*Early last month we went up to Gulu to do our first ever "Mentor Training" session. After much planning and preparation, we were pleased that the training went very well. We covered topics such as the idea of mentorship, the Biblical view of children, basic first aid, personal bible study, the development of children, and policies and procedures of COH. We also included some fun games, discussion times (see photo below), and group devotionals. The mentors there were eager to learn and excited about the opportunity to get more training. I taught the session on the Biblical view of children (see photo below).
*Jonathan arrived here in Uganda the second week of December. He jumped right in to help and interacted amazingly well with the kids and the staff. The young boys especially enjoyed having a 'mzungu' (white) man around to play with. Jonathan had the opportunity also to meet his sponsored child in Gulu. He is sponsoring a 7-year-old boy from COH named Andrew (see photo below). I had never seen Andrew smile as much as the few days that Jonathan was visiting him. It was truly a once in a lifetime opportunity for that little boy to get so much special attention. During the holidays, Jonathan and I also had the opportunity to do some "fun" things like ATVing along the Nile River. It was a blast! We were completely covered in dust and dirt by the end (see photo below). Jonathan returned to the States last week. It was so wonderful that he was able to come visit and to see the work that COH is doing here!
*Christmas here in Uganda was warm and sunny! Megan, Kate, Jonathan, Phil (Megan's boyfriend), Catharine and I all enjoyed a relaxing day of fellowship and feasting. We had a "Charlie Brown" Christmas tree up at our house as well as some lights and other decorations to celebrate the season.
*The Ebola outbreak seems to be under wraps now. The last Ebola patient was supposedly discharged from the hospital in Western Uganda earlier this week. Thanks for your prayers and concern.
*Megan, Kate, and I still have been unable to get our work permits (visas) from the Ugandan government. It is "in the works" right now. Continue to pray that we can get them soon (like maybe before we leave Uganda... ha ha).
*Please pray for the situation in Kenya. The general feeling in East Africa sems to be that the incumbent Kenyan president, Kabaki, rigged the election. Pray that the truth will come out, that Kenya will have good and effective leadership in place, and that peace will return. Thankfully none of the violence has spilled over the border into Uganda. However, we are feeling some effects from the events in Kenya in the way of fuel shortages and an influx of refugees. All of our fuel comes from Kenya and it appears that Uganda does not have much (if any) fuel in reserve. Consequently, fuel has become difficult to obtain here. People line up at fuel stations for hours just waiting for petrol trucks to come. And only a few stations throughout the city are getting fuel each day. Luckily, our car runs on deisel, which has been somewhat easier to obtain than petrol. However, we are hearing that the situation may last for a few months, so we are stocking up on fuel when we can.
I hope that everyone had a wonderful Christmas and that your new year is off to a great start. I will be traveling to Gulu next week and then to Masaka the week after. The students will be starting the new school year at the beginning of February. We are running several holiday programs for them in hopes that they will make constructive use of their free time. 2008 is seeming as if it will be the year of changes for COH. We are looking at changing our name and becoming our own NGO... perhaps even sooner than we thought. I will keep you posted!
- Holly
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