Kumi Community Foundation Update October 2021 Looking back over the last eighteen months, we find that we have continued to achieve our mission targets of “helping others to help themselves” by identifying families with children with disabilities who live in extreme poverty in the bushlands of eastern rural Uganda. Our local team has worked tirelessly in the community and regularly reported back with comprehensive reports while our UK team has had little choice but to remain at home. None of our usual fund-raising events were possible during lock-down so we had to think again. How about a “virtual walk” to Kumi in Uganda (over 6,000 miles) with a target of £6,000.00? We decided to aim high and, with a few friends keen to join in, we set out on 1 May and added up our weekly miles which were diligently recorded. England, France, Tunisia, Libya and into Egypt where we walked up the banks of the River Nile and into Sudan and South Sudan until we reached Uganda and Kumi Hospital. We had many taggers-on as the weeks passed and, by the end of August, our total miles exceeded 15,000 with over £7,000.00 raised. Enough miles to get us there and back so we have yet to use up the excess miles to return home virtually without adding to our carbon footprint. We had pledged our funds to pay for thirty-five surgeries for youngsters with Gluteal Fibrosis, a condition caused by repeated injections of quinine administered in the treatment of malaria and a condition only seen in very few areas globally. A severe drought led to failure of the crops which the peasants rely on for survival and COVID caused a steep rise in food prices. The people went hungry and many little ones suffered from malnutrition so we sent out emergency funds so that our families could have the basic food stuffs as well as soap. We provided Kumi Hospital with two oxygen concentrators, two suction machines and the necessary masks, sanitisers as well as hand washing facilities for each ward and department. This month, a container is being filled with one hundred and fifty wheelchairs and many mobility aids which are to be distributed in February to our many people in need. We sincerely hope to be able to travel to Uganda by then but, if not, the distribution will take place virtually by our experienced hospital team. Twenty refurbished sewing machines are included in the consignment as we plan to set up a tailoring centre for those with a disability or the parents of such a child. When they are proficient, they will be given a sewing machine and basic needs such as materials, threads and scissors to start off a small business and enable them to support their families. A tailor with a disability has been identified and will take the course thus “helping others to help themselves”. Please pray for these people whose living conditions are harsh and you can follow us on Face Book: kumicommunityfoundationuganda www.kumicommunityfoundation.co.uk
