The HOW and WHY of OCM
THANK YOU!
For making I LOVE AFRICA another great success! There are so many people to thank: our tireless volunteers; our talented performers; our generous sponsors, loyal partners and new contributors; our auction winners and auction item donators; our gracious host, Tampa Covenant Church; and every one of you who touched the life of a Ugandan artisan by purchasing beautiful Africa TrAID items.
Check back periodically, as we will be posting more information about opportunities to shop for Africa TrAID items, and upcoming concert benefits in St. Petersburg and Tampa. And please, keep giving when you can. The Light Village WILL be a model for self-sustainability in Africa, but we all must work together to make it happen!
What ARE we doing in Africa?
When we're asked why we should care about what happens in Africa, we think about Josiah. When we first met Josiah, he couldn't read or write. In fact, when we first stumbled upon him, he was living on his own in a mud hut, with a cow dung floor. His sole possession was a thin, palm frond sleeping mat. He was 15, but looked about 11. Both of his parents had died from AIDS two years earlier. His older brother and sister's whereabouts are still unknown after having been abducted 11 years ago by the LRA to fight in the hideous civil war that has ravaged Uganda for more than 20 years.
Most days Josiah was barely able to find anything to eat. Without an opportunity for an education, or any skills, his future looked pretty grim.
Thanks to people like you who love and care about the people in Africa, One City's scholarship program has been able to assist Josiah through school and help him with his other needs. He is working unbelievably hard; reading and writing and learning English (way quicker than we are learning Bugisu!)
We need you, today, to make a difference...to help transform the lives of the people here that are in desperate need of hope for a future.
Look what your generous contributions have made happen:
- Opened the only medical facility in Bududa
- Continued operating our health clinic in Sibanga
- Trained over 300 local people from seven different villages in our Healthy Village and Family workshops, as well as our Emergency Response class
- Planted two new churches and raised funds to rebuild a local church blown down in a storm
- Served over 1400 meals to widows, orphans and vulnerable children
- Launched a Micro Loan program that immediately put two women in business
Children in our village.
