Smile Africa is an organization in Tororo, Uganda. There are normally 450 kids here, who receive food, showers, and schooling. We were able to go there for two days, to play with the kids, and love on them. The children were from the ages of about 1-10, and were all dying for attention. They have few teachers there, and a women named Pastor Esther led the whole program. These children are sponsored by people around the world, but are still fighting to survive. Many of them are still facing starvation, but the longer they have been at the orphanage, the healthier they get. The children LOVE having people come to play with them, and so our time was precious.

All of the pictures you see here, are pictures my friends and I have taken during our time at Smile Africa. In this picture above, you see that this young girl (4years old) is taking care of her baby sister. Even though they are at the orphanage, they still are responsible for their younger siblings. They bathe them, feed them, and watch over them. You may also see that the baby has a waist band on. We were all curious as to why the young girls wear these around their hips, and we asked one of the African men at the church why it was. He explained to us that is it "culture" for young girls to do this, as early as birth! They use the waist band to keep their waists smaller because AND I QUOTE "the men like it that way".

Here is a picture of some of our friends after eating their porridge for breakfast! It was so fun to meet the people who take care of these children. They receive little or no pay, but take care of hundreds of children every single day. Oh how much patience they have! Praise God. Pastor Esther was amazing. Although she gets weary at times, she is a strong, determinded lady. She was in charge of contacting supporters, teaching the children, and programming for Smile Africa.

 

These are some pictures of me and the kids. If they find you sitting down, they will crowd around you and sit down in your lap. The two girls in my lap on the picture on the left were adorable! They sat in my lap for an hour singing songs in Swahili together. As soon as I would start to sing with them, they would stop and look at me like... "what do you think you are doing!" so I would stop, and they would sing and rock back and forth. The other pictures are of my dearest friend and I, however, I never got to know her name because she wouldn't tell me! God bless her, she is an angel of God, the love in her heart is a gift that only God can give her. I hope we can go back there someday to see them again.

            It breaks my hear to know all of the groups that have gone in there for a couple of days. All of the American mzungus who have poured out their hearts only to leave those children. It just doesnt seem right. And even though it was so great to BE with them, cuddle with them, hold them, laugh with them, and sing with them, I know that what they really need is someone who will STAY with them. I know that they have poured out their love to so many people, and every single time they do, that person leaves, most likey, to never return. God bless people like Esther and the staff at Smile Africa, they pour out their hearts to the kids, they love them, and they STAY with them. God has shown me a little bit of his compassion that he has for the orphans here, and I know that it is something I will have for a long time. I thank all of you for your support and your prayers, and I want you to know what a blessing it has been to be here with these children. I heard it said once, "there is something wrong in the world, why dont you do something about it". Its easy to think that when you hear a phrase like this, it MUST mean spending time in Africa with little children, however, this message is for you too. Whether you are in Africa or America, an office building or burger king, elementary school, college, or mommy school, there is a ministry that God has for you. It doesnt matter where you are, or what you are doing, God will have something for you to do, and somewhere for you to just BE. I love you all and miss you tons! Go and be blessed!

 

Alison