I’m so proud of the work I’ve been doing as a board member of THARCE-Gulu, a charity to help the war affected people of Gulu, Uganda. It has completely taken up my life this year, but the work is so important and the opportunities so great.
Uganda has suffered more than most places on the planet as they’ve lived with the effects of colonialism, psychotic despots, attacks from evil rebel leaders, kidnapped children used as soldiers, sexual slavery, and extreme poverty. As a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, it especially pricks my heart to email with the leaders of the church there in Uganda. My brothers and sisters in this gospel have been through nightmares. Knowing that we share this background makes it personal to me. I feel like it is not just my Christian obligation to help, but a covenant I made to God when I was baptized.
It took so so many hours, but we’ve been able to take all our good intentions, all the suggestions from our friends in Uganda, and build an organization around it. As I type this our president is landing in Uganda to buy the land that the future center will be built on. A center for the people of the community to use as a place to recover from the trauma of war, get access to mental health services, benefit from visiting experts in music, dance, sports, art, and filmmaking therapy, and recover some of the opportunities that were lost to them during this decades long war.
Thanks to having a talented and passionate friend, we’re already getting a lot of attention for our efforts. I spent this whole year working on the website and I launched it just a few weeks ago.
Please check out the site, read up on what we’re doing, and donate.