Double your impact! All donations made before December 31st, 2021 toward the items listed below will be matched dollar-for-dollar by our donor Karen Bentlage! Many thanks to Karen and all of you for your generosity!
- Boys Dormitory Roof – $14,912
- New toilet for Portland Primary School – $10,704
- Bakery truck – $15,211
- Farmland in Kabowa Village – $8,028
Dear Our Friends and Supporters,
It is now three months since we last updated you about our work here at the grassroots, and a lot has happened, both good and bad; we are happy to share with you what has taken place since August 1st.
I will start with sad news about the passing on of one of our core supporters, Oliver Weis. Oliver died from a heart attack on 6th October, 2021. He was a sponsor of 3 young men whose dreams were similar to his career as an electrical engineer. One of his friends and colleagues wrote to me about him and his personality and had the same thoughts and feelings we had about him; Oliver was a very calm and kind man who did not just send school fees but was directly in touch with the three boys, mentoring them to grow up as responsible men. He also gave wise insights and support to PCE in many ways, including buying ten mobile phones for young people who needed to attend online classes but could not afford mobile phones. Unfortunately his priceless mentorship approach and support was short-lived. May his soul rest in eternal peace. We invite anyone willing and able to help these boys reach their dreams, and to carry on Oliver’s good legacy to come aboard.. Your support would be very welcome.
On a brighter note; we at PCEF have started empowering women in small businesses and are seeing a need for more of this. When selling bread in the streets for Amber Court Market, Jinja, we have often met women who are struggling to keep their businesses running. We realized that women such as these who are committed to their small businesses can actually advance with minimal support. We have followed up with five women; two from Tororo, two in Jinja and one from Mayuge districts and have helped fund their businesses. All of these women are domestically abused, depressed and traumatized, yet are determined to make a difference in their lives and the lives of their children. One of them was born with HIV and is living with it, she is 17. Many thanks to Kathryn G, Kirsty M, Lorraine S and Patti H for helping them improve their businesses!
In more wonderful news , PCEF has recently renewed the work permit that will last for the next 5 years! It is currently not easy to renew or register NGOs with the National NGO Bureau so we e are very lucky to have fulfilled all the required processes. This will help us pursue new grant opportunities without any disturbance from the government.
Talking of the renewal of the NGO work permit, we are now officially allowed to operate our charity services in Jinja, and to this effect, are launching a training program on December 06, 2021 in bakery, cookery and decorations. This may be expanded to other areas in time.
We recently hired an Operations Manager for the Bakery – Christine Wanyama, who is not only experienced in bakery, cookery and decorations, but also in business management. She has given us HOPE for steady progress.
Another excellent news is we acquired a generator and a bigger mixer for the bakery. They both were so much needed; frequent blackouts and limited production issues are currently solved. Many thanks to Alison H, Ellen S, Haidee W, Julie K, Karen B, Lindsey & Ted C, Lorraine S, Max Y, Nancy W, Patrick S, PJ, Robin H, Samantha B, Shelby Y, Sumru E, Tammy K, and Terre B!
We have been blessed to continue with our community outreach programs of giving out masks and foodstuffs. We received over 1000 masks from Kathi S in Germany, which we distributed to the communities of Amor and Buwenda. We have also given treats to over 600 children in the past two months – juices and mandazis. These were donated by Terre B.
We received 1000 doses of dewormer for children under 12 from Rebecca H, USA. These were divided into two packages; one for Amor village community and the other for the Buwenda village community. These tablets were necessary, especially now that most of the health attention is focused on COVID-19. We are already witnessing healthier children in our communities since August 2021.
Another awesome family donated an artificial leg to a 25 year old young man whose prosthesis was completely worn out. He could no longer run his daily chores and errands. The young man, Charles,was born without one leg, missing toes and missing fingers. When he was days old, his mother tried abandoning him in the bush but later thought twice. Thank God he is a grown, confident and brave young man. Many thanks to Pauline, Victoria, Terry, Kim and Family for fulfilling Charles’ dream. He never ever thought he could own a new and better artificial leg.
We have also received donations of 15 bunkbeds for the children of Portland school. These beds are so much needed in the very near future when all schools and classes are re-opening. Many thanks Ellen, Lindsey and Ted for your generous support!
We are very grateful to all of you, our dedicated supporters. You are making such a difference! Special thanks to Karen B who has loaned us assets for our business and is mentoring me into entrepreneurship through bakery and housing projects. She helped me acquire the bakery house as well as a new home for settlement. This means that our current home here in Jinja will remain as a training and entrepreneurship center – bakery, cookery, decorations, and food bar innovations. I am very grateful for her trust, confidence, care and mentorship in me as a person fighting for change in my world.
We are very proud to inform you that two of our students sat for national pre university entrance exams, and both passed highly in their respective study programs. We were especially surprised by the performance of the young lady who has been so sickly throughout her two years of High schooling. She was studying Biology, Chemistry and Mathematics and she scored 16/20 points! Joan has always dreamt of becoming a doctor, we are seeing her fulfill her dream through hard work! We are very grateful to their sponsors!
Last but not least, despite the achievements, we are facing challenges and NEED your continued support. Here are the top seven current needs (in US Dollars):
- We need to roof the boys’ dormitory at Portland school. This building has been at a standstill for over 3 years now. We need $14,912 to complete it.
- New toilet for Portland Primary school section is badly needed, the current toilet is in a sorrowful state. We need $10,704 for a 12 stance toilet for the students and the teachers.
- We would like to acquire a truck for transport, supply and delivery of bread and bakery products. It costs $15,211 to acquire a truck in good condition.
- We would like to acquire farmland in the Jinja community for poultry (eggs and meat), beekeeping (honey) and crop production for feeding the bakery, café and the shop we are running here in Buwenda. We have identified a 2 acre piece of land in Kabowa village – not far from Buwenda at $8,028. Our long term dream is to start a baking college within this community and so this land has great potential for the vision in the long-run.
- We continue to look for sponsors for vulnerable children, young women and men in both formal education and skills development. Education makes a huge difference in lives here, we have seen the change in lives and communities for the past 9 years.
- We celebrate children every year; please do not forget to donate towards food, drinks, candies, clothes, shoes, and underwear. These are treasures for the vulnerable children in our support communities.
- Lastly, Portland High School needs classrooms. The school is operating in the community Library building. We need $70,894 for a storey building consisting of classrooms, laboratories, digital classroom, library and administrative offices.
In this gratitude month we would like to thank you so much for your continued support towards our work here at the grassroots. We call upon you to continue standing with us to make the difference we see happening here daily through your support. May this forthcoming Thanksgiving Day be a special one for all – throughout the world!