Monday, February 27, 2017

Love Crosses Oceans

I am so excited about an amazing opportunity! In September, I will be moving to Gulu, Uganda to serve for 6 months with Four Corners Ministries. 

As many of you know, I have a passion for education, working with people who have disabilities, and sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ. These passions combined while I was on a mission trip in Nakuru, Kenya in 2014.

I met a 13-year-old boy with an intellectual disability. He was in a class with 3-year-olds because he was unable to pass basic tests that would send him to a higher grade. It broke my heart to see how many people in other countries have very little, or no knowledge about people with disabilities. They are often seen as a curse, hidden away from society. 

My goal is to remove this stigma and help places around the world understand how truly wonderful people with disabilities are. In 2015, I was able to return to the same orphanage and assist a special educator as she performed IQ tests on 10 children who we thought might have disabilities. From these experiences, The Lord gave me a desire to work with nonprofits on enhancing special education at a global level.

As of 2014, there were about 2.5 million children living with a disability in Uganda, with the northern region having the highest prevalence. This same study states that only about 9% of these students are enrolled in a primary school.

The Lord has answered my prayers and has given me an amazing opportunity to accomplish this dream of providing Hope & Education For Every Nation. With Four Corners, I will be raising awareness around the community and showing others how to recognize a person's abilities rather than their disabilities. 

I will be training the teachers at Abaana's Hope in the area of special education. Most importantly, I will be telling the Acholi people group about the good news of Jesus Christ!

Please help me with my life's passion of Hope & Education for Every Nation. I have an exciting fundraising opportunity coming up, so please stay in touch to help send me to Uganda!