As Brian sat on the edge of the walkway to the school, he watched as children darted left and right kicking a worn soccer ball softly across the rugged yard.

The ball would occasionally ricochet off of the rocks and chunks of cement scattered haphazardly across the field.

He sat there, silently watching the boys with a feeling of contentment, as the hot African sun warmed his skin.

He looked down at his ragged school uniform and realized that he was one of the lucky ones.

Not only did he have a house to sleep in, but he got to go to school every day.

He got to eat.

He had hope.

In Uganda, school is not free. Most children are unable to afford to go to school, and have no other choice but to work. Hundreds of children, as young as four years old, walk the highways carrying baskets full of whatever they can get their hands on in hopes to earn enough money to buy their next meal.

These children carry everything from crafts to trinkets and food to newspapers. Tiny hands reaching in through the car windows offer hand-woven wallets, intricately twisted wires, fresh plantains and yesterday’s news. Often times they are either homeless or runaways, being forced to provide for themselves at young ages.

“Sometimes I would have to steal food so that I got to eat,” Timothy Miller, a six-year-old former orphan from Uganda, said. “I sneaked into weddings and ate some of their food.”

At the time, Timothy would have been only three years old.

This level of resourcefulness is what many children in Uganda have had to harness in order to survive.

However, thanks to an increase in publicity for the slums of Uganda through various documentaries articles, people have begun to make a stand and protect the children. Multiple organizations have begun to surface over the past couple of years, each sporting their own method of helping children. One organization known as the Wulira Foundation, is a non-profit charity that was started by the Miller family in Lincoln, Nebraska.

“Free public education does not exist in Uganda,” Victoria Miller, the founder of the Wulira Foundation said. “That is why we exist to raise funds to help rehabilitate and educate street children throughout Uganda.”

The Wulira Foundation has deep personal ties to the children of Uganda. Two years ago, the Miller family of four began the adoption of an orphan from Uganda. When they ventured off to Uganda, nothing could prepare them for the heartache that would follow. Everywhere they would travel, they would find children everywhere. Except, these children didn’t have a home. They didn’t know when they would get to eat again. If they would get to eat again. These children were unable to find proper jobs, because most businesses and companies choose to only hire  people with a formal education.

This touched the Miller family deeply, sparking a fire deep in their hearts. They chose not to simply feel sorry for the children. They chose to make a difference. While in Uganda they developed ties with another organization based in the area, known as CCF-Uganda.

CCF (standing for Consider Child First) worked to provide a formal education for children and to increase access to protection to all orphans and vulnerable children. They had even begun to develop their own Center For Children, providing dozens of children with beds to sleep in, warm meals to eat, and an education to help them in their future. None of these accomplishments could have been done without the help of others, though. CCF-Uganda was relying on grants and donations from others willing to make a change.

The only problem, unfortunately, was that CCF-Uganda was unable to reach people outside of Uganda for donations. The Miller family agreed to help the organization, even going as far as to deem them their ‘sister charity.’

Upon the finalization of the adoption, they travelled back to the United States and began work on the charity. Within the next couple of months, the Wulira Foundation was created. Their goal: to help with the education and rehabilitation of street children in Uganda.

Being based in the United States, the Wulira Foundation was able to reach out to all corners of the world asking people to make a change. They began to ask for donations, wiring the money to CCF-Uganda and allowing them to keep their doors open to any child in need.

The Wulira Foundation began broadening their horizons, finding a way to bring physical donations for Uganda. They then started to accept shoes, clothes, children’s books, school supplies and even toys. On their next voyage to Uganda, the founders of the organization hand delivered the donations to the children and advisors of CCF-Uganda. This mutual relationship allowed both organizations to thrive and expand immensely.

In only one year, together the Wulira Foundation and CCF-Uganda have been able to fully sponsor multiple children, bring in over 100 donated items to help aid the children in their studies, as well as toys and books to provide activities to keep the children occupied.

As the years progress, these organizations have blossomed and branched out, connecting the lives of people all over the world to the children in Uganda, creating a community based around hope.

In the upcoming years, The Wulira Foundation plans to make another venture to Uganda bringing more supplies, donations, and hope for the children of Uganda.

If you or anybody else wishes to learn more about either organization or donate supplies, the websites for each organization can be found below.

The Wulira  Foundation:

www.wulirafoundation.com

CCF-Uganda:

www.ccfuganda.org