October, 2024
Greeting Mubaku School Supporter,
In 500 BC, Heraclitus of Greece wrote. “The only constant in life is change,” and this is also true for Mubaku Educational Foundation (MEF). Two of our founding members – Lisa-Ann Galati and Peter Roth – have stepped down from the board. We are grateful for their strong partnership and contributions to MEF’s success. They aren’t leaving us completely, as they plan to continue to sponsor multiple children at the school.
In our 2023 end-of-year newsletter, we explained there were three challenges for the coming year:
- The first challenge was that we were concerned that 28 sponsors might not renew their sponsorships. That concern turned out to be true and we are now working to recruit replacement sponsors. Twenty-five sponsors are still needed: half to support day students and half to support dorm students. We also have eight children who would like to attend Mubaku Bright Future school, but their families cannot afford the $65 a year to be day students or the $165 to be boarding students at the school. Please consider mailing a check or going to https://mubakuschool.org/donate/to sponsor a child. Consider recruiting your family and friends to join you in sponsoring. Each sponsor receives a picture of their child as soon as we receive one from the school.
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Completing the Foundation
The second challenge for this year is to support the village’s decision that they need more classrooms. Ground has been broken, and the foundation has been completed for a new wing, similar to the original wing. Check out the progress at https://mubakuschool.org/third-classroom-building/. The new wing will have four classrooms and a small library. Please consider donating toward the construction. You can do so directly on the website: https://mubakuschool.org/donate/ or mail a check.
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- The third challenge, stated in the end-of-year 2023 newsletter, was that five of the girls had made it all the way from Primary 1 to Primary 7 and had passed their primary leaving exam (i.e., they graduated). All were from poor families who could not afford the $360 to $400 a year to send them to secondary boarding school. We are pleased to report that all the girls were sponsored and are now attending secondary boarding school.
Giramia Mary Precious, Dona Oyer (Sponsorship Coordinator) and Selsa Ayomirwoth
Here are two of the girls (Selsa Ayomirwoth and Giramia Mary Precious) with Dona in their new school uniforms.
However, currently, we have ten children in Primary 7 who will soon be sitting for their primary leaving exam. This is an exam they must pass to attend secondary school. They all want to go on to secondary school, but their parents are subsistence farmers and cannot afford the boarding school fees. We are hoping more secondary sponsors can be found. Please consider going to https://mubakuschool.org/donate/to support these girls’ secondary education.
Additional Way To Donate:
You can now use Zelle to contribute. For some people, Zelle does not charge a fee, so all of your donation goes to Mubaku. Go to https://mubakuschool.org/donate/ to learn how.
Meet Angida Winnie
In this newsletter, we are introducing Angida Winnie. She joined the Bright Future School staff in the fall of 2019 and is both a teacher and the dorm matron. She has one child in the P5 class and a younger child who lives with Winnie’s Mom. Winnie is soft-spoken and has a wide smile.
When she joined the staff, she immediately impressed everyone with how quickly she connected with the kids and encouraged them to excel. Her thoughtfulness, caring demeanor and educational support for all the students is steller.
Matron Winnie
Winnie and Dona Oyer work as a team to teach the older girls about safety and feminine needs.
When the pandemic hit Uganda, everything shut down. Mubaku School closed, and the older girls no longer got sanitary supplies. Unfortunately, two girls became pregnant. Once the school found out, Winnie and Dona jumped in and started visiting the older girls at their homes.
When the village leaders learned what had happened to the two girls, they asked if two of the classrooms could be used to house the orphans and at-risk girls. They decided that the next building constructed needed to be a dorm.
Winnie was asked to be the Matron for the temporary dorm. As the school reopened, children who traveled long distances were added to the dorm.
The dormitory children flourished under her care. The children and the parents greatly love her.
Now that there is a permanent dorm, Winnie is responsible for 72 children. She has a room attached to the girls’ wing, which she proudly shows off.
In order for her to sleep, a night watchman was hired to keep the dorm secure.
It costs $165 a year to house a child in the dorm and pay all school fees. This covers three meals a day, extra clothes and other supplies, and Winnie’s salary. She is grateful for the sponsors of the 72 children. She hopes more people will sponsor children in the dorm so more at-risk girls, orphans, and kids who travel a long distance, can stay in the dorm.
Winnie has a heavy workload as the dorm matron and as a teacher. She joyfully makes a huge difference in the lives of Mubaku kids.
On the website, I’ve included a short video of her that displays a little of her great personality. Check it out at https://mubakuschool.org/dorm/
Visit Mubaku Village
If you are interested in visiting the school next year, Charles is arranging a group to visit in late July. The group will speed time at the school and in the village, as well as go on a safari through Murchison Falls National Park. Let us know if you would like more information.
-Best regards,
Michael Hughes, CFO Mubaku Educational Foundation
Mubaku Educational Foundation,.
12970 Andalusia Dr.
Santa Rosa Valley, CA 93012
Notice: Officers of Mubaku Education Foundation donate their time and receive no compensation. 100% of what you give through Mubaku Education Foundation goes directly to Mubaku Village’s school efforts, except for a small fee charged by PayPal or GoFundme, if you donate through them.
Mubaku Educational Foundation is a California non-profit charitable corporation and has been recognized as a tax-exempt 501(c)3 organization by the IRS (#83-3206945). Donations are tax-deductible.
Mubaku Bright Future School on Uganda Website: www.mubakuschool.org
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