COVID 19 2021 IN UGANDA

It has been a tough year world wide with COVID19. So many new rules with which to comply; governments while caught on their left foot have been doing their best we hope for country populations. At least in first world countries we have had a modicum of health options - maybe not always the correct one but at least the opportunity to find out for ourselves through the internet or first class clinics, hospitals and specialists.

Imagine being in a 3rd world world country where access to reliable information; reliable health care; access to money to pay for treatments; dealing with rumors; government placing all the country under house arrest (in reality) ; inability to make any income in the non-traditional market; children being sent home from schools to live with you when you have paid school fees; only idleness for your children; poverty worse than ever; government not giving back to the people to take care of the population and people dying due to lack of healthcare professionals who are left out of the information chain.

This is the case in Uganda. This is the situation in the Masaka region as well as other parts of Uganda where our small Foundation is based.

Our team traveled at their own expense to Uganda February of 2019 - we were fortunate to have been able to do so. Now those memories of people we have helped for the past 15 years is rushing to the front of our minds. We have helped rebuild facilities at the local school: provided school supplies; remodeled the local health clinic; provided support for them to make a couple of outreach clinics; provided funding at the school of 600 students for one hot meal per day per student: developed a sewing center; provided beds for the clinics; tanks for water storage and other means to improve life in general. I am sure I have missed some of the projects.

OUR PEOPLE ARE NOW IN TROUBLE!!

This past week we have received more frantic emails than previously. The wife of our project manager as been diagnosed with COVID19. Her name is Cynthia. She and her husband Jude spend much of their time, money and efforts, helping their community; its children and orphans plus difficulties in their lives. Now they are needing help and no-one is able to let them step aside and take care of themselves. they have 3 young children of their own and foster 3 others who either have no parents or are unable to help their children. This is a heavy load for this young couple who are not wealthy (other than in their hearts) but are committed to their community.

The community is just now having nasal swabs. Can you imagine! we had ours over 12 months ago, and they are charging the Ugandans US28.00 for the test for the 2 adults - UX99,517. This is not for any medication just for the swab. Things are so dire when Jude went to collect food in his garden he found a man drying sweet potato peelings to grind them up in order to make a meal for his family. Some here think they have it hard they have no idea what hard is about.

Our Foundation too has suffered, with people who know us not being able to donate - and that is the situation for many small non profits. Of course not the big nonprofits who have huge corporate donors and massive administrative costs out of any donation you give them.

However, the benefit of NGOs like ours is that 100% of our donations other than shipping costs to send goods to them, goes to the Ugandan non-profit developed by our Ugandan project manager. We have the utmost trust in his decisions and integrity as he has exhibited in the pst 15 years. We have no administrative fees; all members are volunteers.

We desperately need donations to deal with the COVID issue in Masaka and more specifically to care for our project manager and his family. Without them our Foundation would be at risk for operations and in turn the community would lose support they so badly need.

If you have read tis far, I am really begging for help for these people; if you can find your way clear to donate $50, or an amount you are comfortable with, it can be done through our website; check or cash or direct bank deposit. Only those of us who have been there and have seen the conditions when they were good in 2019 will truly understand the depth of despair for these people and the value of a donation small or big - big being relative in this case.

We need to help care for these people.

Thank you sincerely, Bill and Helen Allen and the whole Foundation team.

May 2020

Well what a year this has turned out to be so far.

Terrible for funding! donors losing jobs; companies not making donations; breaks my heart as there are little ones in Uganda counting on us when we are all having trouble counting ourselves.

We have been notified by 3 donors that they cannot continue to fund their private students this year due to employment issues. These are 3 children who have been going to school through efforts of wonderful people. One other child is lucky enough that their donor can continue to fund.

Two girls have gone to school for 9 years and have graduated secondary school and been notified their grades are good enough to enter university in the fall. One little boy is still in secondary school this year.

Funding for girls is so very important as if family has to choose who goes to school it is usually the boys. In one of our cases one girl and the little boy have an ill mother so their future relies on the shoulders of the girl who wishes to be a teacher with a sub focus on education for the deaf. University fees are US$2,035.29 per year. This covers room, board, and all school feels. The secondary school fees for the boy is US$1,300.00.

The Foundation is going to do its best for them to continue school. It will mean less that we have to use for other projects.

Thank you for listening. Helen & Bill Allen

2020

With our pallet shipments finally arriving after 12 months in the shipping and customs netherworld of Uganda, we made the decision not to do that again. The Red Cross ran across the same issues with 4 40' containers of donated items. It is maddening when people really need donated items to assist them in their lives, and bureacrats decide they either need baksheesh, or some invented customs duty. The feminine hygiene kits we made here in Cody Wyoming, we tested by Uganda customs at a lab for "staph". Goodness did they think we would send used kits ........ So two kits that were taken from the shipment were sent to a lab and of course lab fees, then they kept the negative kits. Kits that could have gone to two girls. One of our Board members, Mary Ann and me have been making kits so we can just send some in the mail to them to try and keep up a stock as needed. It is what we do with our spare time, and funds from our general fund.

We hope to be able to continue to fund breakfasts for the children; funds to help the school children and possibly buy more wheelchairs this year.

We thank our donors who believe in our mission and wish all a wonderful new year.

November 2019

Since last October, 2018, two pallets were packed and shipped to Masaka Uganda, from wyoming and Perth Australia. Both packed so not one square inch was to spare. We were assured by shippers that they would be in Masaka before a mission of six of us flew to Masaka in February 2019. This was not to be due to changes in Inland Revenue in Uganda, Tanzania and Kenya, whereby items were being inspected and taxed depending on the knowledge of the inspector. For instance they wanted to tax us on handmade scrap baby quilts, which had a handmade label attached, then changed their minds; but taxed us on nboxes of school pencils as they were "made in China" purchased from our local Dollar Tree. The took two feminine hygiene kits to a labratory to check for "staph" and we had to pay for the negative lab results and of course the kits weren't returned to us. It was a never ending daily stream of regulations that diudnt make good sense in any manner.

However that is all over and the pallets have been forwarded to CBIRD in Uganda and are now in the process sof distribution to the school, the medical clinic and to other recipients.

We are not the only ones who have fallento this recent trap - of course it is all about money, not caring for the poor of the country who desperately need the help. The Red Cross have four 40 foot containers languishing awaiting for bureaucratic wheels to turn.

We are happy however that items donated and hand sewng have arrived and are currently in the donation process.

To add to the girls' feminine hygiene kits we put together (220 of them) we are currently sewing 20 more kits to add to inventory and can be used as needed and will assist the girls in coming to school consistently instead of dropping out, or early marriage. We used approximately 1 mile of thread and that is an estimate on the light side.

Sincerely thanks to everyone who helped pack pallets, donated items, sewed in their spare time and cheered us on.

The pallet from Australia was donated from a retiring businessman who owned sports store. From photos you will see just how much these new and updated school sports equipment items were appreciated. We will be posting photos on the gallery page.

This is a new and updated web site and some pages are still to be completed.

Once again thank you for everyone who supported us in one way or another to help these people in the Masaka region of Uganda.

Bill & Helen Allen