Can you imagine a place where the smiles are welcoming, the people are dressed in their finest clothing, and they greet you with a special Ugandan handshake? The community in Aduko opened their homes to us and we were able to eat together and sleep in their grass huts. Our two days began with meeting the church leaders, registering our presence with the deputy mayor, visiting the medical centre, and local schools. This process is very formal as we make introductions and sign their visitor book. After this we are able to have a real discussion. These conversations have been helpful and we will share more with you when we return. In the area we are known as "munu" the white people. The children are very curious, full of smiles, and bright shining eyes. We are told that many have never seen a white person before. We were surprised to see the condition of their school. There are 1300 primary students with only 22 teachers in 13 classrooms. We wonder how can a child learn in this environment. The local food includes cassava, chicken, and rice. After our first night in the grass hut with pigs, turkey's, dogs barking, and roosters crowing we were given a breakfast of Fanta orange pop and spaghetti! We also had a good laugh at using the hole in the ground for a latrine. We set off to meet Anna and her family she is living openly with her HIV status and she was able to talk with us about her struggles and challenges. She is a very brave woman. We then went to her neighbour who is suffering from cancer. It was a very sad place to be but we were at least able to pray with her and her family. Then we heard a very encouraging story of CRWRC 's Food Security program where several farmers have been able to improve their lifestyle and have food for their families to eat. We were able to participate in this program by handing over an ox and orange seedlings to community members. It has been raining and the people praise God because they have been experiencing a drought. Many people have commented that the rains have come at the same time as their visitors.

We hit the road early this morning, a 6AM start and there were many people walking and biking through the streets already at that hour. We crossed the mouth of Nile River, the bridge was protected by armed guards - apparently to prevent the possibility of someone blowing it up and cutting off a major truck route to the coast in Kenya. We stopped for breakfast at a gas station shortly beyond this point, where Julie had another encounter with a creature - a cockroach with a body the size of a tennis ball. Pieter chose to use the bathrooms, Kristin & Julie did not.

We continued on to Soroti where we were warmly greeted by Millie, Edward's wife and his son Jesse. We had a great meal at their home including potatoes, rice, peas, chicken, beef, atap (a mixture of cassave & sorghum) and chapati (a whole wheat pancake). Millie shared with us about her work at a pre-school and with an HIV/AIDS organisation, she also showed us the school she works at. Jesse had fun playing with the toys that we had brought for the pre-school. We then started the bumpy journey north to Lira. Edward was looking forward to a quick trip on a new highway, however the highway was not yet prepared for traffic and we had to take many detours on dirt roads, bouncing through the lush countryside. We arrived at our guesthouse in the late afternoon and after a time of rest and dinner are now sitting inside as the thunder crashes and the rain pours outside. Pieter and Edward are intently watching a soccer match on tv. Tomorrow we will meet Reverend Jacob in the town of Aduku and will be staying with host families in the evening. We will update again when we can.

Thank you for your continued prayer as we begin our week of visits and partnership discussions.

After two days of travel we are here! Our first day in Kampala has been an adventure of sights, sounds, and smells. We saw men transporting wood by boat on Lake Victoria. Kampala is a place full of people busy on the streets. For some reason the taxi drivers did not think we should be walking. They were very friendly and kept trying to have us ride in their car. Edward is staying with us and showing us around to climatize to the culture. So we are in good hands. Thank-you for your prayers! Tomorrow we have a long and leave at 5am to journey by car to Soroti where we meet Edward's family and then Lira where we will meet Rev. Jacob. So far the food has been great! Julie did have an encounter with a bat and then later a salimander in her bath tub. We will post more when internet is available.

Hey guys!
Good luck on your trip. I hope all goes well. I wish I was there with you. We'll be praying for you!

Matt

Three more sleeps until we leave! Pray God will protect us and bless the partnership talks.
Kristin

PiH Itinerary June 25 - July 9 2009

1. Thursday, June 25: Leaving for Uganda
2. Friday, June 26: Arriving at Entebbe airport 8:00 PM. It will be pitch dark.
We then drive to a guest house in Kampala.
3. Saturday, June 27: Meetings with CRWRC staff at CRWRC head quarters in Kampala.
4. Sunday, June 28: Travel to the city of Lira in Northern Uganda. A trip of 61/2 hrs North.
5. Following Monday thr. Saturday: Field trips, meetings with church leaders, school teachers,
etc.
6. Sunday, July 5: Church service, likely in Aduku, and then the trip to Murchison Falls in NW
Uganda. A trip of about 3-31/2 hrs West.
7. Monday, July 6: Staying at Murchison Falls National Park
8. Tuesday, July 7: Return trip to Kampala.
9. Wednesday, July 8: Meeting with CRWRC staff in Kampala and leaving Uganda late evening.
10. Thursday, July 9: Arriving early morning in Amsterdam, sight seeing in A'dam, leaving
A'dam late afternoon and arriving in Calgary in the evening, the Lord willing.

Pieter Hendriks

Welcome to Partners in Hope

Welcome to the blog for Partners in Hope - Calgary.

Follow along as we detail our adventures in working with and partnering with a community in Northern Uganda.

Our first trip to Uganda is schedule for June 25 - July 9. Your prayers for Kristin, Julie and Pieter are encouraged.