Dear Future Friend of the GVCP,
I am writing to tell you how it was that I fell in love with the Global Village Children’s Project, in the hopes that you will too!
Nearly 20 years ago I attended a local conference on the impact of the AIDS pandemic in Africa. Anne Muyanga, who later become my dear friend and colleague, was a presenter at that program. She told a story that touched, and soon won, my heart.
Anne was raised in Wanyange, Uganda. Tragically, as AIDS swept through her hometown, her brother passed away. Shortly thereafter Anne’s widowed sister-in-law died as well. Left behind to fend for themselves were the first AIDS orphans that Anne cared for – her brother and his wife’s two young children.
It didn’t take Anne long to realize that she was not alone in her new role. All over Wanyange an entire generation of parents with young children was disappearing. Grandparents and extended family took in the more fortunate orphans. The less fortunate were left to fend for themselves, often living on the streets – the girls, especially, vulnerable to multiple dangers – and at best living without any parental nurturance.
As Anne began to grasp the enormity of the challenge her village faced, she became determined to broaden her sense of “family”. Soon she was helping several AIDS orphans to stay in school – raising money for their school books, uniforms and tuition fees, since – for those who seek an adequate education – none of this is free in Uganda’s educational system beyond primary school. But as noble as this effort was, it only made a small dent in a very large problem that was growing bigger in Wanyange day by day.
Ultimately, Anne determined Wanyange required a community center to serve the multiple social, emotional, economic, and educational needs of her community’s orphaned children. To make this dream a reality she came to America, began working as a nurse’s aide, and sent every penny back home that she could.
In Anne’s “spare” time, and with some pro bono support from a local law firm, she founded the non-profit – all volunteer – charitable organization “Global Village Children’s Project” (GVCP), a 501c3 organization – (EIN 76-0787545).
That was about when Anne and I met up!
What started out as my cautious offer to lend a helping hand, in some small way, evolved quickly into agreeing to serve on the Board of Directors of the GVCP. That, in turn, lead to my commitment to help Anne and the people of her village complete the Wanyange Community Center.
Above is a photo of the Wanyange Community Center which Anne – with some GVCP help – was ultimately successful in building and which now houses Anne and 7 of the children in the care of the GVCP. And in the frame next to it, is a photo of a Solar Array being installed – thanks to a donor who ran the Boston Marathon as a fundraiser to support solarizing our center!
The structure was already emerging – brick by brick – when I first came on board. Once the walls were up, someone from Anne’s village donated a large tree from which a wooden front door was hewn. For several years I ran – and later on walked – the Boston Marathon myself as a yearly fundraiser. As funds were garnered, we put screens on all the windows, so our kids stopped getting malaria. Next, we equipped the building with lovely indoor plumbing – such a huge improvement over the outhouse everyone had to use up till then! Then, as the Pandemic hit, and on-site schooling came to a halt, donated computers combined with our Solar Array, made possible the continuance of education for our determined band of orphans!
In addition to housing our kids, we have access to a plot of land on which we grow various crops. The vegetables and fruits we grow feed our GVCP family and, when there is a sufficient harvest, we share with the elderly and disabled in the Wanyange community who may themselves be struggling with food scarcity. In the days that lie ahead, we have a vision of building several greenhouses – and perhaps expanding into fish farming – as strategies for growing organic crops and protein foods which we intend to market to high end hotels in a step toward financial self sufficiency.
As I mentioned earlier, beyond housing our orphans and providing them with good nutrition and full medical care, we also provide education, all the way up to college or trade school. To the right is a photo of Sylvia Kwagala – our first college graduate – enjoying a hug from our director, Anne Muyanga, at her graduation from Kyambogo University where she completed a Bachelor’s Degree in Business with Education.
Through our director’s inspiring dedication and the generous financial support of our donors, much has been accomplished. However, our work is far from completed. For every child we care for through adult independence, another one waits in line for our support. Two of the three youngsters pictured below – the boys – are still on our waiting list for utilizing all the life transformative services that the Global Village Children’s Project is eager to offer them.
We will welcome these kids – and the 300+ children waiting in line behind them – into the care of our GVCP family, just as soon as adequate funding enables us to do so.
And that is where you come in! We need active volunteers in a variety of roles. And we need financial donors. You are invited to support the Global Village Children’s Project via our website at https://gvcporphans.org or by sending your tax-deductible donation – made out to “Global Village Children’s Project” – to me directly at my office.
I can be reached directly via [email protected] and at (617) 965-6552.
Thank you in advance for considering support of our vision for Wanyange’s orphans.
The GVCP mailing address is:
Global Village Children’s Project
Attention: Christopher Gruener
85 Floral St
Newton Highlands, MA 02461