www.HopeForUganda.org {1}

'(~ God'& l(t'la, t'll'ld rnvi~ ihet dir-ech>r ofAfSSJ it~ wtth ihet School Admil'lidrt?ftfol'l~&ttod Mf rnblem of fPrjl'loa Mf school~ t'll'ld ~t me- il'l ihetGood s~dScholt'lr&hif f'({)l(t'lm. I iht'll'l~ God fOrihi&t'lnd fOr iho&-e--who il'lm~ t'lnd corrlil'lVtft itcomriblA..-re,it ihet rnl(t'lm. writlOlA..tihi&~vt rnbt'lb~ vtJnert'lb!et childr-en liJGe,mt1¥ OLAf~r-e- t'll'ld 'fod lN1ilitdMyJ \Nt)LJdnt'lvt/ d'({)fred OlA..tof &ehoo!.For ~ 'iYi& ihet ~Ol'l i& -even \Nt)r&-e­beGt~-e- Ol'la, 'lOlA.. d'({)f oKt of school YOlA..\Nt)LJd I?e, fOr~ iYTtoYtYiy mt'll'Yit'lf' t'lrJ I?ecome­t'I child-mother ~ihet t'lf' of If? or 1"1 rr~~"(continued on page 4)

Sarah Grace Acen is a Level 6 student at Archbishop FlynnSecondary School. Her childhood mirrored that of manychildren in Northern Uganda - family separated by poverty,children scattered and cared for by guardians, often also poor.Sarah's were peasant farmers. Despite her circumstances,she pursued her studies, and as a young Catholic girl, wasfortunate to attend Sacred Heart Secondary School in Gulu,where she first learned of AFSS.

TOUCHED BY THE LOVE OF STRANGERS

HOPE FOR UGANDA

NEWS from SACRED HEART SEMINARYand ARCHBISHOP FLYNN SECONDARY SCHOOL

Thanks to a long-standing generousdonor, a statue of St.Joseph has arrived fromItaly and now stands as

a sentinel to protectthe students andstaff of AFSS.

DONATED STATUE

• Sacred Heart Seminary:160 students

• AFSS: 510 students

ENROLLMENTSNAPSHOT

• Proud to Announce:AFSS is in the top 2%SHS is in the top 4%of of all 2,900 schoolsin Uganda

TOPSCORES

• 289 Boys• 222 Girls

CURRENT AFSSENROLLMENT

TOGETHER MAKINGA DIFFERENCE

OPEN ARMSOPEN HEARTSOPEN MINDS

SPRING 2015

Seminarians prepare to head home for Spring Sreak.Motorcycle shown in picture is known as the "Soda Soda"

• a Taxi Service in Gulu, Northern Uganda

Building a teacher house for two families oncampus was the initiative of parents who havestudents at AFSS. It is intended to accommodatethe school nurse and Deputy Head Teacher incharge of administration, as their presence within(continued on next page)

Sufficient lighting is also a challenge at AFSS. Thenew girls' dorm, part of the boys' dorm and the newAdvanced Level classroom block are completelywithout artificial light. Provision of a solar systemwould be the way forward to improve the life of thestudents using these facilities. It is totally dark atnight for students to make their way in thedormitories.

While we register with gratitude these many achievements, wewish to point out some of the challenges that needto be addressed for the good of the school. There is great need for a wall fence around the boys' and girls'dormitories to provide security for the lives of the students. The issue of security has become crucial in our worldtoday. Youwill recall the recent event in Kenya,where 160 students were innocently murdered by terrorists. Weneed to take maximum precaution to protect our children. This fence will also prevent animals, especially thegoats and cows belonging to the surrounding population, from entering the compound and destroying theproperties of the students. Currently, the boys' and girls' dorms are wide open without protection. We estimatethe cost of the fence to be $13,000.

ARCHBISHOP FLYNN SECONDARY SCHOOL (AFSS) remains committed to being among the best performingschools in Uganda. The students and staff are focused and hard-working, motivated for spiritual growth andacademic performance. Their efforts are evident in the most recent government examination results. AFSSranked 5Th out of 2900 secondary schools in all of Uganda, and 2nd out of all schools in the northern region. Weare also very happy to report the completion of the girls' dormitory; progress in construction of the AdvancedLevel classroom block for senior 5 and senior 6; on-going construction of staff house on campus for twoteachers/families (not yet completed due to financial constraint on the part of the parents who are building it);an increase in student enrollment to 510 in this academic year 2015; the enthronement of the statue of St.Joseph the Worker and patron saint of AFSS in the center of the school; the recent appointment of a new HeadTeacher, Ms. Atim Berna Prisca, by Archbishop Odama; and the continued collaboration with the UnitedNations Development Program, which in 2014 donated computers, water tanks, a tractor, some furniture andfood stuffs in support of AFSS. We thank God for His providence.

Greetings and peace to you in the Risen Lord. On behalf of those who benefit from yourprayers and charity, I write to say a big THANK YOU for your continued support of ourapostolate: HOPE FOR UGANDA. Our mission is alive and well - giving hope to youngboys and girls in Northern Uganda through access to quality education for the ultimatepurpose of transforming their society from a life of poverty, ignorance, disease, andunderdevelopment. I assure you that your donations have been and are being put togood use in both Archbishop Flynn Secondary School and Sacred Heart Seminary.

Dear Friends and Benefactors,

GREETINGS FROM ARCHBISHOP FLYNN SECONDARY SCHOOLAND SACRED HEART SEMINARY

Msgr. Matthew OdongRector, Sacred Heart Seminary

The long effects of war are still having negative impact on the economic state of most families in theArchdiocese of Gulu. The majority of parents do not have funds to pay tuition fees for their sons anddaughters. This has caused many children to drop out of school. Support of scholarship funds at bothArchbishop Flynn Secondary School and Sacred Heart Seminary is the answer to this challenge. Please joinour scholarship program to provide education for poor children at risk of dropping out of school.

Again, THANKYOUfor your continued prayersand generosity to HOPE FOR UGANDA. Our loveand prayers go out to each one of you inabundance. Cheers!

Though blessed in many ways, we are not with out challenges and needs at Sacred Heart Seminary. Most of thestructures were built in 1937, using mud instead of cement for the foundations and walls with no ring beams,inviting termites to destroy ceiling board and timbers. The students' auditorium, computer labs, andwashrooms are among the buildings in dire need of renovation. Also, many of the used computers donated byComputers for Africa are now down and unable to be repaired, so there is great need for more computers,modems, and printers for the seminary.

The mission of SHS is the formation of priests for service to humanity. Since 1990 the US apostolate has beenvery instrumental in supporting priestly education and programs at SHS, for which the Archdiocese of Gulu isgrateful to all its benefactors. As part of this achievement, eight deacons were ordained priests and twoseminarians were ordained deacons in 2014. This year, between July and August of 2015, two of our deacons willbe ordained priests. This is a class that suffered so much from the effects of abduction by the LRAsoldiers led byJoseph Kony,whose soldiers attacked SHS on the night of May 11,2003 and abducted 41 seminarians intocaptivity. Since then, by the grace of God, 30 have escaped captivity, but eleven are still unaccounted for. Pleasesay prayers for them and for their parents, whose hearts bleed for the loss of their sons. Some may still be alive,while others if not all, are at peace with Jesus. It was a difficult time for us at SHS, but the Lord continues toprotect and console us.

Wind damaged roof sheeting on the newly constructedAdvanced level classroom block.

SACRED HEART SEMINARY (SHS) has 160 seminariansenrolled in studies to become priests in academic year2015. LikeAFSS, their performance in the governmentexams in 2014 was very good, ranking them among the bestschools in Uganda - position 114out of 2900 in the entire nation.

And finally, I regret to inform you strong winds and heavyrain caused damage to the roof of the newly constructedAdvanced Level classroom block. Eighteen metal sheetswere blown off during this terrible natural disaster. Theschool needs to repair the roof as soon as possible to avoidfurther damage to the building.

the school campus is absolutely necessary for the healthand discipline of the students. The work on the house isslow because the flow of cash from the parents is veryslow, reflecting their poor economic state. We estimate itwill cost $12,000 to complete this project.

nced leveld the adva . te

I' dor(!\ an a nartiCI?a .gir s d stall ...the neW dents an

fr. felil( blesses (!\building as stUclassroO

Thanks to your incredibly generous response,Sunday March 8th was a great day of celebration atAFSS. Girls from levels 4, 5 and 6 moved into theirnew dormitory. The jubilant event happened tocoincide with International Women's Day. Fr. Felixblessed the dorm as well as the finished portion ofthe advanced level classroom block. (It is importantto note this is the first level 6 class at AFSS,equivalent to our grade 12.)

NEW GIRLS' DORMOPENING CELEBRATION

Sarah dreams of returning to AFSS to offer her services forfuture construction projects, sponsor needy students, andstart an entrepreneurship club, where students can betaught skills, innovations and inventions of new ideas tobecome self-supportive. These are the thoughts of a young

person who is being taught to think big, torecognize and use her gifts from God, and is

filled with hope and gratitude for hermany opportunities. She has trulybeen touched by the love of strangers.

'1 exhort my fellow students to always be hardworkingand above all God-fearing, since 'thefear of God is thebeginning of all wisdom', showing our appreciation toGodfor what he is doingfor us by the hands and sacrificesof our benefactors. Let us strive for the moon and even ifwe fall we are among the greatest stars. Let us bedisciplined and respectful to both our teachers and ourparents."

As an aspiring civil engineer, Sarah is concerned aboutsome of the challenges her school faces -a shortage of waterthat impacts sanitation, especially for girls; a need forlighting in the dormitories; the lack of a "real" library tosupport the increased student population; the absence of achapel to encourage their faith formation; and a need forupdated science labs so these students can advance andcontribute to the development of their nation.

Sarah finds her academic life at AFSS to be very differentfrom other schools she attended. She appreciates thecommitment and availability of the teachers, and loves howthe environment is so conducive to serious learning, namingits rural location as a positive characteristic - "out of thenoise of the town". Also important to Sarah is the school'sabsolute lack of discrimination. She believes the schooladmits and treats every student equally and gives equalopportunity to everyone," because the school setup isgrounded on the fear of God, hard work and discipline".Case in point, when it was time to elect student leaders in2014, Sarah thought her chances were slim because she hadonly been there one year. But she gathered her courage,campaigned for the position, and was elected Head Girl ofthe School, a position she still holds today. Sarah is alsograteful for how closely the administration listens to theneeds of the students and tries to address them whenpossible. For example, she remembers how crowded thegirls' dorm was before the new wing was built!

TOUCHED BY THE LOVEOF STRANGERS (continuedfrom paqe i)

(l to R)Sr.Goretti Acilo,Sr.Monica Ajok, Sr.JulianaApio, (Msgr. Matthew) andSr.SusanClaire Ndeezo,Superior General of thelittle Sistersof MaryImmaculate of Gulu.

Photo taken on theFeastof St. Joseph

In our June 2008 newsletter we included a prayer toSt. Joseph for the success of the AFSS school project.(This prayer, written by Msgr. Matthew, has beenreprinted and enclosed to encourage continued prayerfor this school.) Then, a year ago we decided thereshould be a statue honoring the patron saint on thegrounds of the school. Thanks to funds donated by along-time benefactor, a six foot outdoor statue of St.Joseph arrived in Pader District in February, all theway from Italy to Northern Uganda. On March zo=,one day after the patron's feast day, construction wascompleted on a specially built platform and thebeautiful statue was placed lovingly (and carefully) ina permanent home. St. Joseph now stands as asentinel to protect the students and staff of AFSS.

Shortly afterconstruction began atAFSS in February 2007,all concerned decidedthis very special project needed atop-notch Project Manager. Who better than St.Joseph, the Carpenter? After all, he helped St.Teresa of Avila with all 16 of her Foundations, thewomen's Carmelite monasteries. She said heNEVER failed her, despite her many challenges andtrials throughout her years of doing this work forGod. Anyone who has ever been involved with aSOI(c)(3) knows that trials and challenges aresimply part of the process.

ST. JOSEPHFINDS A NEWHOME

AFSSNew leadership (l to R)Ms. Berna PriscaAtim: Head Teacher.Mr. Kenneth Ocitti: Deputy in Chargeof Academics. (Msgr. Matthew)

Mr. CharlesOboke Okello: Deputy of Administration.

Archbishop John Baptiste Odama recently appointedBerna Prisca Atim as new Head Teacher at AFSS. Theappointment follows the passing of Sister Viola inSeptember 2014. Berna has been acting Head Teachersince Sr. Viola left her position for medical treatmentmonths prior to her death. Pictured here with Msgr.Matthew are (left to right): Ms. Berna Prisca Atim,Head Teacher; Mr. Kenneth Ocitti, Deputy in Chargeof Academics; Mr. Charles Oboke Okello, Deputy ofAdministration.

NEW LEADERSHIPATAFSS

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On February 6th all of Pader Town celebratedwith Archbishop Flynn Secondary Schoolwhen the national tests scores were announcedfor school year 2014. Students and staff marchedfrom school and through town to the DistrictHeadquarters, where all activities were halted as thedistrict staff joined the celebration. Local governmentofficials then led the procession into the open ground ofthe district council to hear the Chairman of Pader Districtaddress the crowd. Congratulations to the 44 studentswho represent this honor of placing AFSS 5th out of morethan 2,900 schools in the nation. Another stunning,exciting way to put that is AFSS is in the top 2% of allschools in Uganda.

AFSS RANKED AMONGTOP 100 IN ALL UGANDA

Note: If you would like to make a specificdonation, please indicate in the memoline of your check.

Gratitude and blessings for his benefactors are alwaysforemost on Msgr. Matthew's mind. He lives andbreathes the work that your generous donations aremaking possible for his beloved children. And we knowhe takes nothing for granted. It is because of his hands­on direction of these schools that we listen carefully whenhe makes an appeal. He's not asking for spinach saladsin the lunch line, a new floor in the gym (what gym?),better uniforms, or even yoga mats. Luxury comes in theform of a bed, a book, and a Bible. Look once again at thevalue your donations bring to that special corner of God'screation. Thank you!

1:1 COMPUTER AVAILABILITY. The computers donated to~ SHSseveral years ago by Computers for Africa were second

hand. Time has taken its toll- many of them no longer workat all. Three functioning computers remain to service 160 students,a ratio of 1 computer for every 57 hardworking seminarians. Thereis great need to provide more computers, internet access,andprinters. Estimated cost for this additional equipment is$10,000.

a TERMITE REPAIR. Termites are a real problem at SHS.Most of the buildings were built in 1937, whenconstruction did not lend itself to protecting against the

devastating damage they cause to ceiling board and timbers.Estimated cost to repair termite damage is $25,000.

SACRED HEART SEMINARY

1:1 SOLAR LIGHTING. Completion of the new girls'a dormitory is cause for much celebration! Our profilestudent, Sarah,mentioned what a difference it makes in

daily living, and the entire school chose to celebrate its opening onInternational Women's Day. Note the excitement on their faces inthe pictures provided. But also try to imagine studying byflashlight, or navigating through a dormitory of beds in totaldarkness to reach the outdoor restroom in the middle of the night.The beautiful new dorm has no lighting. There is no electricityavailable anywhere, other than from generators for refrigeration.Solar lighting hasbeen installed in most areas except the unfinished(and damaged) classroom block and the now completed girls'dorm. Estimated cost to provide this lighting is$7,500.

1:1 REPAIRING WIND DAMAGE. Natural disaster is of course~ unpredictable and difficult, but perhaps more disheartening

when the damage affects the safety and strength of a newbuilding. The first floor of the Advanced Levelclassroom was completedbefore the storm. The second floor is unfinished and only has columnsto support the roof. High winds destroyed eighteen panels of the metalroofing and need to be replaced immediately. To further protect thestructure, we need to build walls to enclose the second floor. Estimatedcost to repair the roof and build the walls is $11,000.

a SAFETY AND SECURITY. AFSSis located in a very ruralsetting, making the children, their belongings, and the facilitiesvulnerable to the threat of bodily harm, theft, and destruction.

Msgr. sited the students in Kenyawho were recently murdered byterrorists, painfully remembering his own seminarians lost to the LRAin2003. Short of enclosing the school in a bubble, we cannot provide animpenetrably secured environment, but we agree with Msgr. thatconstructing a wall around the dormitories is prudent and necessary.Estimated cost of this project is $13,000.

ARCHBISHOP FLYNN SECONDARY SCHOOL

With growth, the requirements to support the infrastructureincrease and interestingly become much more specific.Cloaked in immense gratitude for the generosity of thestalwart HOPE FOR UGANDA benefactors, Msgr. Matthewpresents us with some pressing needs. He mentions them inhis letter enclosed, but we want to heighten awareness, andreiterate specifics about each of these concerns.

Providing a better education in a safe, nurturing and God­fearing environment, for as many children as funds will allow,continues to be our goal. Enrollment reached a landmark thisyear, topping 500 boys and girls at AFSS and 160 seminarians atSHS. Imagine what an incredible difference these young peopleare destined to make, as they grow in their faith, learn about theworld at large, and put their God-given gifts to good use!

This apostolate, through your generosity, and the guidance ofthe Holy Spirit, gives on-going support to Sacred HeartSeminary (SHS) and Archbishop Flynn Secondary School(AFSS). Nearly all funds raised by annual appeal go towardfinancing the operations of both these schools in NorthernUganda. Much progress has been made over the years, and forall intents and purposes, you have been intimately involved increating and maintaining great and lasting change in the livesof children who will change a nation.

MSGR. MAKES AN APPEAL

Pleasemail checksmade payable to:Hope For Uganda, to PO Box 1863, Minnetonka,MN 55345. Youmay also make a credit card orPayPaldonation via the website.

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