My trip to Uganda was absolutely amazing and heartbreaking. I went there to work at a rehabilitation center for children who were former child soldiers. Every day we would go to the camp and spend all day with the kids talking to them, playing games and helping them work through all the hardships and tragedies that they have been through as a result of the war. I was working with a group of 6 boys; Geoffrey, Peter, Tony, Sadick, Patrick, and Francis ranging in age from 11 years old to 17years old. All 6 of them had been kidnapped during a LRA rebel attack on their village and all lost parents and siblings during the attack. These boys were fortunate enough to escape sometime after their abduction and to survive being a child soldier; but life after has not been kind to them. They are all homeless street kids now who have nowhere to go, no family to take care of them, no way of getting an education and literally have nothing except the clothes on their back. These kids spend their nights on the streets and come to this camp each day for a day camp like program set up by NGO’s to help with rehabilitation. The kids at the camp get one meal a day, which was always rice and beans.
While talking to the boys about their pasts they all had heartbreaking stories about seeing family members being brutally murdered, being beat themselves, and about the constant rejection they now face daily because they are still seen as rebel soldiers. It was heartbreaking getting to see how little these children had, it was also amazing how positive and loving these kids still were. It was really eye opening and sad to learn about how little it would take to get these kids in school or how little it would cost to get them a pair of shoes….It only costs $150 to put a child in school for a year, and it costs $3 to get a kid a pair of shoes.
I defiantly learned a lot in Gulu, and can’t wait to return.
6 comments:
Wow, what great pictures. That sounds like it was an incredible experience for you.
What beutiful pictures you have of your trip. After all these kids have gone through you still see them smiling. It's sad that they aren't accepted in the community because of the label they carry.
This is amazing, you are so cool for having done this. Did you go through a program or just decide to go on your own? And, why did this particular country interest you?
It looks like you had an amazing time. Thanks for sharing your story and pictures with us. I hope more of us will make an effort to do things like this in the future.
Looking at all of your pictures is really amazing. I am so interested in the country, so many emotions arise when I think about what these kids have to go through. It is nice to see that someone our age is helping bring awareness.
You did a brave and wonderful thing! Thanks for sharing and reminding us how fortunate we are to be where we are, and that there are things we can do to help bring smiles to those who really don't have much to smile about.
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