AMG International - Uganda: Turning Tragedy into Triumph
The devestating tragedy in Uganda is giving AMG an extraordinary opportunity to demonstrate God's love by reaching out and bringing hope.
AMG's ministry to Uganda began in 1996, when Dr. Reuben Musiime and his family returned to their homeland of Uganda after studying for several years in the United States. Dr. Musiime, who is serving as National Director for AMG Uganda, oversees several flourishing ministries that are impacting the lives of people in Uganda in the name of Christ.
Uganda, Africa: A nation of approximately 30 million people. People who are devastated by poverty, stricken by disease, and desperately in need of the love of Jesus Christ. It is a country where one person out of every two lives in severe poverty. One out of every four suffers from severe malnutrition. It is a country that is home to over 2.3 million orphans - including almost one million AIDS orphans - a number that continues to rise.
Medical and health care services are inadequate to nonexistent in a land that is plagued by disease, including such illness as malaria and HIV/AIDS.
The true Gospel is being obstructed by false teachings, witchcraft, cultism, and Biblical illiteracy.
Our Mission Statement:
AMG International Uganda is committed to demonstrating the love of God to destitute children by providing them with education, health/medical care, and reaching out to the lost world holistically by providing physical, mental, and spiritual development. Our goal is to integrate the truth of God's Word into all aspects of life.
"Him we preach, warning and teaching every man in all wisdom that we might present every man perfect in Christ Jesus." - Colossians 1:28
Imagine a life growing up never being able to attend school, receive medical care when you are sick, or even have food to eat. For many children in Uganda, this is everyday life. Did you know that there is plenty of food to feed everyone in the world? Yet every day, 25,000 people die of hunger-related causes. The problem is that people are trapped in severe poverty. If parents do not have enough money to buy food, the family does not eat. They become malnourished, and children cannot go to school to receive an education and parents become weak and sickly, making them unable to work to provide money to buy food. This cycle will continue unless someone steps in.
Through the compassionate ministry of AMG International's Child Sponsorship Program, children and their families are offered the assistance they need to live. For $28 a month, a child is provided nutritious food, medical care, education, job skills, and most importantly, the good news of Jesus Christ. This ministry reaches far beyond helping the child, as families lives are changed by the love and compassion they see through AMG staff members.
Child sponsorship changes lives. Children who never had the hope of seeing the inside of a classroom are now attending school. Children who once suffered the effects of HIV are now receiving treatment and leading normal lives. And children who once walked the streets of their village lost and alone are learning about the life-changing love of Jesus Christ. It is this knowledge that they take home to share with their family and friends.
You can begin sponsoring a child today for $28 a month. Your sponsorship will immediately begin providing for a child to receive the benefits you have just read about and open a new world of possibilities. To find out more about how to become a child sponsor, click here.
AMG changes not only the lives of the children, but also changes the lives of the sponsors.
Children under the care of AMG receive a hot, nutritious meal and a snack each day.
Children are provided educational opportunities and are tutored if necessary.
The health condition of each child is monitored carefully, and children receive treatment when they are sick.
Each child is given a clear presentation of the gospel and receives support for spiritual development.
The children participate in praise and worship that is led by a small group of the children.
The children are taught how to pray and lift up their thanks and requests to the Lord.
Your child's teacher will purchase what the child needs most at that time or you may specify what you would like to have purchased for your child.
It costs $28 dollars a month, or $336 a year to sponsor a child. But equally important is the prayer support that your child receives from you.
An AMG Uganda child with "Buddy the Bear."
We encourage you to write to your child, and usually twice a year your child will write to you. It is a relationship the child will never forget.
AMG sponsors short-term mission trips to Uganda which are a great way to share the love of Jesus and meet the child that you have chosen to sponsor.
Let us reach out together to help these needy children.
I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.
'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me. - Matthew 25:40
Behind a steel gate surrounded by a tall, brick fence laughter and songs can be heard in the yard. Beyond the yard lies a sturdy little house that is home to 43 children. This is Camp El Har.
Camp El Har (Mountain of God) is a place of refuge for children whose lives have been forever changed by the AIDS crisis. These children have lost one or both parents to the disease and may even be carrying it themselves. But it's not a sad place to be. In the world's eyes, these children are orphans. In their eyes, they've been given a new family and a new hope.
Each child living at the Camp has a story about the transformation that took them from overwhelming heartache to endless hope. And although these children continue to face struggles, they have a place to call home, and a family formed by God to help them through.
Before coming to Camp El Har, these children had very little chance of being able to attend school, receive medical care, or in some cases even survive. AMG International is not only allowing them the opportunity to do all of those things, but they are also giving these children a reason to have hope. And that hope grows inside of them will one day help them change the world.
(keep looking for more updates on the construction progress.)
Dr. Musiime has a vision for helping orphaned children in Uganda. Construction has begun on Camp El Har, a home for children who have been affected in some way by the HIV/AIDS crisis. An 20-acre campus on the outskirts of Kampala will provide loving care, nutritious food, education, vocational training, and a Christ-centered living environment for needy children.
These children, once alone and homeless, will have a place to call home, a place to know the love of a family and of Christ Jesus.
The facility will include both Primary and Secondary classrooms, allowing students to receive an education through experienced staff who love the Lord. Small class sizes will give children an opportunity to receive the help they need in order to succeed. An open recreational area will allow children a chance to run and play, as well as learn sporting games, teaching them to work together.
A look at the plans for Camp El Har's Campus.
Camp El Har children get a first look at the place they will call home.
Dr. Reuben and Vincent have a great vision for the future of Camp El Har.
The children cannot contain their smiles while visiting the place of their new home.
Camp El Har would not be possible without the help of many sponsors. Our thanks to you!
Camp El Har will be home to many needy children.
The land was cleared in 2007.
Clearing the land was a quick process with equipment.
The land was cleared and ready for construction in July 2007. But then it became tied up in court.
The court process took over 2 years to settle, but we praise the Lord that we can begin construction.
The first building constructed is the Primary Classrooms.
Many of the bricks were made on site to cut costs.
Soon children will be walking down these corridors.
Children will soon fill these classrooms. Each classroom has its own storage area.
The roof is ready to be put up.
Their are many hard-working people helping make this possible.
Workers preparing to continue work on the roof.
Construction of Camp El Har as of October 2010
As of October 2010
Space for garden plots will also be available where children will learn to grow their own vegetables that can be used in their homes. Medical care will be provided within the sick bay, allowing for those children who are HIV positive or suffering from other illnesses to receive care on site.
Because connection to family is so important in African culture, children will also remain in contact with living relatives. Spending holiday breaks in their villages will give children the chance connect with family members, as well as allowing relatives accept some level of responsibility for the child.
Girls in Uganda face many challenges. Many of these girls are total orphans who come from poor families and are often abused by their guardians. They may be forced to drop out of school at a young age which opens the door to early marriage, pregnancy, and exposure to HIV/AIDS.
Mrs. Florence Musiime has worked to form AMG Uganda's Dorcas Ministry. A mother to four girls, she is using this ministry to meet the spiritual and material needs of these teenage girls within the AMG program. Since many of these girls do not have mothers, the AMG Dorcas ladies become like mothers to them. They provide guidance, counseling, and a love and knowledge only a woman can give.
In a culture where girls are often viewed as less important than boys, the Dorcas Ministry allows these growing girls to realize their self worth as women of significance.
AMG Dorcas Ladies : Dedicated to Serving Young Girls in Uganda by:
-Attending to the adolescent needs of teenage girls in all AMG centers
-Providing career guidance
-Providing health information on personal hygiene
-Providing spiritual guidance
-Providing counseling services to develop self esteem
In Joppa there was a disciple named Tabitha (which, when translated, is Dorcas), who was always doing good and helping the poor. - Acts 9:36
AMG children receive much needed medical care when they fall sick. The clinics also serve children and adults in the surrounding area, offering testing and treatment services. The clinic staff treats many illnesses, including malaria, tuberculosis, and pneumonia, as well as many others.
In one instance an AMG sponsored boy named Bill came to the clinic with a high fever, terrible pain in his body, and no smile on his face. He was tested and was found to have a bad case of malaria. Even Bills father said he had never seen the boy so sick in his life. Bill received immediate iv medication to treat the malaria. When he returned to the clinic the next day for his second round of medication, there was a noticeable difference in his health. He came in with a smile on his face and was out playing with the other children later that day.
Patients like Bill are seen and treated every day. Through the support of AMG Sponsors, lives are being impacted through providing medical services.
Hope Medical Clinic is located in Bugongi (Western Uganda).
A child waits to be seen by the medical staff.
The pharmacy at the clinic is well stocked with medication and fist aid equipment to meet the needs of the people.
AMG has a staff dedicated to helping people who are sick.
Children find healing in the medical services offered through AMG Uganda.
A child is showing courage as a clinic worker draws blood.
A medical clinic worker speaks to a parent about the child's illness.
The medical clinics offer a place for the sick to come and rest as they receive much needed treatment.
Bill is receiving treatment for Malaria.
Malaria Just one bite from an infected mosquito can cause high fever and extreme weakness. This infection prevents children from attending school and keeps parents from providing for their families. Despite being an easily treated illness, it takes the lives of over 1 million people each year because medication is not readily available in rural areas.
This should not be.
AMG Uganda is working hard to provide desperately needed medical and health services in some of the poorest areas. Through the work of Hope Medical Clinic in Bugongi (located in Western Uganda) and Bethany Medical Clinic in Igamba (located in Eastern Uganda), peoples lives are being changed.
AMG Uganda Videos
The children at Igamba CDC singing about God's love.
Photos from AMG Mission Adventure Teams to Uganda with children from Camp El Har singing.
Due to the impact of poverty in this country, AMG Uganda strives to equip people in local communities with the skills and materials necessary to become self-sufficient. Through the love of AMG sponsors, children have received special gifts. Families that receive these gifts are advised to start income generating projects such as farming, raising livestock, or selling goods and produce.
Teddy is a widowed mother of four children in Igamba. After her husband's death, life became very difficult. She had no skills so was unable to find consistent work. The family lived on one meal a day. The children could not attend school, and they lacked proper clothing and other basic needs. And to make matters worse, their one room house began to crumble. But Teddy found hope through the sponsorship of her daughters, Mariam and Sophie, by AMG.
A group of women works together to weave mats and generate income for their families.
Selling produce is a good source of income for families and also helps others around to get food.
The children were able to begin school and basic needs were met. The Lord also opened the door through a gift of $80 from the sponsor. She put the money to good use by starting a roadside business selling corn, beans, and groundnuts. Out of this small income, she has been able to provide food for the family, afford school fees for her other children, and build a new two room brick home.
The sponsor has helped with finances for a permanent stall to conduct her business from, and Teddy has dreams of building another room to her home to receive income through rent.
