by Lori Pearce

Sitting in a mother’s circle where teen, ‘tween and even younger moms were holding their babies was not at all what I expected. Actually, I’m not sure what I expected, however the babies with their wide doe eyes peered into my soul and seemed so content. I commented how well behaved they were, not squirming, not fidgeting or kick-ing. Holding tight to their moms and some suckling; they seemed beautiful.

One mother dropped to her knees right in front of me. I was not at all prepared, felt uncomfortable, and struggled to not have her stand up. “Thank you mum,” she kept repeating. “I did not know what I was going to do. I did not know what my son was going to do.

Thank you mum. Now we have hope. Thank you mum.”

We hugged tightly for quite some time after that; long enough for our tears to turn to wide joyful, hopeful smiles. I will never forget her violet hair, the way she relaxed in my arms, and the warmth of her gratitude.

Twists and turns through the red dirt pathways. Children playing and running by us without a care in the world. Cheerful singing and dancing engulfed us as we navigated the narrowing dirt path which eventually turned into a ditch filled with raw sewage and garbage that we straddled as we walked. Broken boards across a small culvert was the last obstacle to the home of two women living with 11 children in the Kampala Slums. Even in this untenable living situation, they all smiled, the younger children high-fived, the older ones fist bumped, and the mothers invited us into their one room living area with pride.

1. Rape is common among Ugandan Girls: 
   Rape and family incest is rampant. Forty to 80 newborn babies are abandoned by their mothers each month in the Kampala slums, local leaders say.

2. Official Languages in Uganda: English, Swahili and Luganda

3. From 1894 to 1962, Uganda was a Protectorate of the British Empire

4. 720,000 people live in the Kampala Slums (48% of the Population)

These are just a few of the sights and sounds we encountered on our trip to Uganda, Africa in July. I was fortunate to join Melissa Prandi, founder of Melissa Prandi Children Foundation – MPCF, and US foundation Board Members Barbie Hernandez and Janet Gulch, foundation supporter Ana Garcia, and my 17-year-old daughter, Grace Wagner, on a memory-making, life altering trip. We participated in several humanitarian service projects, experienced a thrilling safari, made a lot of new friends (actually now family) and will definitely carry the Pearl of Africa, Uganda, in our hearts moving forward.

It was our first service day when we were in the mother’s circle. We were at The Janan School Kabalagala in the Kampala slum area providing hygiene kits (underwear, reusable sanitary pads, soap and reproductive education to help slow teen pregnancy) to young girls. One of the volunteers pulled me aside to enlighten me that the babies were so “well behaved” as most were undernourished. Words cannot explain the angst and embarrassment I felt in that moment.

$188 is the average Ugandan wage per month

• $58 is the average wage per month in the Ugandan slums

• $90 is the average cost to feed a Ugandan family per month

• The “Big 5” are generally considered to be Lion, Leopard, Rhino, Elephant and
  African Buffalo 

• Impenetrable foliage of my trees, and but a few stray gleams.

• A wonderful serenity has taken possession of my entire soul.

• I should be incapable of drawing a single stroke at the present moment.

However, that did fuel my desire to be more empathetic to the young mothers and their strife, to make a promise to myself to do whatever I could to help: not just on the trip, but forever.

The woman who dropped to her knees, is the mother of a young student sponsored by MPCF. (It is very common for women and children in Uganda to drop to their knees as a sign of respect. It is cultural just like we shake hands. It was difficult for me to accept as it seemed very subservient, nevertheless, I found strength in the knowledge that they are continuing to embrace their tradition.) That mother’s young student, a son, is one of 100 sponsored children at Janan boarding School Bombo through MCF where they receive three meals a day, (including meat which is quite a luxury), an actual bed, pillow, school uniform, school supplies and a superior education. The young boy, who I had the pleasure of meeting, had a smile from ear to ear, loves school, wants to go to college and dreams of becoming a civil engineer.

During our stay, we made a few trips out into the Kampala Slums. Some with armed guards, and always with some or all of the foundation’s Ugandan board members who themselves came from the slums and are now educators, doctors and business owners. On one afternoon we met several women at their places of business who were provided micro-loans by MPCF, which have all been repaid. The loans helped the women to do things like increase clothing inventory to have a $1 per day lift in profit or for a grandmother to expand her chickens’ egg production to make enough money to feed her children and grandchildren. Another day, we took cooking oil, rice, flour and a bag of meat to the two women and their 11 children, mentioned earlier, along with the same provisions to several other deeply impoverished families. Those ingredients would feed them for a week. It was a humbling experience.

It is both gratifying and heart wrenching when on a humanitarian trip. Some relaxation and self-care is recommended. Seeing the “Big 5” and much more on safari. conquering our fears and zip-lining, a boat ride on the Nile, and a dance party our last night at the safari lodge was just the break that the group needed to refresh half way through the trip. Ready and eager to serve once again, we fulfilled the wish list at an orphanage, gave out sunglasses, friendship bracelets, tooth brushes, chapsticks, workbooks and pencils, and presided at the first year of graduation of tailors at the Janan Trade School. We presented 10 of the MPCF sponsored students with sewing machines and fabric. It was also such a gift to see my daughter honoured that same day when she was asked to plant an avocado tree, a symbol of love, on the school grounds. We hope to go back to see its growth and continue to meet with and support the Ugandan women and children.

What else can I say about this vacation? There was so much packed into a short time; experiences that many cannot fathom; the beginning of lasting friendships with our group and many that we met, and the constant struggle of feelings of happiness and melancholy. Each day Grace and I shared three words with each other to describe the day. Here are a few of them: welcoming, riveting, unbearable, fellowship, exhilarating, hand-up, touching, juxtaposition, hectic, mesmerizing, wild, bumpy, fascinating, different, inspiring, empowering, family, tiring and WOW! I would now add BLESSED!