Lukodi, Uganda

“I was deeply moved in 2004 as I watched a documentary on the work of the LRA guerillas and the atrocities they committed to young children, abducting them from their homes and villages and forcing them to become child soldiers and also do terrible things in order to survive. Forced into slavery and watch and join torturing and killing others, these children were deeply wounded.

I watched village leaders giving child soldiers who had escaped, amnesty and forgiveness when they came back home – they were their children after all. They went through a community ritual of confessing and apologising and then were warmly forgiven by their tribal elders and community. Unfortunately this was not often so for the young women who had been abducted, raped and forced to become the wives of soldiers. When they escaped they most likely had one or two children conceived during their captivity… finding their way home only to be rejected because their children had been fathered by the butchering leaders of the LRA.

Then I met Conrad, who had a passionate desire to set up the first rehabilitation home in Uganda for young mothers, still children themselves, who had escaped from the LRA. This project was one of the first we partnered with and some of our funds, raised through Global Angels Ambassador Bear Grylls world record adventures, were used to help set up this project and cover the running costs for the first two years.

We built a school, a rehabilitation centre, a home for 25 young women and their children, a preschool for the children, refurbished a local secondary school for 700 children and a medical clinic with thousands of locals as there was no healthcare in the aftermath of the devastation left by the LRA guerillas. We provided funds for cows and a bakery, and the young women were trained in vocational skills and there were amazing breakthroughs in these young women’s lives. It was a privilege to partner with this project and witness the transformation in each young women’s life as they were loved and given what they need to thrive. Conrad and his team are Angels … many of the young women went on to help others and it’s been a story of great transformation.

I work in these projects with the hope that we can create a safe, kinder and fairer place for all. Thank you for being an Angel and helping me fulfil this vision.”