| Sam
Aworu age 10, and his sister Jane Amuso, 9 are
two of the five orphans left behind when their
father, a veterinary surgeon, died of AIDS in
2002. Their mother, Theresa Akurut was alive when
Village2Village began caring for Sam, Jane and
their littlest sister Helen in July 2003. She succumbed to
AIDS a few months later in October, leaving the children alone.
The children's aunt Janet has moved in to help.
Sam
is a smart and focused boy who wants to practice
veterinary medicine, hoping to attend Makarere
University in Kampala just like his father.
Before sponsorship, Sam told Village2Village
staff that he loves school, but complained of
hunger and fatigue due to long distances they
have to walk to school.
"Education
is good, we shall not give up, but the only
problem is hunger at school. We do not eat anything
apart from drinking water. When my father was
alive, we ate rice, posho (corn porridge) meat
and fish, but now there is also little at home
to eat."
In July, Jane, a fourth grader, said that she
wants to become a medical doctor who will help
her sickly mother "live for one hundred
years". She is an intelligent and sunny
child who has struggled deeply with grief since
her mother's death in October.
Little Helen, 4, is a happy sweet child who
is wary of strangers. She is also very ill,
having medical issues that cannot be solved
by repeated visits to the village doctor. She
has difficulty breathing often. Village2Village
staff recently took Helen and her aunt to Kampala's
largest teaching hospital for HIV testing. The
result was the one that we feared: Little Helen
is HIV positive. She is now one of the very few rural African children on antiretroviral treatment.
Before
she died, Theresa shared that she believed that
God loves her. She had hoped to live to see
her children grow up. Her husband had struggled
to put up a permanent structure for the family
before his death so that they would always have
shelter, but she was too weak to grow much food
for her children.
"I
am determined to bring up my children well and
upright like any other parent. We shall struggle
to the end. If only there was a helping hand…."
Theresa did not have access to anti-retroviral
medication, because it was too expensive. By
the time Village2Village met her family, it
was simply too late for this courageous and
loving woman. However, she did find deep relief
in the helping hand extended by Village2Village
sponsors to her children.
In
a New Year's meeting with Village2Village staff,
the eldest daughter Stella spoke for the family.
"You
seem to love these kids so much! We thought
we had all died, but now we have some hope.
Life changed when our father died, and again
when we lost our mother. Now we see the light
ahead."
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