OUR VILLAGES Meet Mama Harriet Meet Precious & Hudson Meet Beckham Education Medical & Winnie’s Story Sports Academy Meet Geoffrey Meet Shanitah Worship Academy

MEET MAMA HARRIET

A Watoto village is a safe place where a child can truly experience the love of a family.

Our villages provide homes, families and holistic care to over 3,000 children who receive everything they need to grow up healthy and whole—food, clothing, medical care, education and most of all the love of a mother.

Across our three villages—Suubi, Bbira and Laminadera—our mothers have their hands full. In each house you’ll find a Watoto mother who is raising eight orphaned and vulnerable children. Together, they’re a family.

People say not all heroes wear capes, sometimes they wear kitengi dresses, that’s definitely true for mothers like Mama Harriet. She passionately cares for four-year-old twins Patricia and Patrick who were rescued by Baby Watoto before joining Mama Harriet and the six other children who make up their sweet family. Whether she’s cooking and cleaning or running after her little ones, Mama Harriet always has a big smile on her face because she knows that she’s shaping the lives of some of Africa’s future leaders.

We’re thankful to Mama Harriet and all our mothers for all they do to provide a loving home for our children. They are the heartbeat of our villages.

MEET PRECIOUS & HUDSON

Precious and Hudson are friends growing up in our Bbira village. They love that they’re part of a family and community who cares for them. When they aren’t studying or helping with chores at home, they enjoy singing, dancing and playing with their friends. You’re giving Precious and Hudson, along with all our children, a chance to grow into their full potential.

MEET BECKHAM

Beckham is a smart, young man with big dreams for his future. When he grows up he wants to be a doctor and is grateful for his favorite teacher, Pauline, who encourages and inspires him to study hard. Whatever the future holds for Beckham, we’re thankful to his mother, his teachers and his sponsors who are cheering him on along the way.

EDUCATION

Our teachers help our kids learn, grow and dream about their future.

We’re grateful for teachers like Peter who pour their hearts into educating our children. “Being a teacher is a call on my life and I take my role seriously because I know that each child’s education and future is in my hands,” shared Peter.

Whether helping kids learn to read a storybook or discover Einstein’s theory of relativity, Peter and all of our teachers are working together to raise the next generation of African leaders.

From preschool through university, our goal is to see each child graduate Watoto with a skill in their hands. It’s not just about our children “getting jobs”, we want to equip them to transform their communities. Our teachers play a pivotal role in making this happen.

“Every great doctor, engineer, social worker and leader was taught by someone like me. So as a teacher, I’m not only making a positive impact on the children I teach, but I’m helping rebuild the nation,” continued Teacher Peter. We couldn’t agree more.

Beyond purely academics, we provide vocational training, as well as extracurricular activities like sports and creative arts. This way every child can uncover their unique talents and abilities as they pursue their dreams.

In 2019, we celebrated as 87 of our students graduated high school and 67 graduated university—we know God has big plans for each of them. We’re grateful to you, and all of our sponsors and partners who make this possible.

MEDICAL & WINNIE’S STORY

Our medical team treats and loves our babies, children, mothers and communities. Each of our three Watoto villages has a medical clinic to provide the care needed for our families to thrive. We also extend healthcare to our neighbours so that we’re able to make a lasting impact in our communities.

Not only do we treat health issues, but we work hard to reduce disease prevalence. Our medical team focuses on disease prevention by educating everyone in our villages on proper nutrition and hygiene practices, as well as giving immunizations and mosquito nets to our mothers and children. Because of this, last year our medical team saw 18,558 patients at our clinics—a 32% reduction from the previous year.

Our doctors, nurses and team members go above and beyond to care for each person who comes in our doors—from a scraped knee to more complex medical conditions. Doctors, like Dr. Job, are always on call because each person they treat isn’t simply a patient, they’re family.

One of the young adults who Dr. Job has been walking alongside is Winnie, who has been battling a lifelong journey of sickle cell anemia. Dr. Job has been there to hold her hand and champion her every step of the way. Most recently, he’s helped her fight for the chance to receive a bone marrow transplant that could save her life.

Thanks to partners, both locally and across the globe, a match was found for Winnie and she was able have the much needed transplant in India in the Spring of 2020, and she’s continuing to recover.

Dr. Job gives a consultation to Winnie

While Winnie has a long journey still ahead of her, she’s grateful for how far God has brought her and for all the people in her corner like Dr. Job, her mother, her siblings, her friends and her sponsors who have prayed and encouraged her over the years. She’s especially grateful for her mother, Mama Rhonah, who has never given up hope and for her brother, Michael, who didn’t hesitate to step up as her bone marrow donor when it was discovered that he was a match. To Winnie, this is everything.

“I can’t put into words how much this means that my brother would sacrifice his own life for a chance that I would be happy and free of pain. It shows he loves me more than I could ever imagine,” said Winnie.

Her mom first found out Winnie was sick when she was an infant and the doctors said she wouldn’t live past five years old. With tears streaming down her face, Mama Rhonah said, “I never dreamt that my baby would come this far. Winnie’s now 25 years old and in university. Although she’s currently on medical leave, this surgery is going to change her life and I believe she is going to be the happiest girl on the planet.”

All of this is only possible because of the prayers and support of our sponsors and partners. Winnie was full of joy as she exclaimed, “This is all God’s doing. It’s because of His love for me that people who have never met me have shown me such love, support, encouragement and given me hope. They have shown me there is more to life than being sick. I’m grateful to God and each of you for giving me a second chance at life.”

From the bottom of our hearts, thank you for helping us care for Winnie, and those who need it most.

SPORTS ACADEMY

Across our Watoto family, we’re seeing the positive impact sports has on our children.

Our Sports Academy takes a child’s natural love of sports and teaches them to play at their best with support and guidance from coaches. With over 600 kids in our academy last year, teams learn to work together, pray together and play together.

One of our kids, Geoffrey, is grateful for the mentorship he’s received at the academy. It’s helped him grow not only in his soccer skills, but also in his life skills. Geoffrey shares that his coaches have taught him the importance of hard work and good character, emphasizing that while talent can take you to many places, it’s character that will sustain you once you’re there.

We have a team of coaches, like Coach Milton, who are not only mentors, but are truly father-figures to our kids. Milton shared, “Being a coach gives me the opportunity to feed into the kids’ lives and invest in their future. I’ve found that sports gives children a sense of belonging, and also builds their character both on and off the field.”

Every single one of our coaches work hard to build a culture of respect, and because of this our sports teams are known across Uganda for their attitude and the way they serve. We’re proud our kids have a reputation for cleaning up the sports pitches before and after matches with teams from other schools. This has given our kids an opportunity to share their faith and values with athletes throughout Africa— and we couldn’t be more proud.

Because of our dedicated coaches, we’re using sports to help raise Uganda’s future leaders.

MEET GEOFFREY

Geoffrey is one of our gifted players who models everything he’s been taught by his Watoto mother and coaches. Because of this, he was recently scouted by the Uganda National League Champions and is now part of their youth soccer team. With a big smile Geoffrey said, “I can’t wait to see what God has in store for my future.”

MEET SHANITAH

From singing while doing her chores to dancing and being part of the Worship Academy, creativity comes naturally for Shanitah. Beyond simply growing her abilities, the academy has impacted her life and helped this once shy girl become a confident, young woman as she uses her talents to glorify God.

WORSHIP ACADEMY

We’re teaching our children to use their gifts to tell their own stories—and find healing in the process.

With 250 students in music, dance, media and fine arts, we’re equipping young leaders with skills and fostering their passion for worship. We encourage our kids to communicate creatively through movement, visuals and sounds as they explore their African heritage and other genres and styles, because we believe that worship heals hearts, affirms identity and creates community.

George Akankwasa is living proof of this. Raised by Watoto, he joined our family as a young boy with his mother, Mama Gertrude, who serves as a mother in our Bbira village. He’s always had a love for music and all things creative. After traveling as an uncle on the Watoto Children’s Choir, George now mentors his younger brothers and sisters as he leads our Worship Academy.

“I’m excited that I get to champion the next generation of leaders in music and the arts. It’s a privilege to help them gain a deep revelation of who God is, and uncover how they can use their unique stories to create and worship Him in an authentic way,” shared George.

This is possible because of the generosity of our international partners around the world. Thanks to you, we have a creative arts studio where our children are taught by top professors in the field through formalized online courses. We also host annual worship camps that bring creatives, musicians, dancers and media producers from across the globe to equip and encourage our future artists and worship leaders.

We’re grateful for the incredible part you, and all of our partners, play in the lives of our kids.