The last blog post was a true but depressing
account of what happens in Uganda on a daily basis and I’m sure Uganda is not
the only place where kids ‘age out’ of orphanages.
The blog post ended with hope. There are those that care and go that extra mile.
While Lutaaya was at her former home she had two
special Aunties. Auntie Nancy and Auntie
Sara. They visited the home regularly,
spending quality time with all the children and not only raising funds for the
essentials, but also spoiling the children with treats. When Lutaaya moved out of the orphanage and
into our guest house, the only things she had with her, were a few small things
in a little bag. The bag was one of the
ones a lady from my church had made and that I had taken out with me that July. The gifts inside the bag were all bought by
Auntie Nancy and Auntie Sara. Her only
belongings and only memories, were from these two special ladies.
On returning to the UK, we went shopping in
Cardiff while I was still on adoption leave.
Lutaaya pulled at my hand and said there’s Auntie Nancy! Unbelievably we bumped into each other in the
middle of the city. We didn’t realise
how close we lived to each other. And
there our friendship began and Lutaaya was reunited with her Aunties. We have managed to meet up so many times, it
is wonderful to hear all their stories of their continued visits to Uganda.
Little did we know what plans God had placed on
their hearts. Plans to care for those
older, so often overlooked children and teenagers.
In recent months they have travelled to Uganda
to put plans in place to set up their own charity. Cornerstone Uganda. They are now registered in both the UK and
Uganda. They are so close to getting up
and running!
Their plan is to take some of the children who
still reside at Lutaaya’s former home and have no other exit strategies, into
their care. Their vision states,
‘We aim to create an
environment where young people can truly have a family unit that will support
them as they learn skills in order to help them in their future lives.’
Isn’t that wonderful? To learn skills for their future lives. There is hope. These children will get the care and
education/training to secure their futures.
They will then get the opportunity to input their own life skills to
help the next generation. These children
will be able to see their future and prosper.
They will not be forgotten or driven out. This charity will treat every child as an
individual and they will support them to reach their potential, whatever that
child chooses that to be. These children
will be the future of Uganda and can make a difference to their own
country. These are the politicians,
doctors, caterers, engineers, barbers, even presidents of the future.
We hope to support Cornerstone Uganda in any way
we can during our visit this year. We
also plan on supporting the charity throughout the year. We have seen first hand the relationships
Nancy and Sara have with the children, and we value the time and effort their
put into developing each and every personality.
They know each child’s likes and dislikes better than orphanage
staff. They have hearts of gold.
I had a text today to say they will soon be
going to Uganda to look for a house.
Their tape measure is at the ready to measure for curtains! These are exciting times for Cornerstone
Uganda and even more exciting time for the young people they will be helping.
If you would like to help, please check out
their website, keep their plans in your prayers and if you are able to help
financially, take a look here. These are
remarkable people and we will be supporting and advocating for this charity
100%
These two special ladies blessed my daughter
with such precious memories. They
continue to bless so many young people currently in Uganda and caught up in
orphanages or poverty. Now it’s time to
bless them, as they are blessed to be a blessing.
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