The Children’s Festival Has Begun

We are delighted to welcome Children’s World International (CWI), who have sent a team of 4 performers and arrived in Uganda on October 13th, as we present the HOPE Festival 2010.

The CWI team is performing wonderful, interactive drama shows that have provided psycho-social support and joy to the children of Uganda. The festival will last for a month and so far we have left the children at eah performance with only smiles on their faces. This tour is most valuable to the children in communities affected by HIV/AIDS as it gives them a chance for laughter and fun.

The Festival is a great tribute; we are happy to share the daily activities going on here at our blog – watch out for more news and updates!

~ Ochieng.

Thanks to Everyone Who Voted!

HCFA is excited to announce that we are the winners of the Betterplace.org FLIP Video Competition!

Our entry showed the impact that our Goat Project is having on our community and was chosen as the best of 8 entries int the competition.

Thanks to everyone who voted for us – we appreciate your help and support. The prize for this contest is a professional consultation to improve our project, and we look forward to posting the results of that soon.

Our First Handicraft Sales!

On the night of August 17th, in the town of Mechanicville (New York, USA), our friends at To Love a Child held an event to sell crafts from Zimbabwe, Haiti and Uganda. The ladies who meet in HCFA’s Post Test Club have been hard at work for the last few weeks to fill the order for this event, and the package of crafts arrived only hours before the doors opened! 

The crafts made at our Post Test Club include purses, necklaces, belts and baskets, and visitors to the sale were impressed by the quality and selection of merchandise available. Entertainment was provided by DJ Richard Tollner and America’s Youth Music Program; great food was served and a good time was had by all!

The income generated by selling these handicrafts will make a great difference to the lives of the women in our club, and we hope that this is only the first of many successful crafts sales. Eventually, we are hoping that HCFA will be able to open a craft store as well as sell our products internationally and we are grateful to Cindy and everyone at To Love a Child for helping us take this first step.

Bombings in Kampala increase the number of orphans.

On the  Sunday (11th/July/2010) Everyone was very much eager to watch the Spain & Netherlands in the FIFA WORLD CUP finals,  Some musicians arranged music shows at different places where they also had to broadcast the match alive. What i have learnt about the Ugandans , these are people who want gathering together if they are to celebrate and or if there is an event going on , i decided to have also have sometime with these people in Kampala, we watched the match as it begun and at the second half i felt getting bored since there was no score and decided to leave go home and sleep just to wait and hear the news in the morning about all the results,  at only 3 minutes before the match between , three bombs exploded one at a Restaurant in Kabalagala and two others at Kyadondo Rugby Ground at Lugogo   64 people were reported dead and about 100+ people were injured and taken to the government hospital , Mulago Hospital Kampala , now the another 14 people who were among those taken to the hospital have died.  From the local news papers, it states that all the Wards in Mulago Hospital are occupied and that other victims are being treated from outside. Some charities as Uganda Redcross Society has came out and gave about 150 mattresses and other bedding to help the situation and some other charities have also provided volunteers to assist the doctors in caring for the Victims.

On Monday and Tuesday things became worse, people having heard that another bomb exploded in Mengo and another one  was also about to explode at another sports club in Makindye where the owner became suspicious after seeing his Public Payphone wired and called the Police immediately which helped. Kampala is now on Security on all roads where every vehicle entering or leaving the town is checked. The people who lost their relatives, are in a terrible situation while 100s of croud have gathered at Mulago Hospital to see whether someone they know was involved.

Judging from my instincts, after people getting to know that the Somali militant group al-Shabaab is suspected to be involved in the incident … The Major Gen of Police in Kampala reported that they are still investigating because it might not be true about what others are saying, while it is suspected some Somalians or other people looking same could get hurt by the local people (some kind of riot) although it is hard to happen because every street in either Kampala , Kawempe and other areas in Kampala District there are police / army.  The situation is now a bit better so people are back to work while others are in tears, alot of children have became orphans and while mothers are widows, Now in Kawempe am just seeing people gathering in Taxis/buses going for burial.
“We really have to do something” – Ochieng Kennedy

An Indelible Gesture

June 9th saw Mawanda, Kenny, and two visiting volunteers, Giles Evans from England and Sebastian Thess from Germany, distribute donated items to a group of HCFA beneficiaries at Eden Service Park, Bwaise.

Mr. Richard Sebuliba Mutumba helping.

Mr. Richard Sebuliba Mutumba, Member of Parliament for Kawempe South, was also present to offer moral support. Describing the contribution by HCFA and its supporters as “an indelible gesture” to the most poverty stricken members of the community, he was happy to help dispense items with the team.

Although it is located just three kilometres North West of central Kampala, Bwaise is in fact much further away from the city in terms of clean water, sanitation, adequate housing, and access to medical facilities. With high levels of malaria, and diarrheal disease,  life in Bwaise can be hard and short:

“Whatever inch you can add,” Mr.Mutumbu opined, “means a lot”.

Following a short welcoming speech, Mawanda outlined the aims and objectives of HCFA’s programs in the area, before handing over to Mr. Mutumba, who thanked HCFA and the volunteers for their efforts. He also spoke to the audience of the importance of fostering community spirit in an effort to help alleviate some of their hardships.

Mawanda addressing the beneficiaries.

There was great excitement amongst the children, keen not to miss out, as the 75 mathmatics exercise books and 100 pens and pencils that had been brought from visiting volunteers, and received from postal donations, were the first items to be dispensed.

Molly Najjuka (right) alongside her aunt, Milly. Both hoping for a better future.

Molly Najjuka, a sixteen year old hoping to study medicine one day, was delighted with her new pen and exercise book. Her aunt, ‘Milly’, spoke of how she wanted her niece to have “a better future”.

Many impoverished families struggle to find the necessary school fees required for enrolment, so even small donations such as exercise books and writing implements can make a big difference to the life of a child.

Through the donations of supporters, 10 mosquito nets and 11 blankets had also been purchased and were distributed to the most vulnerable beneficiaries of HCFA.

Because Uganda has some of the highest recorded malaria transmission rates in the continent, particularly amongst children under five who have yet to fully develop protective immunity, HCFA targets those beneficiaries it deems most at risk as recipients.

Blankets were also given out, primarily to the the old and those living with HIV. Although warm during the day, nights are cooler, especially during the rainy season when fevers are common, so the blankets will be of great benefit.

Once all the items had been distributed and the beneficiaries had dispersed, Mawanda, Kenny, and the volunteers, discussed with community leaders how HCFA can best meet the needs of the residents of Bwaise. The consensus seemed to be:

More of the same please!

The Story So Far…

HCFA has been in operation since September 2009 and was started in Kawempe by Mawanda and Kenny. We have come a long way in the past 9 months, and it all started at Nabuur.com…

Mawanda - hard at work!

Mawanda and Kenny wanted to make a change in their community, and wanted to reach out to others who could help. Not long after they founded HCFA, they registered with Nabuur as the Village of Kawempe. Nabuur.com is  “an online volunteering platform that links Neighbours (online volunteers) with Villages (local communities) in Africa, Asia and Latin America. Connected through Nabuur.com, Neighbours and local communities learn about each other, share ideas and find solutions to local issues”.                                                                                                                                                                                                                     Their first task as a new Nabuur Village was to search for a ‘facilitator’ – someone who would manage the online aspect of their projects and moderate the discussions amongst village neighbours. Kawempe village quickly attracted the attention of several online volunteers, including Cathy and Cecilia who were both active contributors to several other villages. It didn’t take long for the HCFA team to grow to include Cathy as the Project Manager and Cecilia as the Advisory Board Director.

With the team established, we set about developing and prioritizing projects that HCFA wanted to accomplish. We recruited more neighbours, began to develop the website (www.hcfafrica.org), initiated several HIV prevention programs, and researched options for income generation and fundraising! Realizing that a larger team was needed, we began to look for volunteers who would come to Kawempe to work with us.  Mawanda and Kenny had registered with www.workaway.info (“a site set up to promote fair work exchange between budget travellers, language learners or culture seekers and families, individuals or organizations who are looking for help with a range of varied and interesting activities”) and soon connected with Steve, who became our first on-site volunteer.

Steve and Mawanda outside the office.

It has been a very busy – and challenging – 9 months, and although we have accomplished a lot, we are still a relatively new organization. We have learned a lot about how to work as a team across multiple time zones and despite the cultural and communication differences that are bound to exist in such a diverse group. We email – a lot – and chat (almost as much!) and we have established a ‘virtual office space’ to work in together.

We have two new volunteers on-site now; Giles has been in Kawempe for a couple of weeks and is documenting his stay at: gilesinuganda.blogspot.com

Sebastian is arriving today and we are very happy to have these two new team members here to help us build HCFA into a sustainable force for change in Uganda.

Over the next 9 months, and beyond, we will share the lessons we learn so that other community based organizations can benefit from our mistakes and produce results for their ‘villages’ too.

Welcome to HOPE!

Welcome to HOPE Children’s Foundation Africa!

We are a small charitable organization working to improve the lives of the Orphans and Vulnerable Children in Kawempe Division, Kampala District, Uganda. The biggest problem faced by residents of Kawempe (which is a large urban slum, built on swamp land and populated mostly by people who have fled the conflicts of Northern Uganda) is HIV/AIDS. Most children in the area are infected or affected by HIV/AIDS; often they are orphans, taking care of themselves, and living in poverty.

HOPE will change that.

Our international team is working hard to establish HOPE as an effective and successful organization and we invite you to join us on our journey. You’ll see what it’s like to build a new charity, and watch as the children of HOPE grow and learn with us!

We are:

• Mawanda Robert

Mawanda is the Chairman (and founder) of HOPE.  A successful Medical Administrator, qualified Health Worker and resident of Kawempe, he has worked with several other non-profit organizations. He has a big heart, and can’t look at the situation in Kawempe without wanting to make a change for the better.

• Ocheing Kennedy

Kenny is the Vice-Chairman (and founder) of HOPE. Kenny also resides in Kawempe, and has worked in I.T. for several years. Since his school days, Kenny has volunteered as an HIV/AIDS educator and is devoted to improving the lives of the children in his community.

• Cathy Oliver

Cathy joined HOPE as the Project Facilitator shortly after it was founded by Mawanda and Kenny. Located in Petawawa, Ontario, Canada, she volunteers online daily with HOPE setting up blogs, figuring out where to buy goats and whatever else is needed!

• Cecilia W. Yu

Cecilia is the Director of our Advisory Board team. She is an internationally educated Strategic Director of several NGOs based in Asia, USA and Africa with a background in Media, International Law and Sustainable Business Management (MBA). Currently residing in England, she works to establish partnerships that will help develop HOPE into a sustainable project ready for long term success.

• Steve Thorpe

Steve began working with HOPE as our first On-site Volunteer; he traveled from his home in England, not really knowing what he was getting in to, but he has been invaluable in connecting HOPE to the world. He even stars in our first You-Tube video!