Wintertime is the rainy season in Uganda. Though rain is great for growth, it can also bring dangerous flooding. Due to unrelenting rain, some communities in Kakoma village have been struggling to keep their homes safe and dry. For community members living with special needs, conditions are especially hard. These folks often struggle to fix up housing after floods. So, we teamed up with OPM to build a house for people with special needs, one that makes sure they’re safe and sound no matter the weather. The house has a floor that can be easily cleaned, plus good ventilation, both of which help keep the residents healthy, even when it’s damp. And to make the house comfy, we made sure it was full of warm bedding, too! Now, everyone can rest easy. As one resident named Venance explained, “I have lived in a poor house for years, and I have been praying for a better house. When the rainy season started, I worried the house would collapse and kill me. So I appreciate Changemakers … [Read more...] about Shelter from the Storm
Archives for February 2020
Lighting up Kahirimbi
Today, we’re at the Kahirimbi police station. This station serves both the host and refugee communities of Nakivale Uganda, and they work hard to keep everyone safe. But after the sun goes down, this police station has a problem: their lights turn off! A police station without lights makes a hard job even harder. After all, crime never sleeps! And reporting and writing up crimes without light is difficult, if not impossible. If the lack of light wasn’t challenging enough, the station has recently been having trouble with their holding cells, which have become easy to break out of over time. So what did we do? We got to work! First, our team installed solar lights and a solar panel. And just like that, let there be light! Next up, we made the holding cells sturdier, and we ensured all the exits and entrances were secure. With a stronger police station, everyone feels better. “I have always feared to report my cases to police because I knew the people arrested would move … [Read more...] about Lighting up Kahirimbi
Better Days Ahead
When disaster strikes, the support of a community can make all the difference. After a tragic house fire in Nshungyezi village destroyed one family’s shelter, a little help getting back on track is just what they needed. With both a young baby and a person living with special needs in the home, the family was finding it impossible to fix things on their own. This left them worried and discouraged, as processes to replace basic needs can take a long time. “When my house got burnt, I thought that this is the end of me and my family, because I had no hope of getting any support,” one of the family members, Nyiramugisha, told us. No one should feel this way, so we got right to work bringing bedding and plastic sheeting to help reconstruct the family’s shelter. Soon enough, they were back feeling comfortable and safe in their neighborhood. This idea came right from the community, and one community worker said, “I really appreciate Alight for challenging the community to write in … [Read more...] about Better Days Ahead
Upping Their Games
Schools and sports: they go so well together! Whether teaching kids about teamwork, sharpening their hand-eye coordination, or simply as a much-needed outlet for letting off steam, sports are an important complement to academics. In Nakivale, Uganda, we visited three primary schools—Kashojwa, Kabazana and Ruhoko—to see if we could up our game when it came to sports equipment. As it turns out, there was plenty of room for improvement! We were able to get a wide variety of sports equipment, including netballs, volleyballs, and footballs. Since volleyballs are surely better with nets, we made sure there was one for each school, too. To make things extra official, we got whistles for each school and sets of sports uniforms for both girls and boys. Now, as they practice their skills, they can do so with style and ease! It isn’t just the kids who were excited about these new tools “Sports activities have always been a challenge due to the lack of materials,” one head teacher told … [Read more...] about Upping Their Games