What happens when they graduate?

Caleb and I love telling the story about Beautiful Response and the kids in Uganda. It is an easy story to tell. It is a story we have told more times than any other story. We love to tell people about all the kids in school, that some of them are at the very top of their class, and about the excellent schools that they are attending thanks to the generosity of so many.

The follow up question nearly always is what the kids will do after graduation. This part is not an easy story to tell. I typically stammer through something about university for some, trade school for others and that some might return to work for the organization where they grew up. But then I find myself admitting the truth; I don't know what they will do. There are four times more people graduating from university and training schools annually than there are available jobs. The reality in Uganda—as with many other places in the world—is that the economy is not big enough or active enough to absorb, employ and engage an ever increasing educated population. This reality does not make accessing the best education available to them any less valuable. On the contrary, education continues to be a critical building block for the kids and for a country that has so much to offer.

The US Africa Summit took place in Washington, DC earlier this month. Other than a near run in with the president of Mali’s motorcade, I had no involvement in the events that week. But even from a peripheral view, I found the narrative of the meetings so refreshing. The story was not about a group of people who needed the charity and goodwill of Americans. Rather, 50 African leaders were invited to the US because over the next five years, Africa will be home to 8 of the 10 fastest growing economies. US businesses see that Africa has so much to offer through its growing middle class, increasingly educated youth and abundant workforce.

There likely won’t be a job for the kids we sponsor when they finish school. Chances are slim that a US business invests in Kampala and is able to employ the kids we are sponsoring. In fact, more than likely, the kids will need to create new jobs in new industries for themselves and their peers. But business is growing in Africa and the kids we sponsor will be a small part of a generation that is highly educated and possesses the grit and commitment to change their story.

Through education and innovative ideas, they’ll get the chance to tell their own story.

The narrative in Africa is changing and seeing this group of kids excel in school is one piece of that.

Announcing Haiti

A week before my 11^th birthday my family moved to Haiti.  We left less than a year later, before I turned 13. Our stay was cut shorter than it should have been, but those brief months in Haiti molded who I was for the rest of my life. Those months led me to study abroad in Uganda during college where Sonja and I met Patrick and William and began Beautiful Response.

In September, I’m going back to Haiti.

Ticarme with friend and neighborhood partner, Jonas

A Haitian woman named Ticarme has been a leader in her community for decades. Her dream is to see the youth in her village educated. Small groups of capable students meet together to encourage and tutor one another. These kids have families and ambition, but not enough resources to attend schools term after term.  They are forced to drop out, or they attend school for a term, drop out, and then go back to school, never advancing.

Under Ticarme’s leadership, Beautiful Response is excited to announce a scholarship program aimed at ensuring that the kids who are capable of excelling in school get the chance to do so. 

Here’s how it works: Families apply for scholarships and work with Ticarme and her team to determine how much financial aid is needed. The students receiving scholarships get academic support from tutors and from peer groups.  Ticarme and her team keep tabs on the academic progress of the students and make sure they are given the tools they need to succeed and eventually graduate.

Since 2010, billions of dollars have been filtered into Haiti. In so many ways, it has been a development disaster. The amount of money and organizations doing development work in Haiti made us tentative about launching a new project there. But we believe that growth and progress in Haiti will come from Haitian leaders longing for the good of their own communities. Ticarme is that leader.  

We’re excited to see what happens. We’re excited to meet the students who will get a chance at an education. We’re excited about good Haitian leaders seeking after the good of their communities.

On September 10^th, 2014 I fly back to Haiti.

It will be 13 years, to the day, since I left.

Surrounded by Easter

I leave for Uganda on the night of Easter. 

I wonder where Jesus was on the night of Easter. We don't know, really.

We only know where He is not.  He is not in the tomb where he had been-where he was supposed to be.

On Easter night I will be on a plane going to Uganda. 

When I am in Uganda at the orphanage I am surrounded by Easter.

But you can only be surrounded by Easter if you are surrounded by Good Friday.

A baby was abandoned in the slums. She was found with burns.

A young boy was beaten, nearly to death, for not having a place to call home.

Kids were denied their right to eat, to sleep soundly, and to go to school when their parents died or left them.

In Uganda, I am reminded of the need for Good Friday.

But that baby was found, and her wounds are healing, and she will be strong.

The young boy's life was kept and we will work to find him a place to call home.

And the kids that were denied their right to eat, sleep, and learn are growing stronger and smarter year after year.

Death and life are much nearer to me in Uganda.

In Uganda, I am surrounded by Easter.

Say a prayer for us?

That we won't run away when it feels like Good Friday.

That we will see Easter happening all around us.

I’m going to Uganda and I'm never coming back

 by James Colten

       

        Don’t worry. I’m just kidding. 

        About the never coming back part. But in all seriousness, I’m going to Uganda in a little under 3 weeks. I leave Easter night and return a week later on Monday.

        Why Uganda?

        Great question. There are a lot of reasons why I’m going, but if I’m honest with myself, I think I’m a little bit crazy. When Caleb returned from Uganda the first time, he told me a story about a priest who lived in a slum. There are three things I remember clearly from his story:

        The first is that the priest led Caleb through the slums of Kampala. This was his parish, these were his people.

        Next, Caleb asked, “What can we do?” What can Western, American Christians do to help? I remember leaning in—this surely was the golden ticket to international development. A priest understands the appropriate balance between aid and ministry, so as to promote economic growth and development without creating cycles of dependency.

        But no.

        The priest, wise from many years of ministering to his city, said, “Tell them to come and see.”  My first reaction was this: Do you know how much it costs to fly to Uganda from United States? Don’t you know there are a thousand better ways to use that money? Surely there is something—books, vaccines, school fees, micro-loans—that would be a more effective use of USD.

        

        There is a boy named Herman who lives at Raising up Hope. I’ve helped him out with school fees since Caleb and Sonja first asked for sponsors. In his last letter he asked, “when are you coming to visit Uganda?”

        Herman, don’t you know that the plane ticket alone could pay for two years of schooling? Isn’t your education more important?

        In the same way that the priest’s words have stuck with me, so too has Herman’s question. He was really asking, “When can I show you where I live? When can I show you the school and the market?” and maybe even, “Do you actually want to get to know me?”

        Isn’t that all we want? To be known and to be loved? To come and see and show and be?

        There is a small part of me that hopes I come back new. Refreshed. As if Uganda is my Mecca, my Jerusalem, and this is a pilgrimage. Another part of me wants this trip to give me the energy and the heart to sustain my soul through the first two years of being a teacher in Washington, DC. And another, the chance to rub shoulders with two young men who are raising up hope in Uganda, so that I too may raise up hope in DC.

        I do not know what is going to happen, but I know I will be blessed.

        So why Uganda?

        Someone has to break the news to Herman that his sponsor doesn’t actually know Obama.

        If you are interested in supporting this journey beyond clicking, reading, and liking this post, check out this video I’ve recorded here.

Link: http://www.gofundme.com/jamescolten

not our orphanage, not our kids, not a mission trip

Sonja and I want to invite you to come with us to Uganda this spring.

You should come.

We've been praying about this trip for a while and we've been asking ourselves, how do you bring a group of Americans to Uganda in a way that is economical, wise, and faithful?

We're not totally sure.

But these three convictions guide every trip we take to Uganda:

It's not our orphanage,
they are not our kids,
and this is not a mission trip.

It is easy to slip and say things like, our orphanage. It is too easy.

But here is what we believe: All of the good and beautiful things happening at Raising Up Hope in Uganda, from the very beginning until today, are not ours. They were thought up and carried out by Ugandans who wanted, who needed to care for their own. We have gotten to be a part of that and it has been a blessing for us and hopefully for the staff and kids at RUHU. But we won't ever 'work' at the orphanage. It is not our orphanage, and we are committed to keeping it that way.

They are not our kids. This one is tough. It feels so nice to call them our kids. And sometimes it slips, and maybe it is fine. Maybe that ownership is good...but we try to avoid it. We try to avoid it because words matter, and the children who live under the care of RUHU aren't ours. They just aren't. They are God's, and they are Mama Faith's and Ellen's and Patrick and William's. And yes, we are theirs and they are ours in some profound way that I don't really understand...but to say that they are our kids is not really fair.

And this isn't a mission trip. It never has been. This is a trip to see some dear friends that we love.

We love them, and we must see them. And over the past few years, you have grown to love them too. And so you must see them.

Many of you have been sponsoring one of the children in Uganda for 3 years now. You are paying for their food, and you are sending them to school.
You have had pictures tacked on your fridge and the kids have had your pictures tucked under their foam mattresses.
You have written letters about your family and how the weather is.
And you have received letters from them.

They say,
"My best color is blue.
My best friend is Rachel.
My best subject is English.
I love you so much my dearest mom.
Thank you for the school fees. I miss you so much.
When will you come to Uganda?"

When will you come to Uganda?

You should come with us this spring.

We are aiming for the end of April or the beginning of May, but dates aren't final. So let us know when you could come.

You will not,
will not,
will not regret it.

info@beautifulresponse.org

Christmas Letter

In September I made a trip to Uganda to visit the kids. It has been three and a half years since Caleb and I first met Patrick, William, and the 42 kids who were living at Raising Up Hope.

Three and a half years later there are 60 kids living at the orphanage at Raising Up Hope. They have been in school for three years in a row, a consistency that many of them have never had before. Some have moved on to middle school and others have been accepted into high school. They all speak English more confidently. The kids are taller, healthier, and bigger than when we met them three and a half years ago. The babies are no longer babies and the older kids have become teenagers. It is a joy to know each of the kids and to see them grow and develop as individuals.

On this trip three and a half years later I am in Bulenga, Uganda for the dedication of the girls orphanage home. The Jireh House--named from the Hebrew word "to provide"-- is a wonderful four-bedroom house that has been beautifully furnished. With thankfulness to God and the many of you who gave generously, it has been a privilege to see Raising Up Hope grow to two orphanage homes.

On this trip I am reminded, once again, of the incredible work being done by Patrick, William, Faith, Allen, Hope, and Joyce-- all part of the RUHU staff. I am encouraged by the schools providing an excellent education, and I am grateful for the part you play in supporting each of the kids and loving them from afar. I am reminded that beautiful things are happening at RUHU and I feel so blessed to be apart of it.

We wish you a joyous and blessed Christmas season.

Sonja and Caleb

PS. Please do remember Beautiful Response when considering your end of the year giving. We look forward to an exciting new year! www.beautifulresponse.org