I started walking to work two times a week. Don’t get excited. The distance can’t be more than a mile. Still, it’s the perfect time to move my body, get lost in my thoughts, and spend ten minutes without hearing “Momma!” followed by a million requests. This new routine has also invited me to take a closer look at my neighborhood. Slowing down has reminded me of the
reality about going to school in Uganda—it’s sadly not possible for all families to afford education for their children.
Sixteen. That’s how many school aged children I saw on my walk today. They weren’t rushing to school. They weren’t in uniforms. Most of them weren’t even wearing clean clothes. Instead they were hauling water and pushing wheel barrows. They were operating fruit stands and playing near the roadsides. Then, from across the street a child waved at me and ran over.
“Auntie Alisha! Can I walk with you? They chased me from school again. No money.”
Sure enough it was Ivan. I met Ivan when he was only a toddler. He and his brothers attended the activity center where I was a teacher in 2009. When I reached my office I sat for a long time. I sat in the realization that it’s easier when the children not going to school are just faces or numbers. It’s when I know their names and stories that it becomes difficult to accept. The truth is
they all have names—each child across Uganda who isn’t going to school today. How many more are there like Ivan—living in a country where poverty is commonplace, corruption is rampant, and education is not free? Every Ivan in this country is why Terra Nova exists.
As I sat in my office with the clatter of children learning just outside the window my thoughts drifted to the
$50 needed each month to provide a scholarship for one student. What is $50 a month to most of us? A quick stop in Target? A few desserts or gourmet coffees?
It’s bold for me to ask for your help. You don’t know these children or the heartache of their families. But if I don’t ask for your help Terra Nova won’t be able to invest in more children like Ivan. They might never see the inside of a classroom. They won’t take exams much less pass them. They won’t even get to high school. Then, one day they’ll likely lose hope.
Terra Nova is asking for 30 new monthly partners to provide scholarships for 2 classes still in need of funding. We have 30 students waiting. Your $50 a month might not end Uganda’s enormous education crisis, but it can change the life of a child. Your $50 can take another Ivan from the roadside and put him in a classroom. It can sweeten life for an entire family struggling to pay school fees.
Some of you reading this are already giving. We cannot thank you enough for choosing to give hope to the children of Uganda. You give children the opportunity to learn in a beautiful classroom with space for everyone to explore. You give the food of a healthy diet—fruit, vegetables, and meat! You give children the chance to engage in activities with a teacher who receives regular professional training. What you give doesn’t just provide the basics. You’re providing the best we have to offer!
If you’re ready to partner with a family to give a child the hope of a brighter future visit
www.thatsmyclass.info and sign up to give monthly. You’ll be connected to a specific class and even receive handmade items and messages from the students in your class. All gifts are tax deductible and go directly to the ministry in Uganda.
Hope for another Ivan is just $50 away.
