Women and Girls Education & Empowerment in Uganda

We are so happy to report the progress being made on our projects supporting women and girls in Rubuguri, Uganda!  Our American team members spent the month of August in Rubuguri along with several volunteers, and we were able to introduce two new projects as well as improve upon our existing ones: 

Greenhouse Project:

The realization of our Greenhouse Project has exceeded our expectations, and we are so excited about the impact it’s going to have on the community!  This project began when we saw a need for fresh vegetables to fill a nutrition gap in the locals’ diet, particularly amongst the elderly.  The idea for the project was first introduced by Danielle Clark, our Angel Projects Brand Ambassador.  Danielle saw that with a greenhouse we would be able to grow produce that couldn’t otherwise thrive in this area, and we would be able to grow it year-round.  The construction of the greenhouse also fulfills another need, the disposal of used plastic, as the walls are built out of repurposed plastic bottles.  In this community, there is no garbage pickup, and the locals often burn their used plastic, releasing dangerous toxins into the air.  So, the Greenhouse Project is the perfect solution to this problem.  Danielle spent the past two years designing the Greenhouse Project and was planning to oversee its construction and implementation this summer.  However, due to COVID restrictions in her country, she was unable to come to Uganda this year.  We were concerned about how the Greenhouse Project could successfully continue without Danielle.  Then, we were blessed by Stacy Majchrowski's joining our mission.  Stacy has extensive experience with gardening, and she’s very creative as well as tenacious.  Through her leadership, the Greenhouse Project was completed ahead of schedule, and we are now growing lots of green vegetables that will be much needed additions to the local diet.  One of our Ugandan staff members, Gard, has taken over as Project Manager for the Greenhouse Project, and he’s been doing a great job watering and maintaining the seedlings, which are growing quickly!  Many members of the community have come by to see the greenhouse, and some have expressed an interest in building a greenhouse of their own.  We’re confident that this will be a self-sustaining and long-lasting project that will positively impact the entire area.

Saving Grace Project:

This year, we had a special volunteer with us: Grace Foster, MSN, RN.  Grace brought the Saving Grace Project to our mission, teaching First-Aid and over-the-counter treatments to young women in the community who are interested in pursuing a career in nursing.  Not only is this a great opportunity for these women, but these are also much needed skills in this community with little access to healthcare.  The topics covered this year were hand hygiene, taking vital signs, caring for minor wounds, bandaging major wounds for transportation to the hospital, choking, and initial CPR.  The program was a success, and the girls learned several important skills that they can use to help others in their community, particularly the elderly as these young women are also part of our elderly project.  These ladies now also have a solid foundation to build upon as they continue their education in the medical field.  Another part of the Saving Grace Project was weekly seminars for community members taught by Grace and our General Managers, Justus and Syliver.  Each week, ten community members came to our campus to learn about hygiene, nutrition, and basic First-Aid.  This knowledge will enable them to make their families and communities healthier and safer, and these seminars are scheduled to continue weekly throughout the next year.  We are so thankful for this new project and the positive changes it will make in our community!

Nursing School Sponsorship:

We are so happy to present to you Ava, the first recipient of Angel Projects’ nursing school sponsorship! Ava attended one year of nursing school, but because of extenuating circumstances and financial difficulties, she was forced to drop out. Ava is a talented and promising young woman as well as a hard worker and an accomplished student, so we didn’t feel we could just stand by and allow her to lose her dream of becoming a nurse and helping her community. Ava was part of the Saving Grace Project this summer, and at the end of the program, we told her that we will be sponsoring her return to nursing school. Ava is so excited to continue her education, and on her school breaks she plans to return to the Saving Grace Project to share her knowledge with the other young women in the program and to help serve the elderly and other members of the community. Ava is very intelligent, fluent in English, and determined to succeed. We feel so blessed to be able to contribute to her future, and we can't wait to watch her thrive!

Sprinkles of Joy Bakery Project:

Our bakery project, Sprinkles of Joy, has grown quite a bit in the past two years!  Danielle, the Project Manager, has been faithfully supporting and guiding the project from home in Scotland, and the ladies here in Rubuguri have mastered their special corn muffin recipe, which is now being sold locally in four different tea shops and one tourist lodge.  This summer, our volunteer Stacy Majchrowski brought several new recipes to the project and taught the bakers how to make them; they have learned to bake banana muffins, carrot muffins, and lemon muffins.  The ladies have been making the banana muffins successfully on their own, so this is the next product we will be marketing throughout Rubuguri.  We’ve also brought back Danielle’s delicious passionfruit jam, which we’ve already sold to two local lodges.  The most exciting news this summer is that we’ve hired a new staff member to join Angel Projects Uganda; Demas will be in charge of the Bakery Project and the production of the passionfruit jam to complete ongoing orders.  He will also help with the greenhouse and anywhere else he’s needed.  Demas has been part of the Angel Projects family for a long time; he’s a trained chef who has provided all our meals during every mission we make to Rubuguri.  We’re so happy to bring him on with us full-time!

As you can see, the Angel Projects Uganda is flourishing, and we know that all these wonderful projects are only possible through the support of our sponsors, so THANK YOU!  You are making a life-changing difference in Rubuguri; this community will never be the same because of your love and generosity.