We wish to thank all our many supporters. With your help, we have been able to assist our friends of the Kyamaganda Community Development Organization, KCDO, to purchase land and plant a sustainable garden that will both feed orphaned HIV-positive children, as well as provide funds for their ongoing medical needs.

The children are planting the garden themselves, with help from KCDO Director, Willy Bukenya.

Willy provided us with this update:

“In February 2021, KCDO appealed to WBS about the need to procure a plot of land which was adjacent to the piggery project that was on sale. KCDO currently has 35 children on ART (ARVs) under our care at the centre. The main challenge was lack of food and malnutrition challenge that can cause non suppression and timely sickness. Through A miracle, we sold some pigs to raise local contribution and Wonderland BookSavers contributed a bigger percentage to raise the 70% first installment that was needed.

We paid off and we immediately set nursery bed for cabbage, maize, soya peas with active involvement of children themselves, Director and the mother who cares for the children. Water was a challenge and we had strong rosary in which we eventually received rainfall.

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We transferred the seedling from nursery bed to garden as photos indicate. We used the pigs’ dung to fertilize the garden and we expect the following.

Expectations:

• If all goes well, the garden will yield:-
• 6bags of maize each with 100kgs valued at $85.
• 2000 cabbages from the harvest costed at $285.
• 10 baskets of carrots with a value of $57.
• 10 bags of Green paper with value of $171
• 300kgs of soya peas   $153.

Once the harvest period is ready in July, the following challenges will be overcome.

• The cost of buying food will be reduced by 85%.
• The nutrition of vulnerable children will be boasted and their health immunity improved.
• The children and KCDO beneficiaries will acquire modern skills of farming which can be passed over to other households.
• The garden serves as a demonstration site for the community and this can be replicated to other surrounding villages.

Challenges:

The need to have KCDO spray pump and enough fertilizers through adding on number of pigs and a cow project for cow dung supply and milk supply too.”

UPDATE

Through your generosity, we have now been able to purchase the land and KCDO has complete title to the land. This land is adjacent to the KCDO Library, which we previously funded and which currently houses orphans who cannot reside in schools due to Covid closures. This land is also adjacent to the piggery which we funded a few years ago. The piggery has expanded, providing multiple households with their own small piggeries. Pig dung is being used to fertilize this garden; pig sales provided the initial downpayment on this land.

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One more contribution: We were able to purchase this motorcycle so that KCDO staff can continue to assist children living in distant rural regions.

We send our thanks to the many who have helped us bring some security to these vulnerable children!