The Million Dollar View

A nice relaxing day in Kampala today. We all went to Church this morning visiting 3 different Churches. I went with Debbie, Mike and Chris to the Baptist church where our friend Francis (one of the Tiger Teams social worker) is a youth pastor. It was a great service mainly in English. After Francis drove us into town to join the others at Fang Fangs for a Chinese meal. This was a welcome change from our usual meals.

We returned to the guesthouse by Boda even Helen!!!!!! She was very nervous of the journey but when we arrived jumped off the bike with the biggest smile I have seen from a white person and the words 'that was awesome!' She wanted an immediate return trip. The rides on this moped are probably very silly but great fun. The frightening thing is when the driver puts on a crash helmet but does not offer you any protection!

Whilst my room was being cleaned I visited the Cathedral above us on top of Namirembe Hill. Only a short walk but what a view over the city and looking into the heart of African. A million dollars is an undervalue of the view. I sat for about an hour just taking it in. Basking in the brilliant sunshine, the peace it was just amazing.

Kampala is such a city of contrasts. Sitting on top of the hill the city looked beautiful basking in the sun. Many trees and rolling hills in almost every direction. You could just hear the buzz of the city from the hill top but the most dominant sound was of birds calling. Looking up into the clear blue sky to see birds circling very African style.

Then my eyes fell down to the city and you could see the slum areas. People living on top of each other with hardly any room to move. Little sanitation, rubbish left to accumulate everywhere.

Yesterday we (the boys) visited one of the slum markets. We had passed it almost every day. We split into to groups to stand out less. Ha! 4 white people ranging in height from about 6 foot to me at 6 foot five not stand out! I think we could have been seen from the space station being built!

It was an experience. The first thing was the smell. It reminded me of the markets we used to have some years ago. As a child my dad would take me to the local market for the weekly fruit & veg shop, this market was not much different only bigger. Not only did it sell fruit and veg but clothes, wood, sand, electrical goods almost anything you wanted. There were barber shops, fish and meat sellers and the smell of all that, sweat humans and rubbish was almost overpowering.

The people were welcoming and threw us a cheery hello, what may have been said in Lugandan is any one's guess. I think they felt it was amusing to see white people in this area or perhaps they thought it was meals on legs!

Flies were everywhere particularly on the meat and fish. You could not escape the smell even sucking airwaves. Probably a mistake a blocked nose would have been a better option.

Turning a corner we were greeted by a truck taking meat to the market including the severed head of a cow. Darren thought it winked at him as it went by.

We walked through the market down to the railway track and walked along this for a while until we realised we were going deeper into the slum. We made a tactical withdrawal and our way back out to the main road. The mass of people moving about the area you just do not see in England and is hard to imagine.

The guesthouse strap line is 'The Million Dollar View' . So long as your eye doe not wonder too far it is a million dollar view, but stray and you see the slums and the hardship suffered by the large mass of the population of this city.

Simon

On our last day in Kampala

It's our last day in Kampala as we prepare to travel to Queen Elizabeth National Park. We'll be back only briefly for the night on Wednesday. So I thought I'd take the opportunity to write up what we'll miss about Kampala, and what we won't! Hope it gives you a flavour of life here.

What we'll miss:

• The Tigers & Tuda boys - so many of them are now dear to our hearts. They're no longer 'street boys' but simply 'boys' with names, faces and real characters.
• The Tigers staff - their faith and dedication and the warmth of their welcome
  
• Sunshine!
• The warmth and friendliness of the Ugandan people - we've been amazed at how friendly they all are to us Mzungu's. There's just a great atmosphere here somehow.
• The very real outpouring of faith by the people we've met - almost everywhere. They relate so strongly to their daily walk with God, it's part of everyday parlence. We saw a couple of Ugandan's being commissioned at the Kampala Baptist Church as they were being sent on mission to England!
  
• Some of the sights that make us laugh - an entire wooden bed frame on a bicycle, 9 crates of coke bottles on a bicycle, three live pigs and a couple of chickens on a boda-boda, road-side peddlars with oranges, apples, bananas, sugar cane, bedding or an arm full of bras!
• The fruit. Right now I'm a bit fed up with pineapple for breakfast, lunch and dinner, but I'm sure I'll miss it after a break of a few days.

And what we remember in terms of our personal challenges:

• Dealing with the extent of the poverty. Even apart from the slums it is clear that many many people live below what we would consider to be the bread-line.
• The Iman wailing over loud-speaker from the mosque at 5am every morning!!!! As Paul remarked; "it doesn't do much for inter-faith relations".
  
• The constant city noise - it's such a busy city, despite being layed-back, they keep going and have a very strong work ethic, everyone works to earn some level of income and so there is a constant level of noise.
  
• Waking up and wondering whether or not there will be any water to wash in.
• Red dust, in our mouths, up our noses, in our ears (as Nathan at Tuda says - 'red bogeys')
  
• Battling with the mosquito net as you get in and out of bed
• Itchy mosquito bites
• Dodgy tummies

All in all, we've had a brilliant time here - truly unforgettable.

Debbie

The Holiday Starts

I know many will think that we have been on holiday for the last 2 weeks, but today is when the holiday really starts. We have now finished our work with the Tigers Club and will not have any contact with them other than socially.

Early Monday we are on our way to safari, a 6 hour drive from here. I am so looking forward to that knowing our experience of the roads. It will be more like a funfair ride than a coach trip.

Yesterday was full of goodbyes. First thing in the morning we went to the Club house and said goodbyes to the staff and boys there. We gathered in a large room and the Director Simon gave a lovely speech full of gratitude for the way we had thrown ourselves into the work, spending time painting, meeting with the staff and being with the boys. Mike responded on our behalf. I think many of us had tears in our eyes as we said goodbye to the boys from the street.

We then went off to Tuda the halfway house. We stopped at the bottom of the road well mud track really leading to Tuda from the main road as some of the boys (Mike included) wanted to ride the boda (the mopeds) to along the lane. I also took the ride and turned up covered in the red dust almost from head to toe. It was a great ride and at times I thought I was going to come off as we went over the bumpy road and I lost contact with the seat and the bike. We did all arrive safely.

We had our last holiday club with the boys. The highlight of the day was the afternoon football match. The boys just loved the sports, Dave got a bit upset with some of the ref's decisions but scored a goal which made him happy.

We finished the club with a prize giving. The talent show finalists all got a t-shirt and cap and then all the boys got a book and football shirt. They were jumping for joy at getting the books; really happy with the shirts. We presented the parachute to them and you would have thought we had given them the crown jewels they were so happy.

The goodbyes were sad, some of the boys got up to say a thank you and goodbye and we were again moved to tears by their gratitude for the time we had spent with them.

Reviewing the pictures this morning just shows that these boys just want to be children ordinary children playing and having fun. Most of the pictures were taken by the boys. I think I have have only taken 30 of the 500 or so photographs I have, the rest have been taken by the boys.

One of my happiest memory from the last 2 weeks will be painting an outside wall one morning. There was me and 3 or 4 boys applying this orange paint to the walls and sometimes to each other. Their English was little my Lugandan even less. We had a good few hours and then I shared with them some sugar can and pancakes. The boys took me down the road to buy it and took great care of me there and back. The sugar was full of water! I was shown the correct way of eating it!

The boys we have meet have been great. I must admit I was worried about how they would react to us. Their reaction has been one of welcome, really happy to see us. The boys come off the street into the club house unwashed smelly and looking dreadful. But all they want is a hug some time a wash and a space to be safe. It has been really humbling to be with them. It is hard to imagine that the boys at Tuda had once been on the street and for some only a few weeks ago. It is nothing short of a miracle the work being done here.

Yesterday talking to some of the boys all they wish for is a home and someone to love them. Very simple requests.

I think in a previous post you will have heard of the 4 or so hour service that Helen and I went to last week. I have put in a request for a short service tomorrow. The boys service that Helen & I went to was really great and very moving as they presented a drama sowing their experiences. We asked them to perform a song yesterday they had written about their life. We have a video of it for all to see.

So what will I miss. Well I shall not miss the red dust everywhere, in my mouth my ears and covering all surfaces. Even after a shower my towel turns red and I thought I had washed. I shall not miss the crazy driving. The days of being on my knees before the shower hoping for water. The routine of tablets suncream insect replant and bite cream. Goat stew!

What I will miss will be the boys. The boys from the street and those in Tuda. It has been a real privilege to have spent time with them. Their thanks and gratitude has been overwhelming. It is amazing to see what football can do and how it has changed these boys.

And yes I will be coming again I think 2009 would be right.

Thanks for all your support and prayers and to my family for their love and support.

Simon

We Can't Stop Giving Out Shirts!!!!

Carrying on from the brilliant shirt giving ceremony at the clubhouse this morning, Jono, Paul and I went with Alfred the sports coach to the tigers club Hostel to meet the boys as they had a match arranged with a local school today. We kitted them out fully in the Yellow Bristol City away strip of the 2004/2005 season!! They all looked the part as they took to the field, smiles beaming, all matching in a full kit!! They also knew it was thiers to keep so that gave taking to the field an extra special feel for the boys! We stayed and watched the first 10 minutes and the boys looked very impressive! One of the boys had represented the Ugandan National team at youth level so he wasn't too bad... I would'nt mind competing against him though... :P! Only joking! When we arrived back at the Clubhouse, the boys had just finished thier regular morning football session, Returning though the tiger's gates in thier new shirts, grins stretching from ear to ear, it was a great feeling. We then proceeded to finishing our painting job on the clubhouse before heading out to Tudabuija for our afternoon holiday club!
Peace out! Dave! xxx

I'll never forget those beaming smiles!

Today was the day we have all been waiting for! We gave out the football shirts we have been donated to the boys today at the clubhouse. As soon as they saw the huge mound of jersey's their faces lit up! What a moment! All of them were extremely proud of their new tops, making sure they took special care of them - one boy even asked to change his top as it was white and so impossible to keep clean! Can't say I'm that careful with a new top! It proved to me just how momentus an occasion this was for the boys.

All in all, I believe we gave out 60-ish tops. It took so long to do anything else after the "ceremony" as all of the boys wanted their photos taken several dozen times!!!!! We got plenty of pictures if anyone wishes to see them (I'm sure you will). A truly awesome day!

Jono

The Grumpy Water Shortages....

At this point I have no idea how things are water wise back in England, but Uganda has a water shortage....

The water shortage here is quite a unique one though, as it seems to be centred only on our guest house and only on our corridor. Yes there is water everywhere apart from coming out of our own showers. At this point most of the team haven't had a proper shower for about 3 days, and you can forget about hair styles at this point. Washing hands is proving to be quite difficult, and some of us are in need of a shave.

Please pray for Water......

As mentioned in the title this is making us a bit grumpy, let alone smelly, sandy, dirty and we are now known as the "Minging Mzungos." With all that we have seen and experienced so far, it's amasing that the little thing of having no water is really getting to us, but I guess we are just a little run down and needing to refresh our tired smelly bodies.

Please pray for our tempers and frustration, and for patience with each other.

Thanks,

Chris

Short and Sweet!

Painted a wall at the clubhouse, Played football with the boys, Went to Tudabuijja, held the holiday club, taught them cricket, Dave Watkins got a GOLDEN DUCK against one of the boys when he was trying to hit it. Will Post Soon!!!!!!
Jono

It's Tuesday and some of us had the opportunity to visit a slum area of Kampala this morning. Helen and I were guided round by Joel, a Tigers boy who began living on the street of Kampala as a 10 year old, when he found his mother couldn't afford to feed her seven children. Nothing could have prepared us for what we experienced, and the sights and smells cannnot easily be conveyed in words. There were latrines running through the slums full of excrement, food waste and general garbage, and families were packed under tiny corrugated tin roofs. One moment you were walking through an area of millet being dried, the next you were dodging chicken scraps swarming with flies.
Joel took us to one area housing hundreds of refugees from the north of the country. In most cases the men had been killed in the fighting between the LRA and government troops, and the women and children had fled the displacement camps. Disease was rife and there was a real hopelessness about these people. On a couple of occasions we were shown young children with horrendous sores or growths and felt totally helpless as their mothers stared at us longing that we might be able to help.
The street boys seek shelter anywhere they can find. Joel used to sleep alongside several other boys in a small room used as a video cinema uring the day. Others would sleep in doorways or scrap metal yards.
It was an emotionally draining experience for both of us and reminded us once again of the significance of 'Tigers club' work. They can't possibly help of all of the people living in poverty in the Kampala slums, but they can make a difference to a few street boys' lives.

Paul

White Water Rafting Post - for Mums, Wives and Kids

Having decided that Darren's account was quite long (yes, look who's talking about long entries) I though it best to have an abbreviated version. This should be more than enough for all mothers, wives, children or any reader with a slightly sensitive disposition.

So the Famous Ten go Rafting!!

Ten of us set out on Saturday for a trip down the White Nile (very close to the actual source of the Nile) while three decided to take the braver option of tackling wild chimpanzees and rough waters on Lake Victoria, by visiting Chimpanzee Island.

So Paul, Paul's friend Paul, Chris, Simon, Jono, Dave, Will, Darren, Alfred (the Tiger's football coach) and myself (Mike) set off on a long bus drive through the countryside to Jinja. There we had an excellent safety briefing before being taken down to our boat and guide.

Once on the boat, we had a little paddle, familiarised ourselves with paddling and a few instructions, and even got to go in the water for a swim (very warm water). This was a bit of a challenge for Alfred who had never been in any body of water before, never mind learnt to swim. But just goes to show how safe this was.

So off we went, a bit of paddling and a few fast bits through the rapids. This of course created a bit of a splash which was quite nice to keep cool in the warm day.

At lunch-time we stopped at a beautiful island mid-Nile, complete with Iguana! After lunch, three of us, Dave, Paul's friend Paul and myself, moved to another boat as they needed to balance numbers (some people only had a half day trip). This suited Dave, Paul and myself as we were quite hot and wanted to take a route that allowed a bit more splashing to cool us down.

The remainder of the afternoon was a very long paddle down the Nile to a few more gentle rapids. There was one scarey part of the rapids (a grade 6) but we got out the boat and it was carried around this section.

The day finished with us paddling to the other side of the river and scrambling up the side to the waioting bus, as well as lashings of ginger beer! (or something like that anyway).

So a jolly nice day out for all.

Cheers, Mike

One week later!

Well - we've been here a week - and yet it feels so much longer than that! I thought our readers might like to know how everyone is doing. So here goes...Uganda according to Debbie...

In general - we've all coped really well indeed with being over here and being faced with such enormous poverty. Our blog entries can't convey the extent of the poverty, the dirt, the smell, but at various times it has got to all of us. Having said that we're all also challenged by the positive outlook that the boys in Tigers have to life, many of them have a strong faith too. We're also humbled by the staff who work in this environment day in and day out and who have such an apparent love of God and have responded to His calling on their lives.

I think we've all been reduced to tears at some point or another (privately or publicly) but are supporting each other through it. Please pray for us all as we individually deal with what we're encountering - including daily stories of the boys suffering abuse and even death as the Government look to clean up the streets of Kampala before the Queen and the heads of commonwealth governments come in November.

In addition to this, many of us our missing our loved ones. It was particularly difficult over the weekend when we'd normally be engaged in family activities, but again we all supported each other through this and the distraction of rafting, chimps and vibrant church services on Sunday helped too.

Health - everyone is remarkably well. Yes, the mosquito bite count is increasing daily - I'm winning with my 5 bites! Yes, a number of us are taking Imodium Plus! There was quite a bit of sun burn after the rafting on Saturday, but nothing that won't either turn brown or peel! Poor Chris also suffered a cold and a sprained ankle (from Friday's football) but even he is on the mend now. So thanks for all your prayers for our protection, please don't stop.

PEOPLE UPDATE
The lads - any parents of Darren, Dave, Jono and Will reading this blog - be very proud of your sons. They're amazing. They have literally throw themselves into everything here, they're thoughful, considerate, polite and more than that they really keep us all entertained and amused! The staff at the Tigers Club are also very impressed with their maturity and general can-do attitude.

Helen - is doing brilliantly. In Uganda the average life expectancy for a woman is around 45 years and so when Helen tells them she's 60 years old they gasp. She been an integral member of the team and nothing has stopped or slowed her down yet - not even the football!

Chris - despite his injuries, managed to go rafting and has also joined in with everything. He has been very much praised for the work he has been doing in training some of the Tigers staff on computer skills.

Paul - continues to work hard keeping us all organised and on track. In addition to coordinating the team (with considerable help from Jon too), he has as you'd expect also helped us all to reflect and consider and deal with everything we've seen. Our spiritual health is also very good, thanks Paul!

Jon - has also been playing a very important part in the organisation and coordination, he took such good care of Helen and I when we visited the Chimps on the Island on Saturday. Jon has thrown himself into everything at the Tigers and gave a very good finance and budgeting talk to them this morning which they were clearly grateful for.

Simon - is also doing great and survived the white water rafting. Simon and Helen went out to Tudabuja for their 4 hour church service yesterday and had a 10 minute slot to do so Simon did the talking and Helen taught them "marching in the light of God" both of which went down very well. Then Simon also had to lead the holiday club at Tuda today again - great job as you'd expect.

Mike & Debs - running out of time now - next meeting to go to - so I'll lump us together. We're both fine, and actually in the luxurious position of having each other for support as well as the team. This has been jointly challenging but also jointly rewarding. I'm finding the basics - dirt, water, toilet issues - no trouble at all, contrary to what I'd expected. However there are lots of other things that I hadn't expected that are more of a challenge. I've cried buckets and there are a number of boys that both Mike & I would love to take back to England, I can't tell you how lovely they all are and how clever and how funny. Mike really enjoyed the rafting and is going to be doing a talk to the staff on time management and communication tomorrow.

SO...hopefully that gives you a flavour of how we're doing on a personal level. Please continue to pray for us, and particularly pray for us on Friday, our last day, it will be difficult to leave some of the people behind and move on.

With love from us all.

White water rafting!

We were all excited at the prospect of going white water rafting as i believe every member of the team had never been before. So what a great place to go, the source of the Nile in Uganda!

3 members of the team Debbie, Helen and John were not so keen on white water rafting so they decided to go to an island to see the chimpanzees, awww. The football coach from tigers decided to join us on the day and his name is Alfred along with a freind of Paul Peterson also called Paul. We set off early around 7.15 in the morning and stopped off at a couple of places to pick up more adrenaline junkies yet the journey seemed to take a little while but we did have an interesting road side service stop where bar-b-q sticks, mattoki and drinks were available from some locals. We arrived at the source of the Nile and we had our first glimpse of what was ahead. First impressions were that it looked quite tame however this wasn't to be...



We arrived at the centre and we were greeted by an American man who gave us our safety briefing which lasted only 5 minutes! We then grabbed our equipment consisting of a life jacket, oar and helmet and off we went. Our "tour guide" was a Ugandan man named Jeffery who told us it was his second day and there was an instant response from the team of "really" then followed by laughs as he told us he had 10 years experience phew!! We all hopped in the boat and off we went for some quickfire training, this included forward paddle, back paddle, get down, back on the job and the capsize! We all moved to one side of the boat and Jeffery tipped us! It was a pretty scary moment when i realised my head was stuck on the boat but i soon found and air pocket and i was fine, some of the others then joined me under the boat and smiles all round. we then had our first real challenge of getting back on the boat, which was surprisingly difficult! So with a little help we all got on the boat and tackled our first rapid! No problem we went straight through and we were joined by the safety team who explained what we had to do if the boat capsized. We then approached a grade 3 rapid which is mid difficulty and Jeffery told us to get down and with that the boat capsized!! A lot of splashing and a bit of panic was soon forgotten as we came up pretty quickly and some of us still had a hold on the boat so all of the shipmates were fine. We all got back in and carried on towards the next series of rapids all still feeling fine other than me as i was quite nervous about the idea of a grade 5 rapid! our team chanted "rafting the white Nile" as we approached the grade 5 rapid known as the juice bowl and our instructor said we will flip, so reluctantly we agreed although some of the team didn't know it was planned!! We approached these enormous waves and Jeffery screamed "get down", so we got into safety positions but this wasn't going to save us as we hit a gigantic wave and the last sight i remember was seeing the team mid air and the boat flipping and with that splash and darkness! Most of the team had their eyes open however i didn't but the force was enough to realise we were really deep and possibly in a spot of bother. It was the slowest and scariest moment of my life! Then i reached the surface and the feeling of relief was incredible and i took a massive intake of air to only be hit by another wave and go back under! I soon surfaced and i let the rapids take me down to the boat. The fear was clear on a few members of the team which included me, Chris, Jono. We looked around the shaken crew and some of the comments were: "That just wasn't fun", "we were under for such a long time" and " that was a near death experience". Dave however loved it and was urging us for more yet the team more or less agreed we simply didn't fancy that experience again!! We then went for lunch on the private island which was lovely and the meal was really nice. It included potato salad, cheese, meat, sandwiches, fruit, garnish,veg and some refreshing drinks. A huge lizard was also on the island to greet us which was quite pleasant. Dave, Mike and Paul Ps freind also named Paul went off with some guys from India as they were keen to flip the boat again so they took the wild route. Myself, Paul, Simon, Jono, Chris, Will, Alfred and Jeffery then set off for a long journey or two across flat water so we were all quite tired by this point so Jeffery proved himself as a strong individual and paddled on his own across these huge areas of flat waters! We then tucked into lollipops and applied more suncream as some of the team were starting to look like lobsters! We then finally arrived at some rapids and Jeffery told us we would be going down a waterfall, scary!! We tackled the waterfall and went down backwards and despite the team falling on the person behind them we stayed upright and in the success we shouted the team chant "rafting the white Nile!!". We then saw Dave's raft complete the waterfall but Paul did fall out. We then went across the rapids and down a grade 4 which went well and then we chilled out for a bit before another long journey to the final set of rapids! We stopped for a toilet break on an island for another huge lizard to come flying out of the bush and scare us all, as if we hadn't been terrified enough for one day!!!
We approached the final rapids which were known as bad place and 5050 and we all left the raft and walked around the grade 6 as these are too dangerous to raft through. We decided to take the tamer option and go for the 5050 as there was less chance of a capsize! I told the team i really didn't want to flip the boat again and i said nervously to them if Jeffery says paddle hard then do it as hard as you can! We got in and we headed straight for the bad place but the team put in every last bit of energy in and we steered clear of the bad place and went through 5050 and despite a few heavy impacts we managed to stay upright and raft the hardest part of the rapids! Great success!! Jeffery celebrated by diving out of the boat and we all congratulated him and each other on a great days rafting. We then headed to the finish point and walked up the hill to the cold sodas and beers to top off a brilliant day. We took a few photos and then Mike, Paul and Dave arrived and we were told Dave decided to bail out of the boat and throw himself into the rapids!! The boat did flip after this so we let Dave off for a potentially risky maneuver! We were all very tired but we had enjoyed the day and we joked about the juice bowl incident but it will never be forgotten, those scary moments deep in the Nile!!

We then got back to the hotel and we all exchanged our stories of the white water rafting and the chimpanzee island!!

Darren Williams

Six Resettlement Follow-up Visits in an Afternoon!

One morning during the week, Debbie & I were very fortunate to be invited out with Vincent and Moses to go on a number of resettlement follow-up visits - essentially "check-ups" after the boys have been resettled back into their own or new families. Being on Ugandan time, we started our morning visit at 3pm. No surprise and all part of our learning. It did mean we were able to spend several hours with Vince then Moses to find out so much more about the boys, their work and how life really is for them.

However, this post is about the visits!

Jumping into the 4x4 - almost mandatory to negotiate Kampala city pot-holes, nevermind country tracks - we set off to a welding shop close to the Tigers Club. Much of Ugandan business and industry is essentially conducted in small road-side "units", ranging from the buying/selling of food, through electronics, to car/bike repairs and welding/steel working.

The boy we met had been with the welding shop for just 3 months, and though he was shy (sorry forget to write his name down) he was happy to show some of the skills he had mastered and helped weld a few pieces of metal together to create as part of an ornate window covering.

Off from there and on to a Muslim school (yes all faiths catered for by Tigers!) Tigers resettled the boy with his family and now pay for his education to keep him in school. Our entrance created a stir - four visitors and two of them mozungus (white people) - even moer so when we greeted some of them in Lugandan. Unfortunately the boy we were visiting had left for the day (he was doing exams in the morning so was now free to go home). However, we spoke to his teacher who was very proud of the boy, said he was doing well, and that he was now a really "good" boy (perhaps with the hint that that is not how he started!)

Third visit was a similar story. Although we then pressed on to the third boy's home but with no success there either. By this time we were well outside of Kampala and into the countryside. And quite obviously, white people don't travel their often with lots of staring and waves as we passed, as well as shouts of mozungu. At one point, we stopped to ask for directions (they don't really do maps in Uganda) and one of the little children by the road-side (well, muddy track side) greeted us in perfect English "Hello white people", followed by "Good-bye white people" when we moved on.

Boy 4 and another school off the beaten track. This time success and we met Gerald. Gerald had lost his father and ran away but has been resettled with his mother. Gerald, around 12/13, is also funded in school by Tigers, and Tigers also support his mother's small fruit and vegetable business, having helped her establish a source of income to keep her family. This really emphasised the holistic approach Tigers take - it is not about fnding a home for the boys - it is about understanding their family circumstances, understanding why they went on the streets, and making sure the family is supported and not just the child.

Gerald was clearly delighted to be the centre of attention and we gave him a lift home (some considerable distance). We dropped him off, waved our good-bye and Vince and Moses decided we had time for one more visit!

This time we headed off on a dirt track road anfd kept going further into the country-side surrounding Kampala. We had monkeys jump across the road, as well as more interested children - felt like the queen with all the waving. (We waved to the kids, not the monkeys, just in case anyone was wondernig.)

After turning off the major dirt road onto the minor dirt road, we found a couple of shacks (single room buildings) where Sam had been resettled with his Grandmother. This was both the point where we started to appreciate the sheer poverty in Uganda, and also that things don't always work perfectly for Tigers and these follow-up visits are essential to ensure the stability and long-term success of resettlement. It was also the point where Debbie and I, and even Moses and Vince, were shown what real faith and belief in God is about.

Sam ran away when his mother died and his father took to alcohol, and unfortunately, the beating of his children. Sam was resettled with his Grandmother - a small, lady who looked well into her 70's but was in fact only 55. This amazing woman had taken Sam as well as three other children and was now bringing them up. She had no source of income but had managed to keep her whole family going, making sure the children had food. Her response in talking to her was that she prasied God and believed he would always provide for them.

Vince explained that he had looked for ways of establishing an income stream for them - pigs, cows, chicken - but these took too much space for their small plot of land. Tigers were continuing to look to find a way to support this deeply religous and faithful Grandmother.

The bad news on the visit was that Sam had stopped going to school. He found it too far to go. Vince was clearly upset by this news - almost caring for each child as his own. He vowed to find a closer school and to get Sam back in education. A follow-up was clearly needed to support this family.

The sun was starting to drop but Vince and Moses believed we had time for "one more visit"! I thought we were on a fairly minor track but Vince managed to find an even smaller one to head off into deeopest green country-side! Eventually we found another home but alas, no Tigers boy or mother - they were off collecting fire wood, together. The family were in residence - with a Grandmother and three other children - a brother and two sisters - also their. The boy had run away and Tigers originally tried to settle him with his father - who was separated from the mother. However, the father, a ploygamous man, had no real interest in the boy and he was soon back on the streets. Finally the Tigers team located his mother and settled him back with her, and now a real success story.

Time to go home. Unfortunately, rain had hit the area about an hour earlier and the track was soft. When we jumped back in the 4x4 Vince denmonstarted that moving the car forwards and backwards a few times gets you really stuck ;-) Then trying to engaged the 4x4 drive, the gear-box completely dis-engaged and we were left with a car that wouldn't move forward or backwards.

Vince tried for a good 10 minutes to sort this out, and then decided to go under the car (yes in the mud). He had a plastic sheet (doesn't happen often, honest) and went under the car for an age. I decided that I was probably better able to help through prayer than through getting underneath as well. 20 minutes later, we had a re-engaged gearbox and Vince revved hard, managed to get the car to spin 180 degrees and we headed back to Kampala.

An hour or so later, we finally arrived back in the city and back to the guest house - just in time for dinner. I appreciate that if you have made it this far down this entry, it has been a gruelling read. It was certainly a hard trip for Debbie and I - and this is what the Tiger staff deal with day after day. Truely helps you appreciate the extent of their care for these boys and the holistic approach they take to changing their lives.

Debs & Mike xxx

Veronique

Veronique is an amazing inspiration. She was widowed some 10 years ago and has 4 children of her own. As part of our programme of visits some of the team had the opportunity to meet her with Dinah (social worker with Tigers) at her home. Despite the daily struggle she faces she has fostered 3 boys from Tigers and obviously does a really great job with them. She also manages to do some health advisory work in her village, and with support from Tigers has started rearing pigs to help supplement her income.

One of the boys that she has recently taken in had experienced a traumatic life, exposed to witchcraft and regularly beaten. He decided to run away to Kampala, and when Tigers found him he was very withdrawn and struggled to recall any of his past. Over time he has gradually opened up but Tigers are still having difficulty tracking down his real family. He spent about a year at Tudabujja before being resettled with Veronique. He is a little behind with his education, but it is a thrill to hear that he is now a class prefect.

This short story isn't complete without drawing out the incredible work that Dinah performs. She demonstrates a tremendous love for all the boys she is working for, and works both tirelessly and sacrifically to that end.

Thats it for now, the brave ones have already set off on their rafting expedition and the remainder of the group have opted to visit a chipanzee sanctuary on Ngamba island nr Entebbe.

Hello From Jono!!!!!

Hi Guys!!!! This is my first post! Hope it works!!!!
I want to share with you one my many memorable experiences so far. Today, I was helping to teach at Tigers Club. I was helping two boys to read a book, then helping a young boy write. The smile and satisfaction all 3 boys gave when they got a word write was unbelievable. Definetly something I will remember for the rest of my life.
After teaching, we left for Tuddabuijja in a jeep with many other Tigers Staff. Half way there, just as we hit the dirt tracks, Will and myself decided we wanted to travel on the "Boda Boda's" (mopeds). I'm not kidding, this was better than Nemesis at Alton Towers (and cheaper!). I'm not sure if at anystage over the countless bumps and humps if the Driver, driving without a helmet (as was I - Sorry Mum!!!!) went less than 30-40mph!!!!!!! So much fun!!!
We then arrived at Tuddabuijja, and after being given a tour by 7year old Lopez (who spoke immpecable English - better than me) we shared in the festivities.
Following the service and meal, HTC FC played a match against the Tigers Staff. The banter had been put far behind us, and we all got stuck in!!!! It was soo much fun, but very tiring! After going 2-nil down in the first half, we clawed our way back (thanks largely to residents Godffrey and Tized and our driver Ronald(o!) we won 3-2! What an atmosphere though! There was no bitterness (accept maybe from coach Alfred!!! lol) and everybody thoroughly enjoyed the day.
Well, if you managed to read through this monster post, I would like to thank you all for supporting us, and hope you are all enjoying England. I hope to post another blog soon, but can't promise anything!!
Jono

Graduation Day

A great day as we were really privileged to be part of the Graduation Day at the Tigers Club. The ceremony was to mark the successful completion of the Tigers Programme by 11 boys.

First thing in the morning three of the team helped to support the Health Education lesson at the Club House. The lesson was on the dangers of polluted water, and how they might find safe water. A fascinating experience to see how the nurse used the footballers they all admire as role models to make her points - If you want to be as good at football as Wayne Rooney, then you will have to look after yourself properly to keep yourself well.

By late morning the boys who had been playing football, and many more boys from the streets had started arriving in readiness for their lunch. The atmosphere was incredible as the excitement grew, with music and drums adding to the overall mood. The boys loved having their photos taken, and as our confidence levels rose, we were happy letting them take the photos themselves.

Around One ish, we were ready for lunch. However the boys were then called into the main hall for the Graduation Ceremony. At this point the Social Workers gave a touching recollection of the progress that had been made by all the Graduates, to the point that they were now ready to live independent lives. This time hugely demonstrated the great heart all of the staff have for the Tigers Programme. Simon the Programme Director was at pains to encourage each of the boys to say "You can do it!!" . By now many of the street boys were asleep, although as many wouldn't have had much sleep the night before this is not hard to understand. The boys then followed with their own speeches of thanks to Tigers Club and its sponsors. I think we all felt rather small, but thrilled to see the end results of the Tigers work.

Finally lunch arrived about 3.30 and we queued with the boys to share their meal, again a privilege. We were later advised by Nathan, that this was actually quite a good result and it could have been longer. The Ugandans sure love their speeches.

The day at Tigers Club finished with our group sharing in the Bible Club, enthusiastically attended by many of the street boys. Many of the boys came forward to thank our group for everything that we were doing for them. Again we felt tiny and there were quite a few tears.

Having spent quite so much time with the boys, it was with sadness that we left them knowing that we would be getting a good night's sleep back at the hotel, but that they would be surviving on the streets once again.

Painting the Hostel

The Tigers Club Hostel is the third part of the boys journey (they go from Tigers Clubhouse to Tudabuja and then to the Hostel). The Hostel is a house situated some way from the clubhouse. It has one caretaker (Herbert) who supervises between 33 and 38 boys (aged 15+) at any one time.

The hostel is a house with its own grounds. Inside there are two adjoining communal rooms, then a main corridor with a kitchen, shower room, several bedrooms (with 2 sets of bunk beds in each), and then a smaller corridor leading outside to store rooms and a toilet.

When it was mentioned that the hostel was in need of decoration, we jumped at the opportunity to do something practical to help. Getting the paint and other items was an adventure in itself - we ended up with a very good deal! Then the sanding and painting started in earnest on Tuesday afternoon with the main communal rooms in magnolia for the walls, and a red gloss border for a kind of skirting.

It was a great time of team-work, both for us and for the boys who thoroughly enjoyed joining in. The Tuesday team (Jono, Will, Paul, Mike, Chris, Simon, Debbie plus Francis (social worker), Arnold (our taxi driver), and four of the boys), were relatively careful - cutting in, cleaning up etc. However, by Wednesday (the only other available day for painting), the team (Dave, Helen, Darren, Paul, Chris plus the boys and Arnold again) threw caution to the wind and painted most of the other internal walls in the building...as well as the floors, windows, benches and each other! Darren appeared to think that using a paint brush was far too cumbersome...well at least that's what you'd think if you'd seen him covered in paint. Despite showering in turps he is still a pretty 'magnolia' colour.

All joking aside, the hostel looks great. The clearing up took time but was worth it.

We've also come away with great respect for the boys at the hostel and for the work of the Tigers staff who have taken these lads from dire circumstances and given them hope and a future. This was particularly evident in the delight shown on the boys faces as they proudly displayed the contents of their trunk (a metal box about 3 shoe-boxes in size) containing their worldly possessions. For once in their lives they had their 'own' stuff, this included such things as a bible, a football kit, pair of trainers and various exercise/school books.

The boys at the hostel really engaged with us and seemed to be thrilled with the result. Having been part of the painting team meant that they could feel a sense of ownership and pride. In getting to know them, we found some great characters - Michael (very good footballer playing for Uganda under 15s) and Martin (a budding artist with some lovely paitings on the walls) will stick in our minds. The Tigers staff so clearly look beyond the rags and dirt to see the potential of these young people.

Its a shame we can't post photographs on this blog site (due to lack of equipment here), but there will be plenty to see when we return.

First Day in Uganda

If you haven't yet read Part One, keep scrolling down.

The intrepid explorers last left you on the way to the Guest House. Now we can rejoin them as they arrive ...

Part Two

After arriving at the Guest House, we had enough time to have a quick shower and, in some cases, a little sleep (staying up all night watching films on such a small screen really takes it out of a person) before having lunch.

Meals at the guest house are in a buffet style, with food such as fish, rice, chips, a meat dish of some kind (sometimes beef, sometimes... not...) and various other foods. Despite expectations, all the food is excellent. The fruit that is served after the meal, and with breakfast, is phenomenal. Next time you go shopping, buy a pineapple and eat it. That taste is nothing like as good as it should be. Even if you have the nicest pineapple Tesco's has to offer it won't come close. As well as to-die-for pineapples, they also serve would-murder-for melons, and try-and-stop-me-eating-them bananas.

Back to the narrative however.

After lunch, we headed off to see the Tiger's clubhouse. It's fair to say that some of us were fairly apprehensive about the visit. How would we be recieved? What kind of state would the centre be in? What about the boys themselves?

As it turns out, we needn't have worried. Its fair to say that we now have a good idea of how celebrities must feel. We couldn't have imagined a warmer welcome, from the boys and the staff.

We were shown around the different parts of the clubhouse by Chris, the owner. It is hard to describe it here. There must have been 50 boys around the communal areas. There are also showers, a kitchen, school rooms and a main hall. There are also lots of courtyard areas where the boys can play and hang out.

After being shown around, we spent some time talking to the boys themselves.

This is Will's account of the experience:

Talking to the boys was such an eye-opening experience, and yet somehow it didn't quite register - it couldn't be real. There was no way that a child of 12 years old could have seen both parents die, and have to fight for his survival on the streets of Kampala. Yet he was still able to laugh and shout as he beat me at a thumb war. To be able to get on with life in such a way, with laugher and games, requires a strength that I, in my reletively cotton-wool and bubbled-wrapped exsistance, cannot begin to fathom.

First Day in Uganda

Part One.

First off, I would like to thanks those of you who attended the service on Sunday Morning. We all greatly appreciated your support.

We left Holy Trinity Church shortly after 4pm and headed off for Heathrow. The minibus ride went fairly smoothly, albeit with a little noise from some X-factor hopefuls in the back.
6pm on the dot we reached the airport - right on time. Check in held the usual, and expected, delays but was fairly uneventful.
No significant purchases in the departure lounge, though not for lack of desire. A 33K GBP Rolex would look good on anyone's wrist!

The flight went well - by the way, Miriam if you read this, Jono sends his love!

Arriving at Entebbe, we were taken by how humid it was, even at 7 o'clock in the morning. We were delighted however, when almost as soon as we left the airport we spotted some monkeys and their babies in the trees. We also witnessed three people on one bike!

The road to Kampala was certainly an enlightneing experience. Along the streets were countless brightly coloured marketstalls bearing everything from fresh fruit to Coke and whole (uncovered) carcasses. We also managed to get some practise in for the white water rafting, curtesy of the numerous potholes/craters!

We have to go, but will endeavour to update you with Part Two later today!

Loaded up and raring to go

As the team begin their bag packing routine, we wanted to say thank you to everyone who has backed us for this trip. Thank you to the businesses who donated lots for our auction night, to all those who've donated football shirts and equipment, to everyone who had made financial contributions, and to everyone who is committed to praying for us while we are away.
Everyone's support has been such an encouragment to us.