COVID Wins!!!

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 Angels began in 2008 - boarding and day orphanage for children ages 3-15. MHS is helping the 15 year-olds by furthering their education and keeping them from dangerous lives after the orphanage. The orphanage serves 350 children, run by a Ugandan husband and wife with 25 staff members. It is supported completely by the sale of hand-carved gorillas - some carved by children as young as 10! and some baskets that they sell to the tourists coming to see the gorillas in the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest. The are located at the edge of the forest, in fact, you have to travel through the forest to get to the orphanage. There are many Batwa Tribal children (referred to as the pygmies in Uganda). The sad story was that at age 15 the children have to leave the orphanage with no place to go other than servitude and often abuse. 


Dave shared some of our handcrafts to see if we could arrange an exchange - providing each of our programs a new market! They agreed so we are swapping some of our baskets and jewelry with them for some of their carved gorillas and masks. That way, our artisans have a local market for the first time!

Tomorrow we were supposed to meet with the Board of Governors and the HONOR Scholarship Selection Committee here at the Cephas Inn. We have had to cancel both meetings now. I am certain I will make it through COVID unscathed and I pray Karen and Dave have an even easier time than I had.

 

Comments

  1. LynnSeptember 3, 2022 at 8:07 AM

    So sorry to read that Karen & Dave now have Covid--but so glad to know that Sue is doing better. Prayers for all of you to get healthy, and that it is a mild case for both Karen & Dave.
    So amazing to read about all the work that was completed pre-Covid, and the plans for an exchange and joint efforts to support the Little Angels and ACT handcrafts.
    Good to know that the first half of the team made it safely to Entebbe and their return flights--hoping for travel mercies for those folks and safe arrivals back home. So many wonderful stories to come!

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