The second term of the school year is underway here in Sydney, and making sure my own kids make it to school on time is a tall task. My kids get to attend a school where I know they are cared for and educated well. They never go a day without food, and if we need medical care, it is at our fingertips. This is not the case for too many kids around the world.
Through our work in Uganda, we have the privilege of providing education for 180 high schoolers (in addition to our primary kids). The Raising Up Hope for Uganda Secondary School was a pipedream 7 years ago. But for the past 7 years, students and teachers have been showing up for school. Students have sewn their own school uniforms. Teachers have taught lessons without supplies. Staff and students have lugged water up the hill from a nearby village. They created a high school out of nothing.
And we have been trying to keep up with their determination. Each year, we’ve tried to fund and create a school we can be proud of.
This year alone, a new block of toilets is being completed with 8 stalls and 2 showers (!). A new well has been dug to provide access to clean water on the Secondary School campus. New gutters and tanks have been installed to collect rainwater for bathing and cooking. A brand new block of classes has just been finished, and a kitchen/dining area has also been completed. We recently broke ground on a new boys’ dormitory, and we are about to bring electricity to campus. A school we can be proud of is taking shape!
Of our 180 students, the vast majority are boarding students who live at the Secondary School full-time. This means our costs cover not only their tuition but also medical care, food, and living costs. In most places, this would require millions of dollars.
But keeping the lights on, the staff paid, the students fed, and the teachers equipped to teach costs around $200,000 each year. We depend on donors giving monthly to ensure that we can meet these costs.
At the moment, we need to raise $40,000 by the end of May to ensure that our students continue to get quality food, that our teachers get paid, and that we have adequate supplies for classrooms. There is no margin in our budget. This money pays for the fundamentals needed to run a high school.
On our trips to Uganda, I see the faces of the kids who attend this school, and I am reminded that they are no less deserving than my own children to receive a quality education in a safe and beautiful environment. They deserve good, clean beds and medical care when they are sick. That’s what we get to provide. That’s what we are working towards: a school we can be proud of. Thank you for considering being a part of this work today.
Peace, Caleb
