July 2022
Sponsor Needed
We are looking for a sponsor for our sweet Sylvia. She is in secondary school at Seroma High School and dreams of one day becoming a nurse. Her favorite subject in school is Biology. Sylvia is the most loving and caring big sister and is so helpful with the caretakers at home. She loves to dance with the younger children of PFP and play netball with her friends at school. Just $85/month will help PFP to keep Sylvia enrolled in school and preparing for University. If you are interested, or have any questions, please reach out!
Please contact us if you have any questions regarding this opportunity: hope@peaceforpaulfoundation.org
Welcome to the PFP Family!
In June we welcomed a new sponsor to our ever growing PFP family. Terra– thank you so much for stepping up to stand beside our newest AHU student, Peter. We are all so grateful!
Peter, saying hello to Terra
Staff Corner
PFP relies on our amazing staff in Uganda to keep the organization running. Without our Ugandan team, we would not be able to do what we do for the many children in our care. We hope you enjoy the “Staff Corner” section we’ve added to the blog. Each month we’ll highlight one staff person with the hopes you’ll get a chance to understand the important work they do.
Moses Nshimyimana- PFP Juniors Department
“My name is Nshimyimana Moses and I am the Ugandan Juniors Program coordinator. I possess a Bachelor’s degree from Uganda Christian University in business studies with a major in management. I have been leading the “Juniors” program for the past 6 years, since 2016.
The Peace for Paul Juniors program is an education scholarship program with an aim to help vulnerable families in the communities which are near PFP’s area of operation. This program is meant to be a joint venture between PFP and the child’s family, where PFP clears a certain percentage of school fees/requirements and parents takes on the other part. Assessments are conducted each term to ascertain which pertantage a certain parent is able to manage. The decision is based on the current situation the family is in. In addition to school fees, PFP supplies other scholastic materials, uniforms, shoes, bags and payment of other school related costs.
It has been my goal to make an even larger impact in the communities we serve, and so this year, we have introduced a skills development program where children are instructed on tailoring, crocheting, how to make paper beads and many more useful skills. The proceeds after sale, always given back to the group as a motivation, and this is done during holidays to keep them busy and engaged with safe and healthy activities while off school.
Further, as a part of this program, I also coordinate a “family empowerment” program where parents are given capital to generate some income to help their families and also be able to educate siblings of those currently getting support through PFP. For example, a total of 12 families last year were given pigs to rear and others were given capital to start up income generating activities like selling of second-hand clothes, shoes, vegetable selling businesses and others.
Through this program, I also coordinate community outreaches, for example between 2017 and 2020, more than 1700 community school children received scholastic materials that included pens, books, manilas, sets and other needed school supplies. Another major contribution was the installation of a playground in two different schools. We have also installed a six-stance latrine that is currently serving more than 1500 children.
This month, in June, I worked on collecting school reports and helping the children to write their sponsor letters. Also upon children returning back to school, I regularly visited the various schools for academic assessments and I encouraged children to put in more efforts for better results.
I also carried outs Junior’s Parent’s fees compliance checks from schools to know those who have been able to fulfil their percentage payment obligations and making follow-ups on those who have not yet made their payments to the respective schools where their children learn from.
I also carried out guidance and counselling for each child in my charge and from my latest sessions, I was able to identify one child (whose name is withheld for privacy) who was in need of professional support. This child was referred to our organisation counsellor for more psychosocial mental support.
Through more interaction with children about their physical health, I was able to discover and refer four (4) children to our organization Nurse and another one who was in bad condition referred to a nearby health facility for proper management of the sickness”.
Moses with Juniors Students at school
At School
The PFP students continue to work hard at school. We now have 202 students who attend two different nursery schools, 19 different primary schools, 11 different secondary schools, four different trade schools and four different universities. Our staff and our older A Hand Up students have been busy making the rounds, checking in and ensuring that all students are happy, healthy and have what they need to excel at school. When our team visits, a nurse, social worker and mental health therapist make the rounds together. They bring snacks and other treats, as well as check in on the health and wellness of the children. The identify challenges, whether that may be academics, physical health or emotional well being- and they address those needs where they are identified. We are so grateful for the team we have on the ground in Uganda and so excited for our students as they continue to work hard at school.
Innocent, checking in with students at Becky’s Eden nursery school
Our littlest learners at Becky’s Eden Nursery school
Simon Peter (AHU student), visiting with the students at Musana Secondary School
Team AHU (A Hand Up)
PFP is working hard to prepare our older students for the “real world” outside of PFP. When a student enters Senior 5 (usually at about 18 years of age), they are moved into the “A Hand Up” program. They still receive all of the benefits that all PFP children do, however now they are required to give back to their PFP family or community. Each AHU student volunteers 20 hours per week on school holidays and has the opportunity to showcase their specific skill set to better the lives of the PFP children or at risk community members.
Many of our AHU students were back at school for the term, but they continue to make time when they can. Peter continues to be a rock for PFP, and can often be found cooking meals for the children, cleaning the compound or working with the staff on baking skills. Tikol is ever present, and is now leading the AHU program management as well as making visits at schools and assisting the PFP Juniors coordinator with his tasks. Charlie can always be found at one of the PFP homes, working on a photo project, leading dance lessons or just offering his time to the children who reside at Love Home. We are so proud of our students for stepping up and making a difference!
Peter, hard at work helping to clean the Hope Home compound
Charlie, taking photos of our newest PFP Junior students
Tikol, with students on visitation day at Victoria Junior School
Facebook Birthday Fundraisers
We love when our supporters dedicate their birthdays to PFP! Such a fun and easy way to get involved and to allow others to get involved as well!! Facebook fundraisers take ZERO administrative fees! We hope you will consider including PFP for your next birthday!
Thank you so much to Jackie, who in June, donated her birthday to PFP and raised $250!!
Friday, Mark and Paul, wishing Jackie a happy birthday!
Birthday Celebrations
Happy, happy birthday to our July birthday celebrants! We always do our best to make sure every child in our main program gets a chance to feel special on their birthday. Each child receives a gift and has a small celebration during their birthday week followed by a BIG birthday celebration all together at the swimming pool during school holidays. Many sponsors get involved by sending gifts to their child as well. All children deserve to feel special on their day and we always do our best to make it so!
Happy Birthday to Our July Birthday Girls and Boys- we wish you all THE BEST as we celebrate YOU this month!
If you are the sponsor of a birthday child this month, you are welcome to send us an email and we can work together to make their day even more special!
Letters from Friends across the world
Both sponsors and sponsor children continue to send love to one another from across the world. It warms our hearts to see the genuine connections that are being made Thank you to everyone who takes the time to get to know your sponsored child.
Hamza with a “Happy Birthday” note from his sponsor
Family Visits
In most cases, when a child is enrolled in our “Main Program”, it is because they no longer have living parents or are sadly, not wanted or would not be safe at home with their living relatives.
We recognize the importance of maintaining family ties, and whenever possible our team works to find safe, healthy family members with which to resettle children. We provide education and support to the relatives and provide the children with all basic necessities, education and medical support. This takes the financial burden of caring for a child off of the relatives shoulders, and allows them to provide the most important thing–family and a sense of belonging for the child in their care. Our social work team provides routine home visits to ensure the safety and well being of the child that has been resettled.
In cases where children are not able to safely be resettled, the PFP social work team encourages safe, supervised visits with relatives so that the child may grow up knowing where they came from and maintain connection to their family members.
Adam and Mungu with their relatives on a supervised visit
Sponsor Letters Coming Soon
The PFP children have been working hard, writing their sponsor letters. A big envelope, full of their beautiful work will be on its way to Oregon soon and will then be packaged up and sent to each of the sponsors. Get ready!!
Denis and All, compiling the sponsor letters and preparing to mail from Uganda to Oregon!
Staff Education Benefit
Working for Peace for Paul is a lifelong partnership for many of our staff. Much of the team has become like family and our staff remain loyal and dedicated, in part, because of the benefits that are available through PFP. One of these benefits comes in the form of an education stipend for one family member per staff person. This allows for each person employed through PFP to nominate a family member to receive reimbursement for school fees each term (three times annually). As the cost of education is often crippling for most families in Uganda, this allows for a person employed with PFP to keep their children in school while simultaneously being able to focus their energies on building and growing in other areas of their lives as well.
Innocent with his nephew Kawarach
Community Support
Through a generous grant from one of our supporters, PFP has been able to engage a group of local women in managing and growing their individual businesses. The women selected to participate in this program have had difficult lives and at the time of selection are stuck in a position where they are forced to focus on survival alone. Their children are usually not enrolled in school, but rather work alongside their mothers to provide for basic necessities. To be eligible for this program, each woman must be willing to work hard to grow their business so they may pull themselves out of poverty they are found in. In addition to small business support, the children of each of these women will be enrolled in the PFP Juniors program. This enables the women to grow their business while still ensuring their children are able to attend school regularly and have a chance to hope for a positive future.
Alice with her daughters Aseru, Nakato and Rihanna
The PFP Junior Program
The Juniors Program works with families in our community so parents may be able to send their children to school. These children live full time with their families but for them, poverty has prevented the children from attending school regularly. This program is a partnership between parents and PFP to supplement on what they are able to contribute so parents may take pride in being able to send their children to school through their own hard work. The ages of children in this program range from four years to eighteen years of age and we currently have 89 students who are benefiting from this partnership.
Moses with Juniors students at Bright Valley Primary School
PFP Juniors Supplemental Programs
In an effort to address the needs of the whole child and his or her family, our PFP Juniors coordinator has ramped up the supplemental programs being offered. Each month, during school holidays, there is a regular schedule for career guidance, hygiene and sex education, skills lessons (knitting, painting, tailoring and dance lessons), mental health therapy, family planning and birth control for parents, community outreach programs (food distribution and family empowerment), fun day, and tutoring. The Juniors children are LOVING it and getting involved with more and more programs by the week!
Family Sponsorship Opportunities
We are always looking for general sponsors to help our family thrive. Essentially, as a general family sponsor, you are the sponsor of ALL of the children. We have opportunities for Medical Family Sponsor, Dental Family Sponsor as well as Mental Health Family Sponsor. A Family Sponsor commitment can be $25/$50/$100 per month.
Nakayi at Love Home
Please contact us if you have any questions regarding this opportunity: hope@peaceforpaulfoundation.org
Director (on the Board) Needed
We are looking to add a new Director or two to our board and what better place to look than from within our team of awesome supporters. We are always looking for ways to improve and would love to find someone with a background in Microfinance, child development or child psychology. If you would like to support the work of PFP in a more meaningful way, we’d love to chat. Please reach out via the email below and we can go from there to determine if it might be a good fit. At the very least…. we’ll have a great conversation and a chance to connect.
Please contact us if you have any questions regarding this opportunity: hope@peaceforpaulfoundation.org
GuideStar Platinum Level Participant
The Peace for Paul Foundation has earned the Platinum GuideStar Nonprofit Profile participation level (the highest possible)! This leading symbol of nonprofit transparency and accountability is presented by GuideStar, the world’s largest source of nonprofit information.
In order to be awarded the Platinum Seal of Transparency, The Peace for Paul Foundation included contact information, financial information, our goals, strategies, capabilities, indicators, and progress, helping us more effectively share our story with the world.
Check out our GuideStar Nonprofit Profile and tell us what you think:The Peace for Paul Foundation GuideStar Profile
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