Day 5 & 6 - Kamuli & Mbulamuti

Dancers in Mbulamuti welcoming the team!

After the team experienced the first 4 villages in the Jinja region and Eastern region, it was time to move North to the Kamuli district. This is where we have the villages of Kamuli, Mbulamuti, and the newest partnered village - Butogonha!

Kamuli and Mbulamuti impressed us with their obviously higher enrollment since the lockdown ended. There were SO many bright, smiling faces who greeted us when we arrived to deliver the packets. It was such a contrast to the “covid days” when the few staff who could travel to Uganda would show up to sparsely populated classrooms and would have to track down many students who had temporarily moved during covid. Those dark days were over and the schools were back to business as usual, with a much higher number of students! This is in large part due to the home based learning that Hearts & Hope was able to fund thanks to the sponsors support! Many surrounding primary schools completely shut down and did not offer any options to continue learning. It was obvious through what we saw that our goal was a success - the goal being to keep the minds of the students working and open even while the doors of the physical classroom were locked.

Packet joy in Kamuli!

Sweet Leah in Mbulamuti : )

The packet delivery was a success in each of those villages and the sponsors who came on the trip were delighted to see their students faces once again!

Also, thanks to some wonderful donors who purchased goats on our website, we were able to hand deliver 7 goats to some vulnerable students in Mbulamuti. This will truly make a difference in the lives of those families who can breed the goats and pay it forward to another family once the goat gives birth. The gift that keeps on giving in the form of a goat - beautiful!

As we were departing we were able to visit the house of Betty in Mbulamuti. She is a recent graduate from our program who has cerebral palsy and had a very rough life before she was sponsored and placed in a special school. Now, she owns her land, her house, and runs a tailoring/clothes shop to support herself. It’s always wonderful to see her! She also surprised us with the news that she recently gave birth to a baby boy named Nicholas, who is absolutely beautiful. We wish her all the success and happiness in the world!

The team has one final village day in Butogonha, the newest partnered village with Hearts & Hope. They’ve been planning a big celebration as they dedicate their newly constructed school! We can’t wait to see the students, the structure, and the transformation of the whole community!

Gift of goats for Mbulamuti!

Betty LOVED showing off baby Nicholas!

Teresa showing Nicholas some love!