After completing the toilets at Namasale Primary, in July of 2019 District Officials asked us if Far Away Friends would come visit Agwingiri Girls School — the only all-girls boarding school in the region— to consider adding them to our network of partner schools and increasing their capacity to attract more girls to attend high school there.

Not all heroes wear capes. In fact, in the rural community of Namasale in north/central Uganda, heroes take the form of teachers, youth empowerment mentors, students and successful women like our co-founder, Collines Angwech, who are advocating for change.

Far Away Friends’ long time volunteer & Media Director, Sean Korbitz, shares his perspective on what sets Far Away Friends apart from others in the international development space.

For this week’s Featured Family Friday we want to share with you the interview from Fatuma, who is the Mom of two sons who attend GLP, Kuzaifa & Sharif. Fatuma and her husband Arafat own a convenience shop in Namasale where they serve their local community by providing affordable grocery items. Fatuma explained to our team during our visit last summer that if they had more opportunities to learn about improving their business, they would be able to expand their shop and save money for their children’s education.

During our trip to Uganda this year, we decided to visit some of the homes of our students to spend some time with their parents, learning about their daily struggles and the dreams they have for their children. Our goal during these visits was to not only learn more about their family, but to recognize their incredible dedication to their children’s education. Together with our Uganda-based team, we developed an “Outstanding Parent Award” to hand-deliver to our students’ parents as a simple gesture to say “We see you. We hear you. We’re here to shine a light on YOU.”

With 78% of its population under the age of 30, Uganda is home to the world’s youngest population — so why aren’t more organizations looking to children, teens and young adults for inspiration to solve major social issues? It has always been in our DNA to harness the power of young people to change the world. As a team young people ourselves all under the age of 30, we know first hand how important it is for youth to have a voice and a seat at the decision-making table.

Now that I’ve been traveling back and forth to Uganda for several years, thinking back to the things I did and said actually make my head spin. But in the spirit of service to humanity, I am sharing these embarrassing stories and photos of myself with the hope that you don't make the same mistakes as I did and the world can be spared of another American idiot (not a Green Day pun) traveling thousands of miles for 2 weeks to "work" in Uganda.

Launching on November 27th, the international day of charitable giving called #GivingTuesday through December 31st, we will be raising $13,000 to install a clean water well at Global Leaders Primary school which will provide clean, safe drinking water ON SITE for over 175 students, 19 staff and their families and the Namasale community at large. We are so excited to launch this campaign on #GivingTuesday, as all transaction fees are WAIVED and 100% of your donation goes directly toward building the well. You heard that right — 100%. EVERY SINGLE CENT you give will provide clean water for GLP students & the local community.

If there’s one thing I’ve learned from my time spent abroad, it’s that being a teenage girl is freaking HARD no matter where you grow up. Granted, I’m guessing the Kardashian's teenage years were likely much different than many of us peasant folk but I’ll still bet that we all struggled with similar issues: maintaining your social life, getting good grades, falling in love, having your heart broken, navigating your extremely complex and fragile emotions, passing major exams, deciding what you want to do with the rest of your life post-secondary school anddddddd managing your period (which, unfortunately is still a taboo topic of discussion around the world).