Northern Uganda
Guru Guru Village Project
Village children participate in classroom instruction at Guru Guru Springs Ambassadors Nursery and Primary School. Before construction of this school, children in the village did not attend classes. They stayed at home to help family members with farming and domestic duties such as toting water, cooking, taking care of younger siblings and cleaning.
Completed Projects in Guru Guru:
cleared soccer field
built a primary school + kitchen
installed a playground
opened a 2 building dormitory for vulnerable girls
IN 2007, as the LRA moved out of the country and the Acholi people were being forced out of government run displacement camps, CHF ventured to the northern region of Uganda for the first time. We were heartbroken by what we experienced and motivated to come back and stay. That desire took quite a few years, and lots of exploratory trips, to take permanent shape. During one of those trips, we were introduced to a pastor with a heart and vision for the people living in the villages. High praise from other local leaders, a love for people and Jesus and the motivation to act compelled us to forge a partnership with him.
IN 2011 we took a team of people to the village of Guru Guru for the first time. The land was overgrown and, other than a small church that had recently been constructed, little was there. The villagers had begun moving back to their land, but spending almost 16 years in displacement camps had taken a toll on the land and the people. Rebuilding was far more of a challenge than they expected.
CHF came in at an important time. Through discussion with local leaders and our new partner, the decision was made to clear a large area of overgrown land. Chopping down large trees with an axe and digging up the stump with shovels is not easy work, but efforts paid off. The area immediately became a soccer field and a central gathering space for the village, standing out as a glimmer of hope for what could become of their home.
A year later, we constructed and opened a small school adding a playground and swing set a few months later.
CURRENTLY, after several classroom expansions, the school educates more than 400 village children. We recently opened a large two building dormitory to house teenage girls, a very vulnerable demographic of children that are often in danger of dropping out of school, early pregnancy, sexual and physical abuse and forced domestic labor. We celebrate the physical accomplishments in this village, but, more importantly, we value our relationships with the people of this decimated area and the healing that is taking place in their community.
“It really does take a village to raise a child...and we are so happy that even people across the world are part of that village.”
