Our time at Hope has been wonderful.  Almost all of the children are smiles and laughs. The transformation of the little girl Lynette that we took into Hope last September is amazing.  She is talking, smiling, running, jumping and everyything else that a child should do.  She also now has learned how to receive hugs!  She is precious to say the least.  The thought of getting to see this little one grow up is exciting.  I can only imagine what she will do when she is older! 

About the third day that we were at Hope, Pastor Prossy begin sharing with me the story of 3 little children. She was asking if they could come to live at Hope.  We already have 94 children and the thought of more seemed too much, but Pastor Prossy said that she knew we needed to take these little ones in.  So, we did.

Marvin, Susan and their baby sibling (I have not met yet) were living with an old lady in the village.   Their father died a few years ago and the mother died shortly after giving birth to the baby.  The old widow that has been caring for them has to leave them for days at a time, because she has a job. Marvin might be 4, Susan 3 and the baby is probably 1!  When I first met Susan and Marvin, I could see the sorrow and pain in their eyes.  Susan’s face and body were previously burned.  She had fallen into a fire.  These little ones would not even keep eye contact with us. As the days have gone one, however, Susan is beginning to trust a little.  One of the Santiam team members, Brooke, has been holding Susan almost everyday.  Yesterday, Susan actually began throwing a ball back and forth with Mike.  I know that God is going to touch her heart and help her and Marvin to know that they are safe and loved at Hope. 

We will meet the baby soon.  A mother that lives near Hope Children’s Home has agreed to take care of the baby.  We will help to provide for all the needs of this child.

If you have been considering sponsorsing a chid, any of these three would be great!  We have posted Marvin and Susan on the website at www.showmercy.org.

Thanks for being apart of what God is doing here in Uganda.

More updates soon.

Lori Salley
www.showmercy.org
 

Here is another short update from Steve Bittner:

Saturday we visited Didi’s World with all of the children who live at Hope. Didi’s World was a bit of a surreal experience for us! It is an amusement park/carnival kind of place that we surmise was built in the 1960’s or 1970’s. We walked in and found ourselves the only people present; we didn’t even see any employees! It seemed largely abandoned; perhaps even caught in a time warp!

Nevertheless, for these children who rarely venture out of the red dust-filled village of Gganda, it was a wonderful experience! For a few hours, they were able to be children at the carnival, riding rides (even though no ride operator appearred until the children lined up), dancing, and generally doing what kids do when they visit a fair or carnival. (As a point of reference, think an old county fair, with no food booths or souvenir stands, and no one there but you.)

It was a blessing to us to see them enjoy themselves and, for a little while, simply be children.

Steve B. for Team Uganda