ACT Uganda Blog

We continued to struggle with our impounded van. In the morning we pulled off the road so Christopher could talk with the traffic police. Every truck or van that went by had to pull over to "kintukidogo" (give me something small, and let your hand come out and rub the thumb and first two fingers together).  We again asked our friend, Norman, to help us. Generous worked on the situation all day. However, it was fruitless. Christopher has to stay behind for the entire weekend because the inspector "Left for the weekend". It is distressing how this has hurt our dear friends and we are very sad about it. Everyone around us was supporting and loving. Guma hired a driver for us tomorrow and we expect to meet him yet this evening. We are sad to leave but happy to return to the USA. In the morning we all traveled to MHS so Christopher had the freedom to leave us and try to figure out how to get his van back. We asked our ACT staff to find their way up to Muko High School so...

Greeting you all! Continuing to use Reverend Joshua's car today, the saga goes on! In spite of efforts to get Christopher's van back we have not been successful. Christopher believes we may be able to get it back before we leave on Saturday for the airport, however, Guma has assured us we can rent another vehicle in case it is necessary. Sue spent her morning working with the sewers to finish the new gorilla pattern. A cute gorilla emerged! Several of the sewers brought babies on their backs so the Centre was live with the sounds of little voices. A very young sewer! Her name is Choice. Sue with the sewers - see the gorilla in Phoebe's hand! Karen spent the morning with Keneth observing a music class. They were learning about Bach and Handel and the Baroque period of music so Karen was able to play for them from Bach's first violin concerto and Handel's Sonata VI. The students have to memorize a lot of  information for their testing this fall. Dave worked in the off...

It is 9:32 pm. We have just finished our dinner after a day full of rain and very cold temperatures! We are so very weary that we beg off writing a long blog tonight. We want you to know we are past COVID, but still dealing with Christopher's van being impounded for no reason. We hope that tomorrow the Boda Boda accident will be resolved. This has been very, very hard for us because the Boda Boda driver caused the accident - in fact, if Christopher had now swerved off the road, he and his passenger would most certainly be dead. We would have hit head on. But partly because Muzungus (white people) were sitting in the van, Christopher was blamed for the accident and must pay for all the medical bills of the injured man (compound fracture of the leg). Of course, we will pay this for him (likely $150 - $200 USD). It is so very wrong and so very corrupt which is everyday in this country. Getting over the outrage has been really hard. Chess for Success was kicked-off today and it was a H...

 We're back! The team, freshly recovered from Covid, set out for Muko High School around 9 am. Staff at the school worked as a team to continue checking students in with ⅓ term's tuition, 12 kg beans, and a ream of paper. An exam was given to students but they were not allowed to participate if they had not paid according to policy. Dave spent real quality time with Rev Philip, our Head Teacher, talking about finances and scholarships. Both are extremely excited about the potential at MHS in talent, scholarship, and budget.  Karen spent her time with Keneth our MUSIC teacher. What a blessed relief it is to be together in person. The understanding is so much more immediate than Zoom. We are very lucky to have Keneth as our teacher. Dave and Karen met with approximately 80 Honor Scholars in the MHS Chapel along with Rev. Philip and Judith. All four of us spoke to the children as parents would advise their own. If you would like to be a part of sending an academically inclined st...

Day 4 for me (Sue). Tomorrow is the required quarantine time with another 5 days of masking. I am still not 100% - mostly fatigue still. No more fever or aches and little congestion at this point. Karen is about where I was 2 days ago - solidly in bed all day. Dave's symptoms seem a bit more mild than Karen and I had. He and I actually went outside to have some supper outside by ourselves and talked.  Barbara got home safely to Chicago flying through Brussels on United. Dick and Diana however, had a trip from hell. They flew from Uganda to Nairobi, Kenya. Their flight from Nairobi to Amsterdam was cancelled because the pilot got sick. They put them up in Nairobi for the night. The next day they got on a flight to Amsterdam knowing they would not make the flight from Amsterdam to the US. Another night in Amsterdam. We think they might be getting home soon as I am writing this! And hopefully, COVID-free! Dave worked on ACT stuff on his computer most of today - more than I could do ev...

Osibregye (good afternoon) from Kabale! Both Karen and Dave just tested positive for COVID as well about an hour ago. Ugh. We all worked so hard for the last 2.5 years not to get it and here we are. I (Sue) may be on the mend a bit but it's been 3.5 days pretty sick and on my back in bed. Couldn't even finish my book I'm reading.  We have had to cancel several meetings with the Muko folks and Generous went back to Kampala to tend to her family. So, we had planned to take this coming Sunday off anyway on our Trip Agenda. I hope to be able to go back to the village on Monday since that will be the end of my 5 days in quarantine. And, since I got sick Dave and Karen have been wearing masks in all their activities in the village just in case! Here are our happy faces! NOT! This morning, at our hotel here in Kabale, Dave met with the Little Angels Orphanage leaders. From this orphanage, there are students who attend Muko High School. Here is the story of the orphanage: Little An...

Our dear Team One left in the early morning. Dick, Barbara and Diana were so valuable to our work and they will be so missed. Christopher drove them all the way to Entebbe with a stop at the equator to shop and lunch. Barbara left on a Brussels flight at about 11 pm and Dick and Diana left on a KLM flight to Nairobi and Amsterdam around 8  pm. We send prayers for a safe journey. Sue is a bit better with her COVID struggle. Our special waiter, Ivan, has been taking very good care of her. He has brought her soup and hot tea and watched out for her welfare. She actually went outside of her room to get some fresh air in the afternoon sun. Dave and Karen met a new driver, Davis, who is well known among our staff. Since Christopher, our trusted driver, was taking the first team to Entebbe, Davis stepped in to transport us. Davis took Dave and Karen to Muko High School just after Team One departed.  Since the concert was over, the MUSIC students were in the mood for a change! Keneth ...