This was our supply shopping day in Kampala.

Next week, we are planning to visit one of the schools (St. Dennis) that the local Rotary Club is sponsoring in Entebbe so we wanted to be sure to have all the supplies we’ll need for kit distribution.  We will also visit a sewing class at the school. We will check out the sewing space and make sure it has everything necessary to make MoonCatcher kits. Phoebe will eventually teach some St Dennis students how to make our kit.

Kampala is crazy. Cars and bodabodas (motor cycles) zoom every which way and any rules that are supposed to be in place are pretty much thrown out the window whenever they aren’t convenient. We not only drove through the city but we also walked through crowded streets to look at sewing machines and then buy fabrics, thread, shoelaces, etc for our sewing guilds. We chose fabrics, wanting way more than needed, and examined sewing machines for hardy well-made brands. Phoebe has made friends with all the vendors that supply our goods and introduced us to everyone. She is loyal to them and they to her. It’s the perfect win/win situation.

We met one of Phoebe’s sisters too. It felt like we’d known her for years as she greeted us with wonderful hugs filled with warmth and welcome. She showed us her shop in a large mall in the center of town. Across the street we spotted enormous storks in trees large enough to house their multiple hefty nests. They are not very nice-looking birds. I think Helen came right out and said it, “they are ugly”.

Once we had what we needed we hired bodaboda drivers to transport the goods back to the parking garage where we’d left the car.

Being too far away and too tired, Phoebe suggested we too ride a bodaboda back to the garage. Helen gave me a look of “what do you think?” and when I said “let’s do it” off we went, climbing onto the backs of bikes that careened through traffic while we held on tight and prayed for our lives. Helen is a great traveling companion. She’s game for most anything.

This evening, we met with the local Rotary Club. First we joined the Club for dinner and afterwards they held a larger meeting. I gave a presentation with Helen’s and Phoebe’s help. The Club asked lots of questions and we celebrated a hard won grant that took six years to be completed. Thank you Helen and Lon Penna for your dedication and persistence in making this happen!  Monday, at St. Dennis’ School we will distribute MoonCatcher Kits to the first Rotary-sponsored school on out list of twenty. we are hoping to see some Rotarians there to watch us in action.

After the meeting I found my sponsor child, Millie, waiting for me in the lobby. I haven’t seen her since before the pandemic started, and it was a joy to reconnect. Millie is a true success story. I met her when she was in P7 (12 years old) and started to help pay for her school tuition so that she could continue her studies. We gave her a MoonCatcher kit and she stayed in school completing through Senior 6 and then on to nursing school after that. She now has a job and is able to support herself. We were so happy to see each other after all this time. What a dear she is.

I’m off to bed. I’m pretty beat!