The children that we take in our children homes in Vision for Africa all have – no matter their age – already very touching and tragic stories when they come to us. They are either orphans, rejected, dumped, neglected, mistreated or found in degrading conditions, so that the need for help is required in all areas.

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Besides medical care it is most relevant for new children to socialise in their new families, to receive the love they missed out on their whole lives, and to be well-fed with enough food and drinks, fruits and juices in order to get strong and healthy and for proper growth.

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Here we tell a few of these tragic stories of our children, to give better understanding and insight into the state of calamity of Uganda's children and also to show the great need of the help and work of Vision for Africa.

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NOTE:

Even though the below stories are not fictitious but the real stories of some of our children, their names have been changed and we will not publish photos or other personal information in order to protect the children's privacy.

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The story of Paul

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Paul* was only one month old when his mother died; and even before that when Paul was still in the womb, his father had denied his responsibility and had left the pregnant woman. The parents of the mother were not willing to raise the child, so the orphaned baby came to his other aunt, to the sister of his father who already had four children.

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Little Paul was not taken care of properly but very neglected. By the time when a team of Vision for Africa came to see him at his aunt's place, his health was in danger, he was malnourished, the body was too weak to being able to walk, he was skinny and very small with big saliver-filled cheeks. He was very fearful and timid, afraid of people and never laughing.

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We got him to us to Vision for Africa and soon found out that he had a very good appetite, and already after two months being fed and well-treated he had changed a lot. He is now in safe hands and is being taken care of very well here in one of our children homes. Paul is now a happy child with a good smile, he has changed a lot, he has even started to speak a few English words recently, which is a great blessing.

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The story of Aisha

 

Aisha* has a very tragic story. She was abused. Her muslim parents separated when she was one year old and she came to her father who had three children, she was the youngest. Unfortunately, there Aisha did not get enough care. At her young age she was already treated badly and missed a lot of things.

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When the pastor from Vision for Africa visited her there, she was malnourished, beaten and in a very bad condition. She was then taken to the clinic in Vision for Africa but after treatment she had to go back to her home. At the following visit of the family, we found Aisha with a big, very bad wound on her hand. As a punishment because she had taken some sauce, the caretaker had burnt her fingers by dipping her in something hot. For at least two weeks she had neglected the responsibility to send the girl to hospital for medical treatment, until the Vision for Africa team found her there with the bad wound which was still getting worse and already drying out. Immediately Vision for Africa took her to a hospital and the doctors could not help any further but to amputate her fingers. It was a very painful situation for all people involved, especially for little Aisha.

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By now her wounds have healed and she can use her hand up to 40 per cent. She went through many very traumatising situations which we realized also in her social behaviour, that it was very hard for her to listen because she had been so mistreated. When she came to Vision for Africa she was in her kindergarten's age and weighed only 10 kilograms! It was another kind of punishment to not give her food.

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Here in her new home she has a very good appetite, she eats as much as she can. For almost half a year we left her at home in one of our children homes without taking her to school, because she first had to recover, to rehabilitate and to socialize. She was just in Daycare and learned to play with other children, she also learned English and became softer in her nature and happier…

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Now she can eventually smile and laugh and does not have any pain anymore. We praise the Lord that we found her and could help her, and also that she is developing so wonderfully!

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The story of Baby Glory

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Glory's mother died after giving birth and her father is already and older man with a big family of seven children from different women. It was too much for him to care for another baby, so he asked for help in Vision for Africa.

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Glory came to our 'Land of Hope' when she was only two days old. By now she is a healthy little girl and through loving care, proper treatment and love she has already grown a lot. We are very thankful to have Glory with us, who is already a gift to us and for sure she will still become an even bigger blessing for many!

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The story of Serena

 

The background of Serena* is very similar to the one from Glory*. Her mother also died after giving birth to her, it was the same year where many mothers died after giving birth. Serena's father could not care for the baby, as he was only a boda boda driver (motorcycle-taxi driver) who has neither the money nor the time to raise another child.

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Serena is now a healthy little girl and lives in Vision for Africa with all her many brothers and sisters who share similar stories. Maybe Serena will be able to go back to her family later, in some years when she is older, but for now she is in save hands, gets the love of a family, care, education and the knowledge that there is a heavenly father called God, who created her and loves her unconditionally just like she is.

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The story of Daniel

 

Daniel* is a real Daniel of the Old Testament in the bible, because he is a blessed child that was saved from further dangers. It seems that his biological mother dropped him somewhere close to the village of Vision for Africa. Already on the following day a woman found him and took him to the police station close by.

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Nobody was there to take care for the baby, so the police brought him to Vision for Africa on the very same day, where he spent the first night at Mama Maria Prean's place.

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Daniel was a very tiny, thin and fragile baby, maybe he came a little bit too early. But now he has grown a lot and gained weight, he eats a lot and is a happy, vivid boy who feels very comfortable in his new family.

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The story of Sarah

 

Sarah* is a little half-orphaned girl, that lost her dad when he died on Aids, so she was left with her mother. Her mother had as well HIV and her health condition was a problem, but she was surviving in doing work as a house-maid in a house of a muslim woman who payed her very little and treated her badly. Poverty was the problem of Sarah's family.

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Her mother fell sick with TB and had to stay in bed, so that her child Sarah was alone all around and had no one to care for her. A pastor of Vision for Africa used to visit the woman and her child with the „compassion ministry“ once in a while, and saw that the child was alone, neglected and malnourished, because the mother was unconscious of her sickness. He knew that she could die of hunger and carelessness or even get kidnapped.

She was skinny and sick and looked very hungry and dirty. So Vision for Africa took the child. She needed help and support in form of food, care, sponsorship (schooling), medical treatment, clothes, love and safety. When little Sarah came to us to Vision for Africa, she was so hungry, that she ate two full plates at once. After two months her mother once came to see her.

Sarah is now being taken good care of in one of our children homes, where she got two loving Mamas and many lovely brothers and sisters and she is growing and greatly developing.

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Poverty is the biggest problem in many Ugandan families: they have no food, no soap (bad hygiene), no clothes, and often even no shelter, no place to stay. The children are suffering so much. We are glad to be able to help some of them due to the support of our beloved sponsors. And how good to know, that our heavenly father has an eternal home waiting for all of them, where they will receive total love, acceptance and peace forever.

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The story of Rachel

 

Rachel's* father left her mother already before she was born. Her mother had HIV and died soon after giving birth, due to complications during the process of giving birth. Therefor the grandmother took the child, but she was too old for being able to care for a new born baby. She lives in a house that does not belong to her and she was not able to give Rachel what she needed, neither food nor care.

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Little Rachel could not laugh, she was always sad, and instead of being asked why and being cuddled they were angry with her because she was sad all the time. Through a friend of Vision for Africa Rachel was taken to our 'Land of Hope' to Vision for Africa.

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She was very sick, her body was weakend from Malaria and Typhoid. Through medical treatement, enough food and immune boosters she got well and today you find a happy and friendly school girl playing with her friends, talking a lot… We are also glad that she is hardly getting sick anymore but is developing into a really strong and cheerful girl just like all children should be.

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The story of Allan and Anna

 

These two have a very sad story. After Allan's and Anna's* parents separated, their mother was alone with them. They were still young by that time (Anna was 3 and Jonathan 5 years old) and their mother was not able to take care of the children, so she gave them to her father to care for them. The grandfather however, is already an old man and as well unable to take care of the two young kids, he has no steady job or income and neither has he time for them. He is a lonely man with his own frustrations and problems. So the children cooked food for themselves already by that young age. They were insecure with the grandfather who as well has alcohol problems and does not care about them.

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When a team of Vision for Africa came there and found them, they were malnourished, very skinny and hungry, had Malaria and many jiggars (parasites) in their feet which made it hard and painful for them to walk. The grandfather did not even realize the bad health condition of the children. Allan was seven years old and had never gone to school. So we took the children to Vision for Africa, where they first got their medical treatments in our clinic and got all their jiggars removed which took almost two full weeks.

After one month their wounds were healed.

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Ever since they came to Vision for Africa they never fell sick again. Everything in our 'Land of Hope' amazed Anna and Allan, who had never before seen a playground or toys and not even a loving home with caring mothers. They even ran around and to the slide with their still wounded feet, and they were so excited when they got tea and fruits… They had such a joy and could not believe their lucky and blessed situation so that even the other kids in their new home were moved and rejoicing with them.