Monica, a young woman who came to ChildVoice International in Spring 2011, shares her personal thoughts as one of our group of girls, many formerly abducted by the Lord’s Resistance Army or otherwise affected by Uganda’s civil war. This is month ten in Monica’s 18-month journey of healing and recovery at the ChildVoice Lukome Centre. We invite you to walk alongside Monica during this time.

An Acholi Christmas

I went home for the first time in several months to celebrate Christmas with my family. My family missed me so much and I was so happy to see them. We have very nice traditions for Christmas that I want to share.

I really have such a good family. A week or so before Christmas, our father, uncle or older brother buys us a new dress to wear Christmas day so we look smart. At Christmas, my mom, sisters and I get up very early to prepare a good meal for dinner. We have to get extra water and things for preparing the chickens and maybe a goat. Then we prepare other nice goods like rice, greens, chapatti and other nice foods we don’t normally enjoy. Then when the food is prepared, we go to church looking smart in our new dresses.

I know some other girls, especially girls who came home from the bush, who don’t have families to welcome them home. My mother and brother know the big problem [of HIV] that [my daughter] Blessing and I have, but they really try to support me so much. One day I was sad because Blessing was so ill so my brother went out and bought me a bottle of my favorite soda.

Recognizing Change

I noticed many changes in myself since the last time I was home and others did too. They are good changes, though. One that is more obvious is my new skill in hair braiding that I learned from the centre. I decided to show the people at home by braiding someone’s hair. Something else surprised my family too. I never used to pray in church before; but when I went home in December I insisted on going to church every Sunday. Before, instead of going to church I would go to the community center and waste time doing things that may not have been good, but now I behave and spend my time well like working hard at home to help my mom.

People started commenting on all of these changes. They said they used to see me as someone who was always depressed and worried, but now they see me as a happy person, as someone who is not worried but joyful and hopeful about my life.

All of those things that family and friends noticed from home…I started to see those things in myself too for the first time. I noticed that I really was a much happier person. Going home reminded me of the way things used to be, of the things I used to do and think and say. Now I really am different, and all I can do is gain hope for my future.

Related posts:

1. Month Eight: Celebrating a Different Kind of Christmas
2. Month Seven: Part of the Family
3. Month Two: Trying to Forget a Painful Past

On January 28th, over thirty individuals gathered at the University of New Hampshire to recognize a very special entity of ChildVoice: our volunteers.

In 2009, ChildVoice established this annual Volunteer Appreciation Dinner to express our appreciation to our valued partners and supporters who give of their time and efforts both here and abroad to further our mission of restoring the voices of children silenced by war.

What Does a Volunteer Do?

From addressing envelopes to traveling to the Lukome Centre in northern Uganda, ChildVoice volunteers continue to provide indispensable services.

“I help sell beads; re-clasp and measure them. I also work on campus (UNH) to spread awareness about ChildVoice.”
“I traveled to the ChildVoice site with Engineers Without Borders to facilitate water source implementation.”
“I went to Uganda to take pictures.”

Each of our volunteers comes to us with unique skills and a passion to serve.

Volunteer of the Year

The evening concluded with the presentation of this year’s Volunteer of the Year, recognizing one special individual who gave above and beyond in 2011.

Each nominee for Volunteer of the Year has made a significant, sustained commitment to ChildVoice in a volunteer, non-paid capacity, and contributed extraordinary initiative, impact, and innovation towards our mission.

This year’s recipient, Mrs. Kathy Mandsager, has been involved with ChildVoice in a variety of different capacities since its inception in 2006.

She has traveled the Lukome Centre in northern Uganda three separate times, both as a member and leader of short-term teams.

Stateside, she has filled a number of key roles from selling beads to manning booths at countless events and festivals, coordinating staff travel to managing logistics for meetings and retreats. Most recently she has served as the Team and Intern Coordinator, communicating with potential interns and team members, training visitors, organizing logistics, and conducting debrief activities upon their return.

To all those who volunteered with ChildVoice in 2011, we thank you. We could not do what we do without you.

Find out how you can get involved as a volunteer with ChildVoice.

Related posts:

1. New Truck at Lukome Centre
2. Team Mission Uganda: What’s It Like?
3. Family Video Nights at Lukome Centre

Above, IDEC employees show off some of their ChildVoice International jewelry. The staff was made aware of the organization through a patient and, within a short amount of time, had purchased more than $500 in merchandise to support children and families in Uganda.

While Madeline Richert, IDEC diabetes educator, was showing Jane how to use her new pump, she noticed the plastic bracelet Jane was wearing that said “ChildVoice” on it. When Madeline asked about the bracelet, Jane showed her educator a beaded bracelet she was wearing, as well, and told Madeline about her experiences traveling to northern Uganda with ChildVoice International – an organization that helps rehabilitate children
and communities that have been broken by decades of war.

Jane explained that women in Ugandan villages make the beads from long strips of brightly colored paper, then give them to teams of missionaries to bring back and sell in the U.S. All proceeds from the jewelry are returned to northern Uganda, where ChildVoice International uses them to support health care, education, sustainable water and sanitation systems and community revitalization projects.

Madeline, herself a passionate advocate for women’s justice issues in Africa, asked Jane if she would help her get a supply of beaded jewelry to sell. At her next appointment, Jane brought Madeline several styles of necklaces and bracelets, along with a photo booklet that featured the bead-making process and the stories of the women who make the beads for a living.

Madeline and her colleague, Dawn Gustofson, were awed by the selection of brightly-colored beaded jewelry. Within 48 hours, the two had shared the story and the beads with enough of their co-workers to result in almost $500 in sales – funds that will return to help the villages and families where the beads began as long, thin strips of paper.

Shop the current line of ChildVoice Beads jewelry.

Related posts:

1. ChildVoice Beads Supports Breast Cancer Awareness
2. ChildVoice Bead Ladies Support Bras for the Cause
3. Beaders Launch New Christmas Designs

Two weeks, 13 sixth grade girls, and a lot of heart! This powerful combination allowed each of the 31 young women at the ChildVoice Lukome Centre to receive her own Bible in her native Acholi language.

It all started when, as part of the confirmation program at Lutheran Church of Hope in West Des Moines, Iowa, middle schoolers were asked to consider ways they could serve others. Upon learning that the young women living at the Lukome Centre had to share just a few Bibles between them, one of the confirmation groups determined to raise funds so that each of them could have their own personal Bible.

The group’s goal was to raise a minimum of $341—enough to cover 31 Bibles at an estimated cost of $11 each. When the two weeks were up, the girls gathered to count their contributions. The pile of bills and coins was counted with anticipation—totaling $349.70.

There were cheers, smiles and high-fives among the sixth graders as they realized the goal was met and the Bibles would be purchased. Just a few weeks later, even louder songs and cheers of gratitude rang from the Lukome Centre as its 31 young residents were presented with a brand new Bible, courtesy of a group of girls on the other side of the globe.

Related posts:

1. ChildVoice Bead Ladies Support Bras for the Cause
2. New Truck at Lukome Centre
3. ChildVoice Girls: Learning to Love As Only A Mother Can

Rhema

She said, “No other person in my village knows how to do every hair style and treatment like I do, so I am sure that now that I will be in the center, people will notice me even more and I will more than double my customers.”

More Than Just Business

Rhema also recognizes how her life has changed as a result of starting her own business.

She said, “Before I went to ChildVoice I used to have to beg for money if my daughter was sick. I could just go home and watch her suffer. But now that I have my own business, if I need money, I can just go and braid someone’s hair and take my daughter to the hospital. Life really is so much better now.”

As ChildVoice continues to proudly counsel seven girls with their new businesses, we thank the donors who have supported the program and made it possible. ChildVoice hopes to share more stories like Rhema’s by extending the opportunity to more young women who are ready to take the steps to create better futures for themselves and their children.

To learn more about the ChildVoice micro-enterprise development and loan program, or to contribute, please visit Global Giving.

Related posts:

1. ChildVoice Graduates Receive Loans
2. Joining Preparation with Opportunity at Global Giving
3. ChildVoice Girls Visit Local Businesses

The only thing that bothers me is that many times I have to go to the hospital to get medicines for myself or Blessing since she is often sick these days. This makes it hard to really do my job well I think. I try my best though.

Overcoming Struggles

Sometimes I feel broken-hearted because of the problems I’m facing. The worst of my broken-heartedness happened only a few months ago here at ChildVoice. It was the day I found out that my daughter was HIV positive. I was so upset that I could not even think clearly. I didn’t even want to stay at the centre. I wanted to go home and die there together with my baby. The staff convinced me to stay so that I could go to the hospital for medicine though.

I went there and met with a nurse. She listened to my story and afterwards she prayed for me. That prayer really encouraged me. All of a sudden, I was okay. I decided I would stay at the centre and take good care of my daughter. When I think about it now, I think that was God protecting me even in my lowest time.

I know that I have prayer to guide me. This has led to such a big change in my life. Now I can say that I am starting to feel normal again. There was me before I was abducted and there was me after the abduction. I haven’t felt like myself before the abduction for a long time, but it is coming now…slowly, but I know it is coming.

Related posts:

1. Month Six: Gaining Hope and Confidence
2. Month Seven: Part of the Family
3. Month Eight: Celebrating a Different Kind of Christmas

The rainy season in Uganda has passed without incident thus far at the ChildVoice Lukome Centre. Although low-lying plants such as beans suffered from the severe rains, those working on the ChildVoice farm reported an abundance of maize. From only a few acres of land, this harvest produced 40 large bags of maize, a crop in which the possible uses are seemingly endless. Maize provides nutritious food for all at the Lukome center, feed for the animals, a source of income, and even a fuel for fires.

The food that is grown on the farm is used primarily to feed the women, children and staff at the ChildVoice Centre in Lukome, thereby cutting down the costs of purchasing food. This is extremely valuable especially at a time when food prices are soaring in Uganda. Further, by making use of the resources that are available, ChildVoice has also been able to provide agricultural education for the young women who gather to learn and work on the farm when it is harvest time.

Rainy season in Uganda brings challenges from lost crops to washed out roads, but it also brings with it a wealth of opportunities and growth which can sustain families through the dry season and beyond.

Related posts:

1. Kulubel Farm Update and Volunteer Opportunity
2. Changing Seasons in Northern Uganda
3. A Time to Grow

Amanda Bryon

Amanda joined the ChildVoice family in August as the first salesperson for ChildVoice Beads. Her primary responsibilities include sales and marketing of the beads, participating in local events and festivals, and establishing partnerships with retail businesses.

In her free time, Amanda enjoys gardening, singing, and yoga. She graduated from Rollins College in 2009 with a degree in Anthropology and currently resides in Lee, New Hampshire.

Eric Berg

Eric is quite familiar with the goings on at ChildVoice, as he has traveled to the Lukome Centre twice as a member of Lutheran Church of Hope’s Mission Uganda team. In October 2011, Eric joined on as ChildVoice’s Donor Relations Officer. He will be operating out of the Midwest, meeting and forming relationships with potential partners.

Outside of work, Eric enjoys coaching soccer at Bethel University and performing with his band, Cosmonaught. He and his wife, Melinda, currently reside in Oakdale, Minnesota.

Sharyn Barlett

A long-time volunteer, Sharyn recently joined us as the Managing Director of ChildVoice Beads. She will oversee development, casting vision for future growth.

Sharyn resides in Durham, New Hampshire, where she is an active member of Durham Evangelical Church. She finds great pleasure in spending time with her grandchildren, baking, and line dancing.

Related posts:

1. ChildVoice Family Expands in Uganda
2. ChildVoice Welcomes Worship Team from New York
3. ChildVoice Staff Competes in Gulu Soccer Tournament

The trickle of returning abductees, after escape or capture by the military, remains steady to this day. Just recently, fifteen young women were returned to Gulu District. However, the military’s lack of necessary resources led them to contact ChildVoice, the sole remaining rehabilitation program in the north, seeking assistance to provide emergency supplies to accommodate these girls.

In a small ceremony held last week, ChildVoice donated a number of items including mattresses, blankets, basins, and toilet paper to those former abductees under the care of the Child Protection Unit, a division of the military that handles the reception of those rescued from LRA captivity prior to their reintegration with relatives. ChildVoice staff, along with representatives from a local radio station, watched as the items were handed over and loaded into the truck for delivery.

As an organization, we’ve been so blessed by the outpouring of gifts to our work in Uganda. We feel honored to have the opportunity to give of ourselves to this community.

Related posts:

1. Meet Sarah: New Student at Lukome Centre
2. ChildVoice President Provides Insight on President Obama’s Deployment of U.S. troops to Uganda
3. ChildVoice Family Expands in Uganda

• I say “sorry” at inappropriate times and “you are most welcome.”
• I sometimes offer my wrist when giving a handshake, and I might even curtsy a little too.
• I prefer to sleep with a balled up hoodie rather than a normal pillow.
• I write dates “backwards” (today is 14/12, not 12/14).
• I think it is wasteful to have electricity available at 3 in the morning.
• I forget that it’s okay to order salads and water at a restaurant.
• I marvel at the cleanliness of my own feet and fingernails.
• I sing Acholi worship songs when I think I’m alone (“Lubangana tye…”).
• I feel funny wearing shorts.
• I say something is “funny” when it’s not funny at all, and I tell people they look “smart.”
• I have to stop myself from starting every other sentence with, “In Uganda…”

These are just a few of the things that I do differently since returning from my initial trip to Uganda seven months ago, leaving myself and others often confused. The biggest changes that took place though were those which are not outwardly evident.

I had traveled abroad many times before and while I might miss a place, I never experienced such a sense of loss as I did when I returned home from Uganda. I didn’t even see it coming. I had been excited to return home. I longed for the comfort of my own bed and my mother’s cooking, even had dreams about it. But that initial excitement of returning home, that “honeymoon” phase didn’t last long, and I struggled to even explain my own emotions in the months ahead. I experienced such a wide range of emotions in a short span of time, a true rollercoaster. Most of the time it was frustration, annoyance, sadness, and even at times, anger. I could be constantly surrounded by people but feeling very lonely. I lacked my old confidence in social situations. I was just…different.

Finding Peace in Uganda

After several months of processing, I had an opportunity to return to Uganda two months ago. Any anxiety I had felt up to this point disappeared as I approached the ChildVoice centre. One girl, after spotting me, dropped her jerican of water and began running toward the gate. I was soon surrounded by girls and children laughing, jumping and of course, ululating (ayiyiyiyi!) with one arm swinging in the air—a sound of celebration that I had missed dearly and often attempted to imitate without success in the months following my return home (you can imagine the odd stares I got from that one).

After things calmed down, I played with the children and spoke with the girls about their studies, their families, and life in the U.S. They teased me and asked questions about my family by name, recounting specific details that I forgot I even mentioned. They listened, they remembered, they cared.Just like that, all the turmoil I had been experiencing dissolved into a state of peacefulness, and part of my heart longed to stay in that place.

Lasting Bonds

I recounted these stories to fellow ChildVoice interns a few weeks later. It was the first time I had seen them since we worked together in Uganda the year before, yet it felt as if no time had passed at all. We drank tea and reminisced, shared life updates and ideas about the way forward. They are my only connections to past times in Uganda. They’re among the few who understand; they “get it,” and I feel so blessed to have them in my life.

Thanks, in part, to them, I recognize that I had been mourning a loss when I should have been grateful for the experience because one cannot lose something unless she has first gained it. Now, instead of feeling helpless and overwhelmed, I feel comfort in knowing that my work in Uganda is not done and the relationships I have formed will remain across distance and time.

I may be different than I was before Uganda, but I now accept my new quirks with ease, knowing that they represent a time of learning, growth, friendship and love. Maybe being different isn’t such a bad thing after all.

Related posts:

1. The Intern-al Life: Reflections of Abby McNamara
2. Interns Leave Their Mark on ChildVoice
3. Vocational Training in Uganda: Grace’s Story