Uganda Team Report August 2008

In August, a team of 10 travelled from all across the UK to Ngora in the east of Uganda for a period of 3 weeks to work with the Edith’s Home project. City Life members Ruth Allen and Naomi Marsh were part of the team that, as part of the trip, helped to run a week long retreat for many of the orphans supported by the project. The retreat looked at the story of Noah’s ark and concluded with those attending performing a dramatised version of the story including costumes and a set created during the craft sessions.

There were also a number of sporting events organised by the team including teaching the children to play rounders and Ultimate Frisbee. There was even an Edith’s Home Olympics Games.

As part of the week we were fortunate enough to receive enough funding to be able to take the students on a tour to Jinja (the furthest many of them had ever been). The day began very early leaving Ngora at 4.30am. Our first stop was a visit to the sugar factory just outside Jinja. Here the we were taken on a tour of the factory and shown the process of how sugar is extracted from sugar cane and refined into the sugar granules we use in our kitchens. Next stop was a tour around a mattress factory where we learnt mattress making including the chemical reaction to create foam. Next we went to a textiles factory where they made fabrics, and designed prints. Our final stop of the day was lunch at Bujagali falls, a beautiful waterfall area made famous for its white water rafting! After eating and relaxing at the falls we returned to Ngora, the homewards journey taking considerably longer than the outward one as the bus broke-down twice. We felt very fortunate to be able to give the children this experience. The day was definitely one of the highlights of our time there.

The team had a great time together and the activities were well received. We hope to send out another team in August 2009.