Blog

One of the things that our Well Spring partners can do is to support Buheesi individuals or families.  After last year’s visit from the Well Spring Team, the secondary school set up a procedure for people to help offset the annual tuition fee.  This led Bill and Deb to support three girls that have moved up to the Secondary – 2 class.   It was amazing to see the difference a year made in the girls.

First there was Jackline

 Then there was Monika

Finally there was Annet

Thanks to Aloysius we were able to talk with each girl and her accompanying parent.  They were definitely uncomfortable talking about themselves but it was really important to continue to strengthen our relationships.  More to come as the girls move forward to graduation in 2021.

Jenna supports a family by providing funds for basic living expenses, a girl’s vocation school costs and another family member’s secondary school costs.

An early wake up call got the team ready to head east to Entebbe for their afternoon flight.  The team got a chance to meet Aloysius’ daughter Resty at her vocation school, the Mityana Agro-Vet Institute.   Due to problems with phones, she had no idea that we were coming and the reaction to our surprise visit was priceless.

Aloysius and his daughters Resty and Robbinah

Since school was not in session a lot of the students were hanging out around the school grounds.  One of the students in this picture is from South Sudan.

Resty took us on a tour of the animal pens.  Jenna saw some Rhode Island Red Hens the same type of chickens that were prevalent in Canada.  The goats made a break for the open gate but fortunately they were rounded up before things got out of hand.

The visits to the two vocational institutes helped put the secondary school in context.   The students will have lots of options to consider and hopefully they will find a way to finance the next level of their education.  Graduation Day is sometime March 2021.  At that point the future will be bright for the first graduation class.

In 2018, the Well Spring of Blessings Team was able to visit several Buheesi zones.  In 2019, we took time to spend time in different zones.  To do that, we split into three teams.  The Aisha and Jenna Teams stayed in the valley.  Bill’s team went to the hill top, to visit villagers that lived on perhaps the highest hill in Buheesi.  It was a challenge for the car that Aloysius was driving to get up the rutted path, but it was certainly worth the effort.  One of the villagers had planted onions in a small field that had several graves of family members.

An interesting observation was that many of the huts on the hill top had solar panels.  It was odd to walk into a hut and see a television and a clock even though the kitchen and latrines were outside.  Villagers were also creative in making their huts as comfortable as possible.  One of them used a basket weave as a drop ceiling in their living room.

So of the villager’s huts looked like modern homes, while others looked like they would not last in a strong wind.  But to every person, no matter what it look like, it was home.  If it meant an outdoor dining area, then that was just fine!

On the way back down the hill we stopped at St Mary’s pre-school.  The school buildings showed the poverty of the school but the 100+ students were full of energy and welcomed their visitors with huge smiles.

After a lunch break, the teams went out again.  Since it was Friday the village was fairly humming as they prepared for tomorrow’s Market Day.  Several young men were threshing beans out of their husks.  Bicycles were being ready to move bananas to market.  A group of women were weaving platters and baskets in the brightest colors imaginable.

As we finished our visit around the village the kids are on the look out for you and if you stopped for just a minute we were soon surrounded.  We even saw some children that were at the primary school celebration.

The Well Spring of Blessings has consistently been determined to look for opportunities to serve those in need throughout all of Buheesi.  During the 2018 visit to Uganda, it was clear that the nearby Kimboota Primary School was in serious need of help.  Funds to renovate several classrooms, provide a walkway, and new verandas was an investment that opened space for additional students and improved the school’s appearance.  Buheesi and the school took this investment and added their own resources and transformed the school, so that it was barely recognizable.   As the team arrived it seemed like every one of the nearly 1000 students and their parents were on hand.

Following the Catholic Mass each of the primary classes (P1-P7) provided something of entertainment, either a song, a poem, or a a detailed safety tip.

The visitors and distinguished guests were then invited to tour the school grounds.  Just a reminder of what the school grounds looked like in 2018.

The transformation was positively breath-taking!

Ribbon cuttings seem to have become the norm in Buheesi.  Bill and Jenna did the honors as they led the inspection of the renovated class rooms.

The Primary School showed their appreciation by providing a watermelon and a basket filled to the brim with fruit.   It should be interesting to get that basket back to the US, minus the fruit of course!  The gifts given to the priest and Aloysius included a live chicken, so the team should be thankful that all they had was fruit to dispose of.

As with the Secondary School, the team was asked to make some remarks.  God had other plans.  A slight drizzle had begun well before the team speeches.  Just as Bill was getting warmed up, the skies opened up and the crowd headed for cover.   It seemed like as good of time as any to head to the classroom where lunch awaited.

The heavy rain did not last long, but no-one was interested in hearing the team resume their talks.  There were a couple of more songs and dance numbers, but the real entertainment seemed to be watching Aloysius and Francis change the tire on their car after a stray nail had been picked up earlier in the day.  With the tire changed, the team headed back to Fort Portal to prepare for the final day in Uganda.