Speaking on behalf of Pastor Andrew and
everyone at Home Again Ministries, I want to start by wishing you a belated
Happy Thanksgiving and an early Merry Christmas! The Lord has blessed us all immensely and we are so thankful
for everything He has given us. We
are also optimistic about the future of the ministry and the Bethel Junior
School.
There are a number of exciting things going
on at the ministry and we hope that you will continue to support us with your
prayers, time, and financial resources.
Recent
successes:
·
First, the Bethel Junior School
continues to move along nicely.
The children are eagerly learning and the school continues to create a
buzz in the area because of the high quality education that is being provided
to the children of Masese.
·
Our fall T-shirt fundraiser was a
huge success, raising over $4000 for the school, ensuring the operational
expenses will be covered through late February.
·
Thanks to a
generous donation this fall, we have recently started the final stages of
construction for the grades 2 and 3 classrooms. This will allow the school to continue to grow by adding 2nd
grade in February of 2014.
·
Recently, the
women that the Home Again Ministry serves have benefited from vocational
learning opportunities in the areas of sewing and hair dressing. The ladies feel very blessed to be able
produce clothing for their families, as well as provide an employment
opportunity for women who otherwise struggle to provide for themselves and
their children. As pastor Andrew
put it recently in an email, “This is true empowerment!”
Making
Fishers of Men
While we can attempt
to continue to provide all of these people’s needs for the future through
fundraising and donations, we would prefer to equip them to support
themselves. We feel strongly that
we want to empower the people of Uganda with knowledge and opportunities for
self-sustainment. Helping the
ministry start its own business units gives them control over their ministry in
the future and provides valuable jobs for those who are associated with the ministry.
Soon we will begin construction on a 2-room chicken
coop, which will be home to an egg production business. With an initial investment of $4300, we
will be able to build the coop and purchase 300 egg-producing chickens. The eggs produced within this business
will provide about half of the monthly financial needs of the Bethel Junior
School. It will also provide
valuable jobs for the people in the area.
The ministry was blessed with a generous $1300 donation from St. Henry’s
Church in Marshalltown, Iowa that will be used to begin construction on the
chicken coop. That leaves us
needing $3000 to make this project a reality.
By assisting the
ministry with initial start up costs for the business, we can empower the local
people to provide for themselves.
This allows the ministry to be self-sustaining and assist with long-term
growth. This also allows the
ministry and church leaders to have greater control over the future of their
own projects and needs.
Other Needs
The egg production business is our first priority at this point because
of its money making potential. We
do have a variety of other needs as well.
Please pray and consider helping us meet these needs:
·
Finish the title
work for the school land
o
The land that
the school sits on was recently paid in full. However, the government requires some substantial title work
performed before the school can officially claim full ownership. The approximate cost of this work is
$2000.
·
Long term
partners to meet the school’s monthly expenses
o
The operating
expenses are currently paid into the fall, but with an increase in classrooms,
comes more expenses with more teachers, food, etc. Monthly operating expenses are approximately $1750 per month
and can be covered either by child sponsorships or general donations.
·
Purchase land
for future expansion
o
Pastor Andrew
has verbal agreements with the owners of the land that lies adjacent to the
school to purchase the land as needed in the future for more students and
classrooms. This dollar amount is
not determined at this time, but will be a focus once the funding for the
operating expenses is secured.
·
Vocational
Programs for the mothers of the children
o
The long-term goal of this program is to help
children and their families (and ultimately the school) to be self-sustaining
through education, love and support.
Several programs have already started to provide education and skills to
the adult women in the area, but we hope to have more programs in the future to
assist these women to support themselves and their families.
Sponsorship Program
For the continued success of the school, we need to establish long-term
funding opportunities for the operational needs of the school. The best means to pay for the long-term
expenses is with a child sponsorship program. In the spring, we launched the Bethel Junior School/Home
Again Ministry Sponsorship Program.
For only $30 a month, you can make sure that a child has the opportunity
to attend school every day.
As always, donations for the sponsorship program are fully tax
deductible. We have established a
relationship with Christian Aid to handle the money for our sponsorship
program. Not only are they a
wonderful organization to partner with, they ensure that 100% of your
sponsorship dollars go directly to the school.
You have the option of paying monthly or yearly and there are a variety
of payment methods available to fit your needs. We also have pictures and descriptions for you to look over
and choose which child you would like to sponsor. This allows you, as the child’s sponsor, to connect with
them through letters and prayers if you wish. Please consider sponsoring a child today.
If you have contributed in the past, we thank you greatly. If you have been hesitant for one
reason or another, I encourage you to jump in and help these beautiful people
get a well-deserved start to life. Please consider partnering with us, both
with financial assistance and prayers.
May God Continue to Bless You!
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