Lake Nkuruba Orphanage

The next few days were spent happily at the Lake Nkuruba campsite. They had amazing views; a lake free of crocs, hippos and bilharzia; colobus monkeys in the trees; lovely staff; delicious food and fantastic day trips on offer to some of the local highlights. We visited a tea factory and saw how the lush green leaves of the tea plants make their journey to the small brown leaves in our tea pots. We hiked for hours to a breathtaking waterfall and sat in a rock pool for the shoulder-massage to end all shoulder massages.
But the highlight for both of us was understanding the 'community' element of the campsite. It is run by Pastor John Boscoe who shares his home with his wife and 27 orphans. The children sleep two or three to a narrow bed, 6-8 to each tiny room. In addition to their school work each day all of them help with the gardening, milking the cows, gathering water and cooking as well as keeping the campsite running. A further hundred or so orphans live with widows in the community but the pastor supports them in their education. The revenue from the campsite contributes to the costs of keeping 100+ orphans fed, clothed and in full time education. Thirty foreign sponsors provide further support for the education of the brightest children. My mind worked overtime with how Mike and I could use our resources and experience to help the pastor in this work. It was a pleasure to find out more about such a worthwhile project and it is great to find a project we can support directly in the future, rather than funds being lost through administration. Rather than sitting around waiting for overseas aid, the Pastor has a successful business which supports the orphans and this made me far more motivated to help him. I have already emailed the students I have met through Fulcrum and a few of them are looking into whether they can visit the orphanage next summer to undertake an enhancement project. Further ideas are in the pipeline.
On our last day at the orphanage we spent the afternoon swimming in the lake with some of the kids. I had two pairs of goggles with me and everyone had a go, though the visibility was poor everyone was excited to see under water for the very first time. When we returned from our swim we were welcomed by a performance of Ugandan song and dance by some of the children - it was excellent. As is often the way, the smallest performer - not really part of the performance at all - stole the show. As the older students competently danced and sang, she stood amidst them in a small grass skirt, her face a mask of concentration, shaking her teeny behind like there was no tomorrow. It was a happy end to our time in Uganda.