A visit to a Child-Headed Household

Their new home compound, fuel-efficient kitchen and the pregnant goat :)


Joseph and Clementina Sekabira, just 12 and 13 years old, respectively, were orphaned four years ago when their mother died of HIV. Their father passed away in 2002 from an unidentified internal illness. The day we visited this Child-Headed Household (CHH) in June 2008, we found the two of them sitting outside cooking their lunch on a three brick fire outside the unfinished house RACOBAO was building for them. They were both full of smiles to see some RACOBAO representatives, still very grateful for the help the organization is providing them. And I’m sure the sight of a new mattress and blanket also brought some smiles to their faces. After a few minutes, several neighbors made their way over to where we were standing with the children. Two of the visitors were an older couple that check in on the young family every once and a while to ensure that they are alright. Their older sister is married and not too far away, so she and other relatives assist Joseph and Clementina with food as well as emotional support.

As sad as the reality of the situation is, the children both seem to have high spirits. Clementina explained that she is in Primary Three, which leaves four years until secondary school, and that when she grows up she would like to be a teacher. Joseph told us that if he were able to go to school, he would be in Primary Two; but, unfortunately, although primary school is free the uniforms are not and he does not have the money to buy one. He also said that he would love to be a policeman or a soldier when he gets older. I could see how much he wanted to go to school and knew the added tragedy of this boy not having that chance. Fortunately, I knew there was some money available from some recently donated funds and assured Joseph that we would get him that uniform and some books too. We would help get him into school where he belongs! Before we left that day, I asked Joseph and Clementina what their biggest dream is for their lives and Clementina answered that they would really love to have more land so that they could have a big farm. They would grow matooke (the staple banana), beans, cassava and raise chickens and goats. As agriculture is a huge part of Ugandan life, I was not too surprised by this answer. I also posed this question to the brother and sister: “during your everyday life, what is something that you think ‘if only we had this, our life could be better’?” I was expecting a more typically western answer like a ball to play with, but Clementina’s answer really hit me hard, “cups, plates, a knife, forks.”

AN UPDATE:

In early March 2009 we returned to Joseph and Clementina’s home to give them a pregnant goat (Give Me a Goat, Give Me a Chance Project) that was donated by an American couple as a Christmas gift from their daughter. The pair’s older sister and younger sister are currently staying with them for a bit of time, so it’s nice to know that they are not always staying on their own. And it was so great to see the children’s new home compound; not only was the house finished, but RACOBAO had also built a latrine, kitchen (with a fuel efficient stove) and water tank for this family and had provided them with a saucepan, a water basin, three plates and a second mattress and blanket.

Joseph and Clementina are still full of smiles and feeling happy and I know that the support they receive from RACOBAO has a lot to do with that. Now they are both in school, an improvement from the last visit, and they still dream about having a farm. I explained that this goat can be the beginning of that farm for them; it can help them make that dream come true. If they take care of the goat and her offspring, she will be happy and healthy and continue to produce for them. When they have enough goats, they can begin to sell the goats to buy the supplies and seeds they need to grow the matooke, cassava and beans they spoke about in June. They can become more self-sufficient. And most importantly, they won’t have to worry about where their food will come from each day…something that is still one of their challenges today. I was so happy to see Joseph and Clementina again and know that their life is improving. As a westerner, it’s hard to imagine that Child-Headed Households exist in our world today, but they do; and with organizations like RACOBAO supporting these households with the donations they receive from around the world, these children are not alone or forgotten, but rather given hope for a better tomorrow.

February Recap 2: A trip to Lake Bunyonyi and some work

...continued from Feb Recap 1:

Because of my late return to Lyantonde and prior plans to meet a few friends for the weekend, I was only home for a day before leaving again for another weekend trip. So, the third weekend (February 20 – 23) was spent relaxing in Kabale and Lake Bunyonyi…only about 30 minutes from the Rwandan border. Kabale is a really nice town with a much cooler temperature than I am used to in Uganda. And Lake Bunyonyi definitely lived up to all I had heard…namely that it is one of the most gorgeous, if not most gorgeous, destinations in the country. I spent the weekend with 3 other Americans on a small island in the middle of the lake. We used dug-out canoes (from eucalyptus trees) to get to our “hotel”; about a 40 minute paddle of which we were meant to assist in the paddling and gladly did. My friend Kristen had booked us beds in one of the “Geo-domes” which is an open air hut on a platform overlooking the lake. So in the early mornings, as we slept under our mosquito nets, we could hear thousands of birds chirping and look out to see the hills on the other side of the lake and the world reflected on the water. It was so stunning and tranquil…such a perfect weekend getaway. And besides a quick swim in the water (much cooler than the warm Nile), we did little more than sit around chatting or reading and eating the delicious food.

And finally, to close out the month (February 27 – March 3), I returned to Kampala for a dance festival and a tutorial on website editing/design. The dance performance was really great, showcasing different types of modern dance and including a performance by four westerners and three Ugandans entitled, “Life After Obama”. Watching them dance and hearing one of them sing and then perform a few monologues was really inspiring. The way they expressed themselves and their feelings about this new chapter in American and World History was so creative…it really made me reflect, which is what art is all about. Speaking of Obama, although I was sad to miss the inauguration festivities in Washington, DC, it was really great to be a part of the world’s audience here in Uganda. I watched the Inauguration on a big screen at one of the “western” restaurants in Jinja, surrounded by Ugandans and some other westerners (although few Americans). The atmosphere was very positive; even people continents away from the states were excited and full of hope for what is to come in the future.

I mentioned a tutorial on website editing and design. So FINALLY, we are making some progress in updating the RACOBAO website. I arrived in Uganda for the first time a year ago today (March 3) with the determination to fix the organization’s website as requested…even though that meant teaching myself how to do so. However, due to a huge lack in communication from our Internet Service Provider, it took us 11 months just to get all of the information needed (just the username, password and IP address) and gain access to make any changes to the website. When we finally received the needed information last month, I tried to teach myself how to make the edits, but quickly realized it would be best to be taught by someone more versed website design and editing. Fortunately, luck stepped in and introduced me to Kristen’s brother, Ryan, while we were relaxing on that island in Lake Bunyonyi. Ryan happens to be an experienced website designer who is here in Uganda visiting his sister and hoping to volunteer some of his services. So I took it upon myself to call on those services and set up a 2 day tutorial session in Kampala. Having just returned from that session this evening, I am feeling quite hopeful and confident that the website will finally be updated! This is the perfect project for me to work on while we continue to wait for our proposal to be approved by one of our biggest donors so that we can move forward with our field projects. So, for the first time in a long time, I have some real work to keep me busy and an end goal to strive to reach before leaving next month.

February Recap 1: A Ugandan Funeral

Wow…I guess I haven’t updated this for a month now. Let’s see if I can recap February for you!

After the first week back in Lyantonde, I realized that I would need to keep myself busy on the weekends so as not to feel too lonely. So for the second weekend (February 13 – 18) in February I actually returned to Jinja (as previously planned) to pick up some more of my things and visit with friends. I was hopeful that it would be a drama free return and it was. I ended up rafting for the 11th time, eating some of my favorite pork, riding around the villages on the shores of the Nile on a scooter and learning how to drive that scooter. You should have seen my face! I wish I could have seen it actually. I had such a HUGE smile and was laughing so hard from the joy of those first moments that I was crying and could barely keep my eyes open to steer. Luckily Charlie was sitting behind me and helped me steer until I could control myself a bit better! I’m sure it was quite a sight for all of the villagers we passed, seeing a Muzungu laughing her ass off as she tried to learn how to drive a scooter with a Ugandan on the back. Classic. All the time I have been here, I have never seen a Muzungu driving a Ugandan around town on a boda…it’s always the opposite. And a woman…regardless of color, I have never seen driving one!

On Monday, I was already in Kampala on my way home, but I ended up heading back to Jinja for a burial. Not only was a good friend to many of my friends killed in a car accident over the weekend; but then on Monday one of the women that worked at the campsite was killed in a terrible matatu (mini-bus taxi) accident. Mamma Tabis was a friend to all of my rafting friends and a woman I had spoken with on a few occasions so I decided to go to support everyone during that day. It was the first burial that I have ever attended in Uganda and very moving. There were at least 100 people packed into Mamma Tabis’ small yard; many people sitting amongst the trees on the outskirts, but also many people crammed into the main area where people were speaking. Of course I couldn’t understand what was being said as they spoke in their local language, but it was obvious how much this woman was loved and would be missed. There were songs and tears and also people collecting money for the family and her children and presenting those gifts. Finally, the body, which had been lying in the house for the last day to be mourned over, was brought out to be put in the grave that the friends had dug in the yard. As the people gathered around the grave site crying and saying their last goodbyes, the male friends mixed the concrete to pour over the body. It was beautiful to watch my friends (ranging in age from 20 - 35) quietly working together to mix that concrete…I could really see in their movements how much they wanted to honor Mamma Tabis. They were sweating in the African heat and dirty from the mixing and I knew their arms and backs must be tired…but they didn’t stop mixing. Death is such a strange thing here. Ugandans very rarely show emotions, so when surprised by an untimely death most of them keep their stoic fronts and respond to your condolences with “thank yous”, but also by saying, “Such is life. What are we to do?” And although few people showed their emotions in tears, I could still see the sorrow they were feeling in their faces and eyes. After the burial, many of my friends returned home to gather coats and blankets for the evening. As is tradition here, the friends and family of the deceased stay with the body until it is buried and then spend 3 more nights sleeping at the house. During those nights, the women are usually inside quietly talking and resting and the men stay outside to maintain the traditional fire, tell stories about their lost friend and share a few drinks.

To be continued...