Between the months of December and March Uganda experiences the short rainy season. However, there has been very little rain this year. “It has been very hot” they told us and many families were despairing as they had planted crops which were now dying due to the lack of rain. There was no water in the tank at Rondavels Hotel, so staff fetched water from the stream whilst it was still dark each morning in order to heat some water on the log fire and deliver it in yellow Gerry cans to the bedroom doors for the guests to wash. The Mission Direct staff house on the other hand, where we stayed, is fortunate enough to be one of few properties on mains supply, but on the last day that too ran dry. There was simply no more water until it rained.

Since returning home from Uganda last September we have kept in contact by email with the ‘Rukungiri Water Initiative’ committee that we had formed before we left. They had registered as an NGO (Non-Government Organisation), opened a bank account and written a Constitution. When we learned that Chris Cotner from Water4 (the pump and borehole experts from US) would be arriving in Uganda in March, it seemed a great opportunity to meet up again in Rukungiri. Tim and Clare from Mission Direct were in Uganda already, planning the 2011 campaigns with Nigel Hyde the MD. John, an Australian and Rainer, a German, also joined the team. And Chris bought a lovely young American couple Grace and Matt, with him. They were full-time missionaries serving in Togo, primarily drilling boreholes with the Water4 kit in extremely difficult locations. They were in Uganda on a “holiday”. So it was in deed a real international affair!

The Water Committee proudly took us to ‘The Gables’ Vocational Training Centre to show off the borehole that the drilling team had made last year thanks to Mission Direct and Water4. Nigel was keen to have a go and demonstrated just how easy it was to pump. We were all amazed at how clear the water was. It has provided lots of clean water every day for the students at ‘The Gables’ and they are all absolutely delighted with it.

Chris from Water4 was keen to explain that there was no guarantee when drilling for water, and sometimes things just don’t work out. The borehole at the Nursery School, the first to be drilled, although fine at first, had later run dry. The pump had therefore been removed for safe keeping. Everyone was very disappointed. This had been quite a set-back. After a closer inspection he suggested that it was not deep enough and so by the end of the dry season there was insufficient water. He suggested that it should be drilled again but deeper.

It was our original hope that some funds for providing boreholes may come from the local communities themselves, but the committee tell us that they can’t imagine how this will work in practice since most Ugandans have very little money and can only afford a small contribution. So if this water initiative is to continue it will depend on funds being donations from the west.

Whilst we were there Simon and I met up with some of the water committee to help them understand the concept of budgeting. We discussed the different costs involved in drilling for water and how one project may differ from the next. They then worked together to produce best and worst case scenario budgets for the next three projects, the clinic, a secondary school and Rukungiri Prison. Ten Pumps have already been transported from the US, thanks to donations made through Mission Direct. And we have now been able to provide them with sufficient funds to drill the next three wells.

The drilling team set to work straight away to provide a borehole at Rugarama Clinic which had been identified by the committee as one of the greatest needs for clean water in Rukungiri. The site was quite low lying, like the site at The Gables, and not far from the stream. The drilling was reletively easy and after just 3 days they found water. How encouraging for everyone. We all thank God for the provision now of lovely clean water, easily accesseable for the nursing staff.

We were so impressed with the members of the Rukungiri Water Initiative committee; all professional people with demanding full-time jobs who give of their spare time freely to help provide clean water for their community. And what always strikes us is that everyone is always so appreciative of this wonderful opportunity, and want to say “Thank You” to everyone who has kindly donated funds to provide these boreholes.

Nigel Hyde has been suitably impressed by the whole operation and has pledged the continuing support of Mission Direct not only in Rukungiri but hopefully at many other places aroud the world where MD volunteers work to improve lives of the poor and needy and in doing so share God’s love. For our part, we will do all that we can to continue these good works too.

We were delighted to see that Matron is now in residence in her flat at the Modern Nursery School which the Mission Direct volunteers prepared during the 2010 campaign. She looks after a room full of cute little orphans. However, because there is no water, and therefore no toilets on the first floor, a downstairs classroom has been turned into a domitory. This is obviously not very satisfactory since Matron on the first floor is quite a distance from the young children she is supposed to be looking after. The provison of water up the hill to the school must be our next priority.

We also visited the Mothers’ Union Training Centre and were delighted to see that all the new bedrooms that Mission Direct built in 2010 were being occupied by new students, allowing more girls the opportunity of a vocational training and a brighter future. They need funds to buy bunk beds and mattresses in order to fully benefit from the new buildings. Also the old smokey kitchen at the end of the building has been rennovated to provide additional storage space. The girls and the staff send their love and best wishes to everyone!

It was so good to be back amoungst our friends in Rukungiri again. We really knew that God was with us and blessing us and many others through us. We spent quality time in fellowship with our own team and the Ugandans we met. Columbus, our driver during 2010, came to lunch one day and he sends his love to all the MD volunteers back in the UK. Please pray for his continued healing of a knee injury which has prevented him from drivng for some 3 months. Clare Peace also sends her love. Please pray for her as she studies for her final exams at University very soon.

We also had the opportunity to meet again with Bishop Edward and his lovely wife Vasta, at their home. Vasta had been in England last year with the Mothers Union when she met with Sue’s Mum and Dad on a number of occasions and she was eager to hear news from the UK.

The Bishop is soon to retire and they are seeking God’s guidance for what comes next. They believe that they are called to do more in the way of discipleship for the people of Rukungiri so that they may have a deeper relationship with God.

Please continue to pray for Simon and I as we seek God’s plan for our lives, in particular how we can continue to share love with our brothers and sisters in Uganda. Thank you everyone for your prayers and support.

Love from Sue and Simon x

Dear all,
 
There is a lovely lady at my Mum and Dad’s church who celebrated her 90th birthday recently. She requested money for the orpahns in Rukungiri instead of presents, and has sent out £500. We have so enjoyed spending this money. Some of it has gone to buy underwear for the teenage girls, who commonly don’t wear any. Yesterday and today Penny and I have crammed the minibus full of children from the deaf school and taken over 40 of them shopping for new shoes and socks.

I am sending a few photos for you.

We are packing up tonight and leaving Rukungiri early tomorrow morning. This is such an emotional time of mixed blessings. We are really looking forward to coming home, but it is so hard to say goodbye to our very good friends here. 

Love

Sue
XX

Dear friends,

We praise God that although Simon has broken a tooth we have been able to perform a temporary fix ourselves and he is not in any pain or discomfort. In deed we are enjoying good health and are all too aware of God’s protection and care. Thank you for your prayers.

We had a fabulous time with Larry, Karen, David and Maria from St Mary’s with Team 4, especially the time spent at the Holiday Club for the orphans at Modern Primary School.

We have heard today (in Kampala) that the building works are now nearing completion. Our plans are now underway for the official opening of the Mothers Union Vocational Training Centre on Wednesday 15th September by Bishop Edward and Madam Vasta his wife, who heads up the Mothers Union (and who visited the Worcester Diocese in July and met my Mum on a number of occasions!). We will combine ceremony with a Thank you Party for all the Ugandan Partners that we have been working alongside since we arrived here in May, and who have become very good friends. Simon and I will be presenting Bibles to all the girls at the Vocation Training Centre on this day. These are Bibles in the local language of Runyankole that we have purchased from the Bible Society in Kampala that were purchased with donations from many friends of St Mary’s. I will be preparing a powerpoint of all the highlights of our 2010 campaigne and a celebration of all the good things that God has blessed . It will also be a time of sadness as we say our final farewells.

The drilling of the third bore hole is almost complete too. Simon and I are planning the first committee meeting of the “Rukungiri Bore Hole Committee” for Thursday 16th September. please pray that we get the right people to serve on this committee that will carry this project forward for the benefit of the wider community after we have gone.

Having had an enjoyable and relaxing “week off”, we welcome our last team tomorrow morning. These are just 2 retired teachers who are coming to Rukungiri to visit a variety of schools in the area with a view to running a Mission Direct team of school teachers next year. Please pray that this reccy trip will be an inspiration to them and the school here alike. Pray for wisdom for us when selecting the schools and designing the programme that God’s will may be done.

Please pray for Simon and I as we prepare to come home and seek God’s will for the next chapter in our lives. 

Thank you and God bless you for your love and support.

Sue (and Simon)
X

Dear friends and family,
 
Whilst the rest of Team 4 are off this morning to help harvest a crop of small chillies on a subsistence farm, in order that they can be sold by the very poor family to raise some much needed cash to pay for the necessary help for their disabled child, I have taken this opportunity to compile a brief update for you.
 
We are so excited by the bore hole which has been constructed near to the Modern Primary School and which is now supplying clear water with such easy. The hole was eventually some 50 feet deep, and a real encouragement to the young men who had travelled to the neighbouring district to train with Water4, a American charity which happened, by God’s design we are sure, to be in the nearby location at just the right time.
 
The next problem is getting the water from the bore hole up hill to the school. It is not so difficult to collect in it the yellow Jerry cans which are used all over Uganda to fetch water. And this would be so much easier than using the lorry which was the previous method. However, we would like to run some piping up the hill and erect a holding tank at the school, so that water could be always available in the taps, showers and toilets. The problems therefore we know have to recover are how to get the water up the hill, how to cross a strip of and which currently belongs to someone else, and the erection of the storage tank.  We need to raise funds to purchase the land and the water tank ideally. Please pray about this.
 
The team of young men who dug the first bore hole are now progressing well with the next bore hole which is located near to the Gables Vocational Training Centre. This centre serves some 200 young men and women, many of whom board at the school. Initially they came across a thick layer of rocks which they had to remove by hand with a pick axe, but they persisted and yesterday afternoon they were through to easy soil and had reached 30 feet where they were finding signs of water. This is such an encouragement to them and their hard work.
 
Simon and I are now in the process of identifying key members of the community in order to form a small committee which will manage the bore hole project in the future. There will be many requests for a bore hole we are sure, and it is important that these are properly prioritised in order that the greatest benefit is felt by the largest number of people in the community. Please pray for us and we seek God’s guidance in finding the right people to take this forward.
 
We are blessed with a Geologist/Scientist in Team 4 who has been able to give some wonderful expert advise after recalling his university training days and we thank God for this added bonus.
 
Everything else is going really well here and we see God and work in the lives of people, both locals and the volunteers, every day. As it is school holidays, this team of volunteers have been running a Holiday Club for the orphans and those who live locally. They had 110 at the first session on Wednesday and they expect even more to come this afternoon, when the word gets out! They have taken a different parable each day and then incorporated it into crafts, song, drama, puppets and games for the children. These kids don’t normally have access to all this glitter, paint, glue, card, coloured paper etc and are so excited. We have heard from one builder on our building site that his child came to the club and was able to tell him all about the parable of the prodigal son when they got home!
We, the staff team, are just so very grateful to the volunteers who have taken so much time to plan and prepare for this Hveoliday Club, and taken over the whole thing, which we would have struggled to do here because of the lack of time and scarce recourses here.
 
The building work is going along really well. Although I have to say that trying to organise 20 people, including 8 children under the age of 16 has been quite a challenge! We are now painting the ceilings, internal and external walls. We are planning a grand opening party and we shall invite all the partners we ha worked with whilst we have been here in Rukungiri. We hope that the Bishop and his wife, Vasta (the Head of the Mothers Union who recently visited the UK and met my Mum on a number of occasions) will be available to come and bless the building and the future work at the vocational centre. Please pray for us as we complete the work and plan for the party!
 
We are very grateful for good health and God’s protection during our time in Uganda. We thank you all for your support and love.
 
God bless and thank you all.
 
Sue  (and Simon)

We had a good meeting the other day with variuos key people from the local community in Rukungiri and the Diocese of North Kigezi, and today we are celebrating since today we have found water in the bore hole that has been drilled adjacent to the Nursery School. The water at the moment is not running clear and it needs to be pumped for a while before it is purified, but tomorrow the local lads are sure that the water wil be good and they can install the pipework and the pump. This is so simple to use that even small children will be able to come and pump clean water. The next challenge will be for us to erect a water tank at the Nursery School and instal some pipework to carry the water from the borehole to the tank. Then we can provide water directly to the school for the children to drink, for cooking, for toilets and eventually showers for the borders. This is just the beginning, as there are many other urgent cases requring water in Rukungiri. This equipment can now be used by those locals who have been trained by Water4 (under the direction of Mission Direct) to provide many more boreholes for communitiy projects such as the hospital, clinics, other schools etc. It is so exciting to be pary of this project. Please continue to pray for us as we next try to organise a committee to deside where the next holes should be made and how the communities should be involved so that they “own” the project and so repect it and look after it in the future.
 
Thank for for your continued prayers and support.
 
Love from Sue and Simon

Dear friends,
 
Some of the building works at Modern Nursery School have been put on hold until such a time as the massive problem of water can be resolved. Currently water is collected by lorry everyday for cooking and washing of hands. There is no point in completing the proposed bathrooms and kitchen in the matron’s rooms until a suitable water supply can be made available to the school.  
 
Last Monday in Kampala we met with a group of Americans who had just arrived in Uganda from a US Charity called Water4. They have devised a relatively cheap devise for drilling bore holes which can be constructed from locally sourced materials. Two staff from the Gables vocational training centre in Rukungiri have spent 4 days with the US team in the neighbouring district and have been very excited with the project which was constructed there. A village now has regular access to fresh running water from a pumped well.
 
Today Water4 are sending their team leader Calib across to Rukungiri to work with Simon and Sue to seek a solution to the water problem at the school. The prospect of
Please pray that together they may be able to find a cheap solution to this crucial problem. This is VERY exciting for all concerned.  Without the water the matron’s room will no be completed and the orphans will not be able to board ar the nursery, but remain at the Primary School. This is far from ideal was they stay with much older children and there is no more space for new arrivals.
  
Many thanks for your prayerful support.
 
Love
 
Sue and Simon