Christmas Celebration African Style

Everyone at Uncle Fred's House had a wonderful Christmas celebration.  Cakes were made and soda was distributed to everyone. The meal was a special treat for visitor Jimmy who came to the house.  Jimmy is the young man Fred met while investigating the amount of disabled street children in Lira.  Jimmy was the highlight of the party since he new so many children's songs.  The boys just loved having him there.  A lot of dancing and singing went on even though the kids did not receive the Christmas box we had sent out 2 months ago.  We are praying it will find it's way there eventually.

Tools from the Duda Foundation

We have 9 young men graduating this month from not only the SGU program but two years of vocational school.  We felt it was nessecary to provide tools for each of them as they head back to their villages.  This however was going to be a costly venture considering we have school fees to come up with this month for 35 children.  Then the blessing came. The Duda Foundation contacted us to say we had been selected by the board and would be recieveing a check.  We are now able to provide each young man with a set of tools costing $353 each. 

The boys will be expected to pay back the cost over a period of time.  We want them to feel a sense of ownership and pride not entitlement.  They know that the money they pay back will go back into the tool fund for other boys to benefit from. 
The boys at Uncle Fred's House says "Thank you Duda Family".

Learning a New Art

The boys have really taken to making the paper bead necklaces.  After a day of training they have been beading like crazy.  They are all very proud of this accomplishment.  I can tell you personally, it is not an easy skill to master.
So get ready ladies more necklaces are coming!

Life On The Streets

The streets,  once a thing you traveled on to visit your Grandparents or to go to town for supplies, has now become your home.  The faces of people moving about on busy streets are now close strangers you try to avoid. There is no familiar hand to hold to keep from getting lost in the crowds. Instead of being greeted as you once were with family, you are chased away with rocks or a cane stick.  No one kind stops to ask if your lost and the ones that do are wanting to use you for stealing and worse.
Life on the streets is scary enough for us adults, imagine a child.  You are alone in the world, there is no one to keep you safe.  

Take a few minutes to imagine .

Helping The Disabled

SGU is helping two local young men Jimmy and Christopher with new wheelchairs.  At the time we are repairing the ones they have while waiting to purchase much needed new ones.  Fred has really enjoyed making new friends and hearing their stories. It has given him a chance to better understand their needs and struggles.
Please keep them in your prayers.  They both suffer from polio which is a preventable disease in Africa for those that can afford the vaccine.

Another 3 Boys In Program

We are happy to hear that 3 more boys have been
brought into Uncle Fred's House program. Peter has been helping to get them settled in and Quinto was out purchasing some clothing and shoes.
Today was feeding day and Fred said many came to the house. The more that show up the happier Fred is.  Monday the children will be praying that God will bless us with winning the facebook/chase community giving contest.  Keep us in your prayers and vote.

More info will be coming soon on the new boys.

A Letter from Fred

 

All is going on very well here, we have started house discipleship with all the staffs, this morning we were reading Romans chapter three and we are praying for you guys and we are praying for you every day, we are also training our self on a better way of working with kids, we already enter the third day of our training, we hope this will help sharp our career in this ministry. Women around our property will soon begin making beads and braceslet by next week.

We have already added three boys in addition to the previous three boys which we brought them early this month we are yet doing counselling with them and then later we shall do the home tracing to get much more detail  information needed for them.

 

Feeding boys on the street it is very powerful, lives are getting changed down here every day. all is very fine with us and we are all committed towards the service of God in Children ministry.

The 3 New Boys

Fred wrote today to say they have welcomed 3 young boys in the program.

We have Daneil who is 10yrs old, total orphan, the parents died of AIDS, we have Walter 7yrs old, total orphan, Parents died of AIDS, Ibara, 8yrs old, total orphan, parent died of AIDS. We hope to add more boys soon.

Daneil was found last month with Emmanuel who has returned home to his Father's house after counseling the family and follow-ups.  Fred said that the boys are real miracles and that their lives are already transforming.  We can expect to hear from him by the end of the month with more good news.
Walter is the one being funny for his first photograph.

8 Boys Graduate from SGU

We are so proud of our new graduates. They have worked hard and have accomplish so much. All of the young men will soon be going back to their villages with a new life ahead of them.  While at Uncle Fred's House, these boys have learned they are valued and loved by God and others.  They have learned to forgive those that have caused them pain. They have learned the importance of  honesty and trustworthiness, being responsible for themselves and others in their care. The boys also learned how to grow and harvest crops which is a necessity for survival.

All the graduates have also finished their vocational training in the field they chose and will be receiving new tools from SGU to start their businesses. 

Uncle Fred worked hard with the local community in obtaining the land that the boys lawfully owned when parents died.  Our many thanks to Fred, Quinto, Pamelle and the community for helping these boys towards a future.

Peter and Maxwell has been asked to stay on with SGU as junior staff members.  They will go on to be trained in areas of nurturing and counseling for the younger children in the Uncle Fred's House program. Congratulations

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Independence Day

This past October 9th was Uganda' Independence Day. This is a very special day for all with the exception being street child. With no parents and no home these children could only watch as others eat, drank and celebrated. Since October 2007 SGU has made this day a very special day for the street child of Lira. Our first Independence Day was celebrated in a small warehouse in town. Now the children come to Uncle Fred's House to be cared for like family with down time to just be a kid and have fun. The gate opened and closed none stop most of the day. The children were given a hearty meal and a soda for a special treat. There was singing and playing and a chance to hear God's word and pray. Thanks to Uncle Fred, Quinto, Pamela, Kathy and Fred the night guard for all the hard work and dedication to the children.

Update from Fred

Hey Mama,Papa. Greetings from SGU Lira, we are together very grateful to served today kids to tune of 51 of them, every body is fine Morris Peter as jolly as you see him in the picture all boys are very fine and miss you very much, it was very nice today having boys, they got the best teaching service and feeding as well, they went back very excited and we expect many of them next week as Independent day draws nearer, we love you and miss you guys a lot Praying for you. Fred

Two New Boys

We welcome 2 new boys, Daniel age 7 and Emanuel age 9. They were brought into the program this past weekend. Both boys are so happy to be off the streets and knowing they will be heading to school next year. Fred said that their situation on the streets were dire and he felt lead to bring them in. We praise God for this gift and for providing as He always does.

Disabled Street Kids

Fred has been meeting with some of the disabled street children in Lira. Jimmy is an 28 year old that was abandon since childhood. Fred said Jimmy is an amazing person considering all he has been through. Jimmy gets up early to beg for money on the street corners and then wheels himself to school returning in the evening to the street corner. Jimmy said he has had many visions of God and knows God has a plan for his life. Jimmy is crippled by polio and can barely use his hand at this point. Dick was the boy we met on the streets when we were there visiting last summer. He was always smiling. Fred is getting to know Dick better to learn what his needs are and how we can help. Dick has been on the streets at least 2 1/2 years. But I have a feeling it has been much longer.

AIDS CLASS

15 street boys came to Uncle Fred's House for a 2 day class on AIDS and related issues. They will all be taken to the clinic next week to check on their status. 48 children showed up to be feed and cared for this weekend. And our boys and girls are headed back to class for their final exams. They all received new uniforms and shoes. This is are way of helping to build confidence and self esteem during their last semester.

Beware

Beware of anyone contacting you stating they are from Saving Grace in Uganda. We had a scam artist e-mail us using Fred's e-mail address, asking for info. He stated that someone had donated a large sum of money and needed our address and full name. If you receive anything like this in your e-mails please contact us through our 800 number. Alon Bransdorfer

More Fun

Time to be a kid again

The street kids had a special treat today. They all came in looking ragged but left feeling like a million bucks. SGU supplied all the kids with new shirts and some with new shorts. Their second treat was getting to eat chicken with their beans and rice. Meat is a luxury they never get living on the streets. There are so many young children out on the streets these days. Fred so enjoys the opportunity to play with them. All the children got a lesson in First Aid by Quinto our Nurse.

More kids to feed

Today approx 25 street kids showed up to be fed and loved on. There seems to be more and more younger children in the pack. As you look at the many faces, notice how the younger children seem so resilient. But as time goes by it takes it's toll and they become angry and hopeless. And for good reason. Growing up in Africa is nearly impossible with no one to teach you how to plant and grow food. And to be a young man with no land given to you by your parents, can leave you destitute. Quinto , SGU's nurse who takes care of the children's medical needs is the man in the white shirt in bottom right picture. We are so grateful for all he does. Pray that God will continue to open doors for these children to be reunited with family and that lives will be changed in hearing the word of God.

Back Home

Tonny Okello and Morish Peter Okullo are starting their new life on their own. Tonny has taken over his parents land and rebuilding not only a new home but a new life back in his village. Tonny spent several years in the L.R.A. as a child soldier. After being found by the Uganda Military this year, Tonny has been on the road to recovery with SGU at Uncle Fred's House.

Morish Okullo has just started building his new home back in his village and will be finishing his school training this year. Morish lost his parents in 1996 during a L.R.A. raid on his village.

Both of these young men have suffered in ways we will never know. We are so proud of them and all their hard work towads building this new life. Congratulations.

Death of Another Street Child

Today August 9th, one of the boys that came to the house to be ministered to this past week, was killed. A speeding truck hit him as he was talking on the side of the road. The driver jumped out and ran off after the accident. the 14 year old boy name Denis,was taken to the hospital where he battled for 4 hours before passing away from internal bleeding. Fred was called to the hospital to pick up the boy's body. As of 8:00 pm he was still at the hospital. Fred will be taking the body back to the village the boy came from. It will be hard to locate family because the parents of the boy died a few years back. We are grateful that this boy had the opportunity to hear about God's love for him during the street ministry last week.

Feeding Program Back Up

Back in January the local government stopped us from feeding the street children. They stated that the street children would be removed from the streets by March. Many of the children had been removed by local police using force. One boy had his arm broken and was taken to the hospital by Fred. As of today there are still many street children as young as five living on the streets of Lira. So Fred contacted us saying they were starting the street children's feeding program this past weekend. Pastor John Eckley from South Carolina has been working with Fred for the past month and felt God calling him to minister to the street children. Sunday they brought 25 children in and fed them. Our nurse tended to the sick ones as John ministered to the rest. The children also received HIV/AIDS prevention training. All the children got the chance to bathe and wash their clothes. Fred said that the children left feeling hopeful and refreshed. There is a new girl on the streets along with a few new little ones.

Welcome to the new SGU

We are so happy you have checked out the new web-site. As you scroll down you will fine 3 videos and the latest update on Al's trip. We hope you have a joyful summer with family.

kids dancing and singing

Welcome

Welcome to SGU's update blog,

Alon returned from a wonderful trip with Angie Ryan from Georgia. Angie is a counselor and had the opportunity to work with the older boys for several weeks. Home Depot donated carving tools for the boys to learn carving. This to was a project that Angie took on. She had all the older boys out in the yard daily, helping them master carving a wooden spoon. Everyday they looked forward to Angie setting up the shop to get started.

Alon and Angie visited the property that the boys are learning to farm on. Angie is no stranger to farming and was out there helping to plant seeds and hoeing.

Much was accomplised on this trip such as the formation of the Uganda board, working with the NGO attorney and visiting the private school that the children attend.

Alon and Christopher talked with our local tribe regarding the purchasing of more land. Everyone there is so excited about the new children's village and how it will help so many different types of children's needs.