Hopeworth, our Haven.
Our Haven materialized through the compassion and assistance of numerous individuals who embraced and shared Masika's mission, initiated nearly a decade ago along the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo.
When Masika laid the foundation, her family provided steadfast support, sharing the burden of securing a future for the children. Over the years, Masika traversed from one location to another as the number of children in need steadily grew, accompanied by escalating challenges. Despite the prolonged period of uncertainty, our cause garnered attention from kind-hearted individuals, both locally and through social networks. A network of foreign supporters emerged, contributing their skills and resources. Some volunteered in Uganda, offering support to the foundation, while others facilitated medical bill payments and initiated fundraisers through their personal networks.
After years of meticulous planning, financial prudence, and collective sacrifices, 2019 marked a significant milestone. It was the year when we realized the dream of bringing all the children together under one roof—Our Haven. Situated just a few kilometers away from Kasese and a mere 5-minute drive from our school, Our Haven has become a place our children proudly call home.
Masika's word on how everything started.
It all started in 2014: I was 23 when I founded the HopeWorth Children's Foundation. At the time, I was working as a volunteer nurse in a Ugandan hospital near the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). At the hospital we had received many children victims of the ongoing war in the Democratic Republic of Congo, some of whom had no relatives to take care of them. Seeing the agony and suffering endured by these children, I could not decide otherwise: I would help them feel safe and give them a future.
Orphans in need of protection
Six of these children were identified as orphans, completely disconnected from their relatives and left alone. After a conversation with my maternal aunt Zebia, who worked as a senior nurse in the same hospital, she agreed to take in these children after discharge from the hospital. The children spent two years safely in his home and my grandfather Stephan agreed to provide shelter for the children in his home, located in the mountains of Kyallumba.
When I began to realize that I had taken on the enormous task of being a guardian for these homeless children, I realized that they would need adequate shelter for their daily meals, clothing, and access to education. This meant that I had to earn more, so I started asking for better job opportunities to earn not only for my life but also for the well-being of the children. It was at this time that my friend Daniel Masereka told me about a job as a nurse at the "Bishop Masereka Christian Foundation" clinic. A few months after my application, the Foundation invited me for an interview and thank God I got the job.
Guardian for abandoned children
My grandfather was too old and weak to meet the basic needs of children. Using the salary from my new job, I rented a house in Basecamp, along Kilembe Road and enrolled the children in the nearby Calvary Nursery and Primary School. However, looking at my salary I realized that it was not enough to meet the basic needs of the children and myself. Therefore, I started conducting local fundraisers seeking the help of colleagues and friends to be able to send the children to school, offer them daily meals and shelter. But it simply wasn't enough.
A new home, a new school
Perpetual war, we are resilient
As time went on, the number of children coming to our Foundation continued to grow. Orphans that I myself found wandering the streets alone or brought to me by other people, who in turn had always found them on the street or in other contexts of abandonment. Fortunately we were noticed by some kind-hearted people, also through social networks, and a small network of foreign people took shape that began to collaborate and support us. Some came to Uganda as volunteers to support the foundation with their skills and donations. Some helped us pay for the children's medical bills, others launched fundraisers through their families and friends. Others offered help in relation to the architectural design and construction of the new children's home, others to agriculture and gardening. And... we arrive to 2019, when we finally established our Haven.