for “fun”. They just do it as it fits in.
First of all, Friday afternoon, usually means lots of washing of clothing is going on. Then, there is a wide and varied array of clothing to be seen everywhere for the next day or so as everything dries. Ironing comes later and gets squeezed in there and there, as most family groups have one coal iron( known as a ‘pas’ ). Then, you can see random football games going on, even netball ( a game somewhat like basketball for the girls). Girls play football, too, but usually not on teams, just I small games in their compounds.
What I love is the creativity of kids at play and even more, the universality of play. For example, we don’t have mud pies, but mud chapaties. Anything round can become a steering wheel for make-believe vehicles and little boys worldwide seem to be able to make vehicle noises at the youngest of ages! And, even juice boxes can become cars with racing engines. Yep, anomonapia is very universal!!
There are some other very creative exams I have seen of late that I thought you would enjoy. One is the train of children connected by ropes of banana fibers, with a driver and conductor – just like our Matatus (van taxis) here! There is the make -shift jungle gym: the rack on my “new” truck that is meant for a tarp. Jumping into the thick grass behind where the truck is parked can go on for seemingly forever and day after day. But, my favorite is the “African Slip and Slide” . I asked the kids in Jonathan family to wash the tarp for the truck. Their eyes lit up and smiles crept in. “Yes, Jajja, we will do it!” I kept a serious face and thanked them for being willing, knowing exactly what they were thinking of this task for a hot Saturday afternoon. This is not the first tarp they have washed but this time, they chose the steeper of the two hills in our family, with joyous results! And, the tarp got very clean. Thank you Father that you bring joy in unexpected ways, continually!
- Constance Dobbs
It has been wonderful getting to know and becoming a part of the NHU staff over this past 21 months. Although it has been a joy working with the children here, recently, it is the staff who have been most on my mind. Besides the sometimes overwhelming nature of the work we are doing, there often seems to be no real stopping point.
Almost all of us here live where we work. If one is not careful, it is easy to neglect time with God, time with family, and time for rest. It is easy to be running on empty and still feel like one is not doing enough. In our Institute of Childcare and Family classes, we learn that as adults working with hurting children if we are motivated primarily by the childrens’ need, we will soon be driven to exhaustion or worse yet hardened by despair (because of the seemingly endless nature of the need).
One of the areas we have been working on is staff development and support. We are now using small groups as a part of our regular weekly staff fellowships. We have seen these groups become one way of consistently supporting and looking out for one another. Spending time together helps remind us that our work here comes from His calling and that we are each one part of the team—and ultimately, God will meet the needs, not us. Keeping that in mind, we are also attempting to find ways of including consistent recreation and rest in our lives while at the same time continuing to be used by God to help meet the physical, emotional, and spiritual needs of the children we serve. We would really appreciate your prayers in this area.
- Tal Anderson
As I have been spending time in prayer for guidance in how New Hope staff can best reach the children and what we should change or add to what we’re already doing in the area of their spiritual development, I felt God lead me to study John the Baptist. As I studied his life, I realized a simple and obvious fact: John the Baptist wasn’t the Messiah- the one who would bring healing, forgiveness, and hope; his job was simply to get people ready to receive the One Who would.
At times I can can be overwhelmed with the magnitude of my task and can take on burdens that are not mine to carry… and then God gently reminds me that my job is not to be the Savior- just to point the way to Him! My job isn’t to bring healing to over 600 emotionally broken kids, to make sure all of our kids know and love the Lord, or to even make sure that our staff are doing these things! My job is to prepare the way for Him to do what only He can do! This perspective makes it all of a sudden possible- and so exciting!
- Jennie Dangers, Children’s Spiritual Development Coordinator
Kasana Community Church is truly a community church attended by the staff and children who live on our main site and the New Hope Academy site, but also by many of our neighbors in the community around us as well. For the last hour of the service while the preaching takes place the children are dismissed to go to their Sunday service. I have the opportunity to help lead the 6 – 11 year old age group about four Sundays a year, assisted by ten of our teenagers who have been trained to help out.
At New Hope we really make the effort to make sure each child feels loved and cared for and this has cared over to children’s church where each teenager leads a small group of 10 to 12 children. Usually we start with some group work where the children have the chance to share something about their week or to play a game together. Then the Word of God is shared and usually we end with working on a memory verse of applying the Word to our lives. The same teenager leads the same small group every week and I was recently blessed when one of the teenage boys in David family (one of our seven family groups at the Kasana Children’s Center) was visited by his group member from Children’s Church. The children’s in children’s church are not all New Hope kids, some of them come from broken homes, go to different schools and we only see them on Sundays. It is one way for our kids to reach out and love those in the community around us.
- Nancy Kirsch
The IY program just gets better and better each year! Again, one of my highlights each week has been spending Fridays with the 17 students in our 5th Investment Year class! Each IY has finished the equivalent of 10th grade (UK- GCSE’s) and are taking a year to be trained in practical life skills and experience internships in the areas they’re interested in pursuing.
While they are busy in their placements throughout New Hope from Monday to Thursday, Friday is IY training day- where we cover worldview, public speaking, business etiquette, biblical exegesis and hermeneutics, computers, business skills and personal finance, and more! (Have I ever said how exciting it is to be equipping the next generation? I can’t believe I’m so blessed to get to call this my “job”!!)
- Jennie Dangers
We want every child at New Hope to feel like a part of the family. This can be very difficult based on the child’s past. One of the most important first steps is trying to “replace what has been lost”. The sons and daughters we work with are often struggling with identity, security, and other relationship issues. We seek to allow God to work through us to provide the love, care, discipline, and support they need. When those things take root and the child becomes free to give of themselves, it is such a blessing to see. A few weeks ago, our church service was put on by the youth and I felt proud of the Worcester family kids who helped lead. We strongly believe in putting our young into age appropriate “battles”.
When we give our young the opportunity to lead a church service, or put on a Vacation Bible School in a local village, or serve as tutors for the former child soldiers we are working with at our Kobwin Children’s Center up north, it helps them grow and it teaches them to rely on the Lord in a way that no words or teaching can ever do. Still in recent self-evaluation, we realize that we are not challenging our young adults enough. It is something that we continue to work on.
- Tal Anderson
Football (soccer) is the unquestioned king of sports in Uganda (probably in everywhere but the US it seems). The World Cup is always a big deal but the fact that it is being held in Africa makes it even a bigger deal here.
One thing we have been trying to do at New Hope is to “play” together more. Saturday night we had a time of recreation enjoying the World Cup.
Joseph Ruyondo, our head of Childcare, and his family hooked up a TV, projector and some speakers so that we could all watch the England-US game together. It started at 9:30pm but a large crowd turned up anyway (church starts at 10:30am here so there was still time to sleep after:).
I’m not quite sure yet who the favorite team at New Hope is for the World Cup. But on this night all the US staff were trying to recruit as many as possible to the US
side while the UK staff was doing the same. We all had a great time and ending in a tie was just fine (at least it was for the US supporters:)
- Tal Anderson
