The Center is Buzzing!

Things are really hopping at our Girl's Vocational Center in Buwudha village!  This is our 3rd year at this location. Thanks to all of you, the girls have a place to go where they can learn and get support!

The girls who come to the center had to drop out of traditional school because they could no longer afford school fees. Many are orphans. Many are young, single mothers. Most have only basic literacy skills.  Their self-esteem is usually pretty low when they first start the training course.

These are the forgotten girls that I often talk about. In rural Ugandan society, they are on the lowest rung of the social ladder. Often, girls don't know their rights as a women, and often they are abused, or become taken in by a man who promises them money for food or period supplies, but then leaves them pregnant and alone.

Even with a formal education, securing a job with a livable wage is very difficult in Uganda, especially in the rural areas.  That is why we work to teach skills and create job opportunities. 

These girls have a strong desire to learn a skill so they can support themselves and their children. 

Despite all of their challenges, they keep showing up.

As you can see, we are bursting at the seams in our tailoring course at the center !  We can fit about 10 girls at a time, plus the instructors, but it's a tight fit (sorry for the sewing puns .)  

We've had to move the hairdressing course to a community member's yard because of a lack of space. This means we can only have classes when the weather is good. It's not ideal for learning and there is no place to store supplies.

We now have a waiting list of girls who want to attend both the tailoring and hairdressing classes. The dream, and our long-term goal, is to have a much larger space where we can accommodate the number of girls who want to learn.

We want to add counseling services and classes for basic instruction for the girls in literacy and math skills.  The center would also serve as a hub for our reproductive health classes. We would also like to add a couple of other training areas for skills that are in demand.

Ideally, the location would be one that could grow with us to eventually include a space for health screenings, immunizations, a preschool, and agricultural learning for food security.

Our first step toward making this happen is creating an advisory group to discuss ideas on how to help this dream become a reality. 

Who better to ask than you, our wonderful group of dedicated supporters?  Maybe you have an expertise or skill that you feel could help. Or, you have a passion for what we are doing and want to be a part of the planning. We would meet online and start to brainstorm. The collective mind is a powerful thing!!

If you're interested, contact me. I'd love to hear from you!

Thanks for all you do!  You are making an incredible difference for these girls!

With Gratitude,

Mary

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