hope for others
Hope for Others began as an outgrowing of our medical assistance program.
What began as a stateside assistance program evolved into an on-the-ground ministry in Uganda.
As our assistance program shifted, it was a very natural outflowing to want to continue in the lives of those that we came into contact with in Uganda.
Ray of Hope works off of the model that is taught in the book When Helping Hurts by Brian Fikkert. Our desire to help people very commonly is not helpful, it is actually harmful - both for the recipient and the giver.
Because of this, we have implemented a development model that we practice to ensure that we are bringing hope in the form of servitude without the harmfulness that can often come with this work.
We do this through organized programs that foster safe, nourishing education and skills to build sustainability for those within the community.
One of the successes that began early on is the basket weaving program when a woman from Kampala came - her mission is to teach women in the rural communities how to make baskets for income.
The program is as much about showing them the skill of making baskets to earn money and providing encouragement as it is about connecting women together to strengthen the community and broaden who they might have in their community.
Stories like this are one of many, and it is one micro example of the ways knowledge and information has been passed and shared between our two communities to better enrich us all.
Hope for Others incorporates other programs such as:
JA business program
Scholarship program
Hope Kingdom Church
“As we came into people’s lives, and the connection happened, we really wanted to do more than fix the anomaly or fix the disability and send them back to their culture/home. We wanted to get more involved in people’s lives and provide help.”
— Kerry Ghent, President of Board
J.A. program
Enriching rural Uganda with sustainable business practices.
We’ve partnered with Junior Achievement (J.A.) Uganda and adapted one of their programs for rural communities. We took the core components of a program originally designed for high school students in the cities and turned it into a hands-on business building program.
This adapted program largely serves 18-35 year olds in rural Uganda and it gives them the opportunity to learn entrepreneurial skills.
Participants learn all the key elements for sustainable business practices: they start small companies with their own investments, learn how to work through the marketing, distribution, production, and sales aspects of running a business.
At the end of the cycle, participants go through a Shark-Tank-like process where they get evaluated and present companies at an expo. They are evaluated on the company structure and learning milestones rather than the actual products.
Our hope is that by teaching and coaching residents in ethical and sustainable business the economic landscape would begin to shift from one of poverty to that of sustenance.
scholarships
Making way for students to get the education they deserve.
In Uganda, schooling beyond elementary school requires fees. With this, we began to see that students who couldn’t afford those fees were simply not being educated, while others who could afford it were put into boarding schools.
This is a working scholarship which means that students and families exchange volunteer service hours at the Hope Centre for educational opportunities.
We’ve found that this gets families invested in the education, and we find that it creates more ownership in the students. The program is merit-based, so academic achievement is an expectation for continued participation in the program. So far, this academic standard has encouraged the students to truly care about the opportunity to continue their education.
We are also very aware and cognizant that traditional routes of education may not be fitting for some. In the case of one student, instead of sending him to school, we were able to get him into a carpentry apprentice program.
Our goal is and always has been: to offer Hope in ways that are practical and sustainable to those we encounter and serve.
“They’re hungry for more spiritual development. There’s a group of people who are recognizing that the spiritual aspect of health is also important.”
— Kerry, President of Board & Co-Founder
HOPE kingdom church
An organic byproduct of Covid, Hope Kingdom Church came together when churches were shut down during the pandemic. People were looking for a place to continue meeting and worshipping, and the Hope Centre became the perfect place.
It was spontaneous then, but the church has begun to grow thriving roots in the area with 25-30 people who meet weekly.
On Sundays is service.
On Wednesdays is Bible study.
On Thursdays is choir.
It has evolved, grown, and now meets in the Pavilion. Ray of Hope provides mentorship for their staff, a location to meet, chairs, etc, but largely Hope Kingdom Church operates and runs on their own. We simply get to be a place that holds them and encourages them in their pursuit of spreading hope and the love of Jesus.
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RAY OF HOPE
FAMILY
Join us in our mission to spread hope and make a difference in the lives of others. Let's build a more Hopeful tomorrow, together.