Joy of a Child is an organization out of Mbarara, Uganda. They work with street boys and previously sexually trafficked young women.  I will be working with the boys by implementing afterschool programs and teaching basic English and communication skills.  While the boys are at school I will be working with the young women by helping them prepare to apply to a sewing school, to equip them to do a job that gives them dignity instead of shame.  They will need basic mathematics and communication skills.  I will also be teaching them basic nutrition, as I am in an Introduction to Human Nutrition class at UIC now. A lot of times, Africans eat what fills stomachs, starches and carbohydrates.  I want to stress the importance of color in foods, including fruits and vegetables, especially because some of the women have children and they need richer foods in their diets.

In the other times I am hoping to work with some of the people in the surrounding area by visiting and getting to know neighbors.  I do not know what this will look like, or what kind of ministry will happen out of it, but I know that the Lord has placed the area around Joy of a Child on my heart too.  Along with the neighbors, God has reminded me that because I will be staying with David and Esther Kamanzi, the couple that is working with the boys and young women hands on, I will be doing what I can to serve them. By the grace of God I will leave them more encouraged and less stressed than before I arrive.