UGANDA -- The AOET Rehoboth School Building has been Completed!
With funding from Assist International, the Rehoboth School at AOET Orphan Village was completed March 2007!
The new facility has seven classrooms, an administrative suite and a large children’s computer center. The School is open six days a week. Classes are lower primary through primary 5, five days a week and Primary 6 & 7 classes six days a week. 13 New teachers have been hired with a principal to manage the school, along with a security officer/guard for nights and two cooks to prepare the children's lunches.
The school will handle 360 students for the first year and in 2008 they hope to build a Kindergarten and boarding section that can take care of 540 children. Thanks to various friends of Assist International who donated the resources to fund the completion of the school. The School is now fully licensed by the Ministry of Education and Sports in the Republic of Uganda, fully operational and a very vibrant place!
Happy children starting school
1st day of new school rooms being used
Entire School
Teaching Staff
Primary 5 Classroom
Head teachers office
Happy kids recieving new clothing distribution
Janet's Story
The following story was submitted by Sam Tushabe, Director of AOET:
I (Janet) am a 46-year old widow. My husband died 4 years before I decided to be tested for HIV. When I finally tested at the AOET Clinic, results showed I was HIV+! Initially I was very scared as I had seven children, 4 boys and 3 girls between the ages of 16 and 5. I did not want to share with my children that I had AIDS, as I was afraid of how they would react and how they would be treated if others found out. Above all, I was worried about how they would stay in school since I was the one struggling with their tuition every school term!
Shortly after this, my health began deteriorating followed by mass weight loss. I was visited once a week by the AOET home based care program. Initially I refused as I was afraid my children would know, and some of them at the time were about to do the Primary 7 Exam that would lead them to secondary school, and so I thought they would see and begin suspecting I had AIDS and it would affect their performance.
Eventually I agreed to have counseling and slowly I gained hope that things weren't as bad as they seemed. Two months after being tested I joined a "post test" — positive living club — a club that offers support, encouragement and advice to those living with HIV run by AOET. There I openly admitted to being HIV+ in an unthreatening environment where the rest of the members had the same status and enjoyed activities such as music, dance and drama.
AOET Broke the news to my children and promised it would take care of their schooling through the new school that was being built. Last month, five of my children were admitted into Rehoboth Integrated School when it was completed, and I feel so relieved, especially knowing that my children's education is taken care of — tuition-free.
Due to the treatment and psycho social support I have received, my health has also much improved. I have also benefited from the family support program run by AOET.
Janet is now training under AOET as a community counselor in AIDS awareness. The support Assist International receives for these kinds of projects makes stories like this possible all around the world.
Classrooms continue to grow
Work Continues in Building a Family Orphan Village in Jinja, Uganda
Under the auspices of Aids Orphan Educational Trust (AOET) and their founder/director Sam Tushabe, Assist International continues its commitment to build an 11-home family village where the orphaned children might have a happy home. So far, 5 homes are completed and 5 more are 80% completed. Jinja is located at the head waters of the Nile River.
Assist International is also partnering with AOET in the building of a school for the children of the village and the surrounding area. The AOET Rehoboth School construction project is continuing. Brickwork, trusses, walls and windows are being framed in and readied for installation of the windows and doors.
A team of people from Denver, Colorado built one of the homes. The home built in memory of Tim Hanson was a life changing experience. The Denver team leader, Pastor Ben Binger from Orchard Road Christian Center writes: "The AOET family village in Jinja continues to be discussed around our workplaces, after church services and during dinner parties! It was such an amazing trip. For the family of Tim Hanson, it was so good for them to have that closure. We still have a handful of people looking at either serving in Uganda or adopting children from there. It was truly a life changing trip." The project construction director was Tim Reynolds, Executive Director of Assist International.
This photo shows the new vocational sewing school at AOET. This was made possible by the donation of 40 sewing machines. In partnership with Assist International, AOET, a public school and a vocational training school with training in micro enterprises, brick making, farming, sewing and computer technology is in progress.
Colorado Construction Team
Home being built in memory of Tim Hanson
Family of Tim Hanson
Silent prayer in memory of Tim
Rehoboth School Construction taking place
Truck recently purchased for construction needs
Cleared land for the construction of the Rehoboth Integrated School in Uganda, which is being funded in part through Assist International.
Rehoboth School cares for approximately 150 students who would otherwise not be in school.
Jinja, Uganda -- The first phase of the construction of a family village in Jinja, Uganda, began in February 2005 with the building of an access road to the home sites, clearing of brush for farming and the preparation of the building sites. The village for orphaned and abandoned children will be on 20 acres located about 1 mile from the Nile River.
Assist International is working with Action for Empowerment, a Jinja-based organization that cares for 2,000 children. The village will be used for orphans and widows who have been impacted by the AIDS epidemic. In the first phase, ten homes will be built for 80 children. Plans also call for a school, a micro-enterprise training facility, and a health clinic.
Recently, Assist International's Executive Director Tim Reynolds wrote the following:
In April, Assist International (AI) broke ground on a new family village for orphaned and abandoned children in Jinja, Uganda (see pictures). Assist has received funding to build 20 homes for orphaned and abandoned children in family-styled villages in Uganda. Along with the new village in Jinja, additional homes are also in the works for the Otina Wa village in Northern Uganda. Construction on this second set of homes will begin in June. Both villlages offer a great opportunity for groups wanting to get involved in Africa to make a difference in relieving human suffering.
For decades, Africa has been devastated by drought, tribal conflicts and the Aids virus, leaving record numbers of children orphaned. In spite of Africa's problems, it is a fascinating continent with many safe but adventurous places to explore, while touching lives with the love of Christ in very practical ways.
Both villages are cooperative efforts between Assist International and ministries based in Uganda. In Jinja, AI is working with Action for Empowerment, a Ugandan ministry that provides school sponsorships for nearly 2,000 students and places abandoned and orphaned children in foster family care while helping the family develop their own small business. In Lira, we are working with PATH Ministries, who cares for 80 children at the Otina Wa family village. Both groups are heavily involved in mobile health clinics, health and aids education, as well as academic education.
Did You Know? 97% of all resources donated to Assist International in the past ten years go directly to programs in the field.
