A heavy spring rain falls outside Viola’s window. The children — her students — will have to stay with her for the weekend. This is not unusual. The slick mud makes it dangerous for them to make the long journey to their homes. If she’s honest, Viola knows that many of her students don’t have a safe home to return to. So tonight, and as long as they need, the children will live with her at the school.
After all, Viola knows what it feels like to not have anywhere to go.
When Viola was 4 years old, her mother brought her to Good Samaritan School. Since Viola’s father had left, her mother could no longer provide for her. So she left Viola at the school — alone and afraid.
But thanks to child sponsorship, Viola was able to live at the school, get an education, and have her needs met.
Now, as head teacher at Good Samaritan’s primary school, she is paying it forward by helping other children in her situation.
Good Samaritan is located in Uganda, a country that is still in recovery. Years of dictatorial rule and terror led by the Lord’s Resistance Army have established a culture of violence and loss — displacing more than 1.5 million Ugandans. Much of the country’s rural population lives in deep poverty, surviving on less than $3 a day. It is the children who suffer the most.
According to the United Nations Children’s Fund, “more than half of Uganda’s children live in vulnerable situations.” Many of them have no place to call home. They often find themselves on the street, begging to survive.
Thankfully, some of those children have found their way to Good Samaritan — children like Viola. She has never forgotten how the Good Samaritan School helped to change her life.
After Viola was left at the school, she soon discovered she was not alone. Many other children had similar stories to hers. And people on the other side of the world cared enough about her to support her education and basic needs.
Over the years, Viola grew to become a confident, intelligent, and healthy young woman. She grew up knowing that she was deeply loved. Her classmates, her teachers, and her sponsors all became a part of her family. God used them to redeem what was lost in her life.
When Viola graduated in 2011, she headed off to college. While she studied, she had one dream — she wanted to return to the Good Samaritan School and teach.
“I came back because I was cared for, loved, and given some of the best facilities,” Viola said. “I wanted to come back and serve more children in the same way I was served.”
When a child at Good Samaritan is sponsored, he is given the chance at a healthy and happy future. If he doesn’t have a safe home, he is allowed to live on campus where he will receive food, clothing, basic medical care, and a quality education.
Students who do live at home receive a scholarship to pay for their tuition, their school uniform, and daily meals. Each and every child is loved and cared for by Viola and her fellow teachers. And each and every child is introduced to the love and the hope that is found in Jesus Christ.
Viola is just one of countless success stories that have resulted from this ministry and the love of generous sponsors. Today, Viola leads a team of teachers — many of whom are also Good Samaritan graduates — as they invest in the next generation. She believes that loving and training her students will someday change the country of Uganda for good.
Child sponsorship transformed Viola’s life, but there are many children in Uganda who still need help.
By sponsoring a child, you give him a chance at a better future. Viola dreamed of being a teacher and giving back to her community … today she is doing just that.
When you sponsor a child, you sponsor a future teacher, a future doctor, a future artist, or a future businessman. You give one child the opportunity to dream — despite his background or his circumstances.
But most importantly, you give a child a safe and secure place to call home. You become an important part of his extended family by loving him, supporting him, and pointing him toward the message of Jesus.
Sponsor a child, and transform a life today!
You can make a difference for someone like Viola. Look below to see children at Good Samaritan School who are waiting for a sponsor.