It's mad to think that 4 years ago I was renting and running a home for 18 boys on my own and now the support has grown so much that we have 27 boys in the home and in school, with a board of Trustees ready to support the project as it becomes an official charity!
Sometimes I find the whole thing overwhelming. The thought of buying 5 acres of land and building a large orphanage to look after all these children is very daunting - but very exciting! Every time I get a little daunted by the whole thing I just think back to the really clear vision I had when I was 17, of me being a mother figure to African children. The boys already call me mum so I guess that's an encouraging sign that we are going in the right direction!
The main focus of this next trip will be on the future plans for the home so many meetings are ahead of us! Fortunately, Matt is coming with me again. It will be Matt's second time in Uganda so he knows the ropes now and he will be a great help in the business meetings.
As you know, I have a friendly link with Mengo Youth Development Link as the boys who were in their youth group are now in my home. I still intend to keep this friendly link with them but now the issue of land is arising, there may be some very awkward conversations ahead as I am not prepared to put 5 acres of land in to someone else's hands.
I definitely do not want the 5 acres of land to be in my name either. I would feel a lot more comfortable if the land was bought in a charity's name so that it is fully protected, plus it wouldn't be fair on all you lovely supporters who have given towards the development of the project, and I do want to ensure the land is being used properly for the children. Therefore, I am currently in the process of setting up a UK Charity and have a group of fantastic Trustees on board.
However! I have recently found out that it is very difficult for a non-Ugandan individual or charity to buy land in Uganda as they have tightened the rules due to recent events of child trafficking and abuse. It is obviously a good thing that the Ugandan government are shaping up but it does put a spanner in the works for us. It means we will also have to register as a Ugandan Charity and buy the land in the Ugandan Charity's name. So, there are many meetings ahead of us!
Matt and I go to Uganda tomorrow, we fly through the night. All the sponsors have written a letter to their boy and we cannot wait to see them all!
As you know, Uganda is not a safest country to hang out in! If you read through my old posts, you will see that I have been right in the middle of the tribal war, in a car crash, a mile down the road from the bombing in 2011 and we witnessed a traumatic coach crash on our last visit.
With all the recent events in Kenya, Uganda is a high risk area - particularly Kampala (where we are going!) so please pray for us; when you are washing up, when you are taking the dogs for a walk, whenever you can. Thank you xxx
Hope all goes well.
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