Located in the Jinja District of Uganda, on the shores of Lake Victoria, Wanyange is home to over 300 as yet unserved AIDS and Covid 19 orphaned children, whose most basic needs - for safe housing, good nutrition, adequate medical care and a decent education – remain unmet. Because they are so very vulnerable, the pre-teen and teenage girls among these orphaned children face the continual risk of sexual exploitation, exposing them to the likelihood, as well, of physical abuse, sexually transmitted diseases, and unwanted pregnancy.

Under the guiding hand of GVCP founder - and Wanyange native - Anne Muyanga, seven of our AIDS orphaned children live at the GVCP Community Center, while seven others are nearby in GVCP supported foster care.

Funds raised by generous donors in the United States a number of years ago brought solar panels to the GVCP Community Center, putting an end to costly electric bills.

And in the years that followed, donor funded indoor plumbing joined the flow of electricity directly from the sun in dramatically transforming how our orphaned children live!

Constructed with lots of love and labor – including hands on help from our GVCP kids – our Community Center’s front yard patio now provides the perfect gathering space for this sign language class.

A group of our GVCP children enjoy hanging out on the porch with Joshua (left, in checkered shirt) after celebrating his 13th birthday.

The GVCP provides tuition, uniforms and scholastic materials for all of the children in our program. Additionally, on-campus room and board is currently provided for our four university level students.

Using one of the computers purchased with donor funding, Josh prepares for tomorrow’s school classes

Finally! Our boarding school students are returning to in-person education, as the long lasting COVID lock-down comes to an end.

After school, and on school breaks, our GVCP young people help with planting, maintaining, and harvesting the food crops that feed our children. And everyone on our team does what they can to help! When we have an abundance, our crops not only feed our kids but also provide some relief for food scarcity among the elderly and more impoverished residents of Wanyange.

Though hidden from view here, Brian is working hard as he helps with mulching the ground in preparation for planting.

While working in our crop fields in Budondo, a bit of a drive from the GVCP center, Noel and Louisa fetch water from a well. The water will be used for bathing, cooking, and drinking while living in the mud hut shown in the next row of photos.

Abi helps with daily chores as she emerges from the hut house where our children live while they help with planting, weeding, and harvesting our crops.

Doing their part to help at harvest time, Eli and Emma take a break to enjoy some of the fruits of their labors.

While not far away, some of our hard working teens also take a well deserved break as they chew on some sugar cane that was growing nearby.

The fruits of shared labors - maize growing in the GVCP fields.

Time to gather crops that are ready to be harvested.

Now, with the harvest loaded onto the truck a GVCP donor so generously gifted us, our gang is heading for home. First stop is to put food in our cupboards. Then, when the harvest is sufficiently abundant, we will share with our neighbors in need. With a vision of expanded irrigation and larger acreage - as funding permits - we look forward to the time when our fields will support sales in the market place.

Tragically, Uganda is not immune to drought - and even to famine – as our devastated crop land pictured here so sadly depicts. Both our subsistence plantings and our hoped for cash crops have failed on occasion, when rains did not arrive as anticipated, leading to the necessity of our purchasing grain and other foods stuffs on the open market. With donor support we plan to irrigate a large portion of our farmable land to assure our ability to weather future extended dry spells.

This stream, a tributary of the Nile that never dries up, will provide an assured supply of water for our next season’s crops – and will also defend us against the inevitable return of drought - as soon as we have raised $5,000 to install a full irrigation system.

Responding to global warming and the increasingly recurrent droughts isn’t just a farming issue. It impacts the entire community of Wanyange. So, back in town, Eli, joins in on a community conservation project as he plants a tree that will provide beauty, shade, and water retention.

Studies and chores are important in raising kids, but equally important are service and play! In the photo above, Sam and Brian – two of the teens in the care of the GVCP – serve as volunteers at the "Home of Hope" – a facility located In Wakitaka, a village near Wanyange, that cares for severely disabled children.

Meanwhile, also volunteering at the “Home of Hope”, one of our GVCP young people - Jackie, who recently graduated from Makerere University with a degree in Social Science– brings a smile to the faces of two young boys.

And remember that birthday party (above in row 2) that we told you about? Well, the party’s not over, because now it’s time to dance!

On University graduation day Silvia enjoys a celebratory hug with GVCP Director, Anne Muyanga, upon receiving her degree in business administration. Silvia - whose father died when she was 9 years old – was our first GVCP sponsored college graduate. She now works in the private sector.

Both of Lin’s parents had died by the time she was 10, leaving her with her younger brother. When Global Village found them six years later, they were living together as a child-run home, taking care of themselves. The GVCP took on the responsibility of raising both Lin and her brother, providing for their education and allowing them to be kids again. With GVCP financial support, Lin subsequently finished her degree in Science with a minor in Education.

Noel’s father died when she was just seven years old. Five years later, Global Village Children's Project welcomed her into our care. As a result of Noel being inspired by the gift of donor provided financial support, she went on to graduate from college with a degree in Business Administration.

Jackie’s father died before she was born. Global Village found her when she had dropped out of school because her mother could not raise her school tuition. With financial support from the GVCP, Jackie graduated with a degree in Social Science, the first in her family to go to college.

Louisa’s father died when she was four years old. When Global Village found her, her mother had been struggling to pay for her education for ten years. With financial support from the GVCP, Louisa graduated with a degree in Community Psychology. She is the first in her family to go to college.

Our Director, Anne Muyanga, speaks at a Wanyange community gathering, sponsored by the GVCP. In the audience are a number of the as yet unsponsored local orphaned children. Through partnership with you, these are the children with whom we look forward to one day celebrating their college graduations!

The newest member of our GVCP family, Blessing, featured above, is now sponsored. Thanks to all of you that made generous donations to make this possible.