Church

I have attended Masaka Full Gospel Church since I've been in Uganda and during my time here, I have had the chance to preach, teach Sunday School, sing with the worship teams and also sing "specials" (often with various visitors we've had from Canada.) Megan, Paul and I also were on a youth camp organizing committee and were given the opportunity to give talks at the camp as well. We have felt very welcomed at church and we have made some very good friends. As well, several people from the congregation have been able to help us here at the school in a variety of ways.

Some church experiences...

clockwise from left: the children perform a dance in the service, a little baby (with great hair!) that joined our Sunday School class one day, the goat that appeared to listen to a whole Sunday School lesson, performing a "special" on Christmas Day 2009, Megan and the goat

some of our preaching opportunities--in the church and at youth camp

Staff

I recently had to take a photo of each of our staff members for their staff ID card, so I thought I'd make a collage of all the photos. These are the great people I get to work with each day. These are the teachers, secretary, driver, security guards, cooks and cleaners that work so hard to make this project a success and make my job a lot easier! They have been very patient as we continue to work out the challenges associated with opening a brand new school and I appreciate their positive attitudes and commitment.

It's a shame they're not all smiling in these particular photos, because their personalities aren't evident from these shots, and we have a lot of fun together. As the school continues to grow over the years, we want to add more great people to the Timothy Girls College staff team.

24

We admitted our Twenty-Fourth student to Timothy Girls College today and it was so wonderful to be able to help this girl. Her story is all too common here unfortunately. She finished Senior 4 last year with strong results and was admitted to the local secondary school this year to complete her A-Levels in Science. She is probably about 15 or 16 years old.

Despite the academic promise she showed, she did not go to school for first term. Her father had refused to pay the school fees, as his plan was to marry her off so that he didn't have to be responsible for her anymore. The girl's aunt brought her to us today to see if we could help. This lady is a Headmistress of a primary school, so she knows the value of an education for girls, but she was unable to pay the full fees as she has several other children for whom she is responsible. After hearing about the situation, we assured them that the girl needed to be here and arranged a fee subsidy so that she could stay here and finish her education.

This girl's arrival today is a valuable reminder of how important it is for our school to offer a quality education. We aim to provide the knowledge, skills and attitudes to equip these girls to become independent and strong leaders in their communities and work for change. Educating young women is so important to a society's development and I feel so privileged to be a part of this project that can make such a difference.

If you want to help provide more spaces for needy girls to study here at Timothy Girls College, you can donate to a TGC scholarship fund. Contributing to this fund allows us to offer more subsidies to other deserving girls who would benefit so much from a chance to complete their education.

Contact the Pacific Academy Outreach Society for more information. www.paoutreach.net

our students' campaign posters for the position of Head Girl--leaders in the making!