Bringing Love to Children ... One At A Time

Her response was an emphatic, "I L.O.V.E. my job!"  I had just returned to Uganda a few days earlier and this young lady was collecting and transporting children back to their final term of school after their last break of the year.  I looked over the seat and leaned back to ask, "So, Melody, how do you like your job?"

Six months ago it was obvious that Next Generation Ministries desperately needed help in coordinating the educational sponsorship program.  When Paul and Pam Hunter came to Uganda back in 2005, they avoided starting any student sponsorship program.  There were many such programs surrounding them and they wanted to focus on relationships and not projects.  However, as short term missionaries were hosted by the Hunters, some of them fell in love with very poor and vulnerable children who had no possibility of attending school.  There was no one helping them get an education, so they inquired about paying their school fees.

Melody with one of her children

One by one we began to accept those requests and received school fees through NGM until there were more than two dozen children being sponsored.  The logistics of sponsoring the children became such a huge challenge among all the other operations of NGM that something had to be done.

As of today there are 34 students who are sponsored by donors through Next Generation Ministries. The past six months has witnessed a graphic improvement in the care of these children and their donors.  The Board of Directors had seven applicants for the newly created position of Sponsorship Coordinator and interviewed six.  A couple of them came with Master's Degrees and all were qualified.  However, one stood out from the rest and she was hired that day.

Melody Oundo had job experience, but not in the area of supervising a student sponsorship program.  She was thrown into the deep end without knowing whether she feared water.  But, she has proven to be a world class swimmer!  Don't take my word for it.  Ask the donors.  Ask the children.  Ask the rest of the NGM staff.

One of our youngest students - Sinza (Worship)

Melody has built the smooth operation of the Educational Sponsorship Program from the ground up.  She had to identify all students currently being provided school fees by donors.  Then she needed to have a corresponding list of all donors.  She learned where each student attended school and began to collect information regarding intake, schedule, tuition, and fees.  She had to meet all the parents or guardians.  That was the beginning.

Melody now has a great working knowledge of all the students enrolled in the Sponsorship Program.  She is aware of much more than their education.  She loves them so deeply because she understands their backgrounds, poverty level, medical condition, and ambition.

Corresponding with the donors is a huge part of Melody's work.  She is very diligent to take photos of the children to send to the donors.  She also sends them academic performance reports.  All with the objective of enabling the donors to be as close to the children as possible.

Eddy with his mother Olivia

The donors are advocates for the education of these children.  If they did not generously contribute to the program, the children would either not be in school or attending a very inferior school.  Melody is their hands and feet on the ground to make sure that it happens.

There are many more children who need to be educated.  We are not looking to help them all.  But friends of NGM and short term missionaries are always encountering children who should be in school ... but, for the lack of school fees.

Eddy began school last term.  His mother was paralyzed from the waist down, due to medical malpractice, while giving birth to him five years ago.  She cannot afford school fees for him .  But a donor from America is making sure this young boy receives a quality education.

Rebecca pointing out a very shy Rachel

The daughter of Paul and Pam Hunter, Rebecca, recognized the need for a young student who had polio and was no longer attending school.  Rebecca made an appeal to a friend in the United States and now Rachel is attending boarding school at Fountain of Hope High School.

Melody accepted this job six months ago on a take home pay of $135 a month.  She is the lowest paid employee of Next Generation Ministries.  She should be receiving a much larger salary because of her work load and performance.

There are other children NGM would love to sponsor.  If we had donors with a heart to sponsor children they have never met we would be grateful.  If you would like to be one of those sponsors, please contact us at nextgenminug@gmail.com.

Melody with some of the sponsored children

The minimum monthly donation to cover a boarding student is $40.  We encourage monthly contributions of $50 so that $5 can contribute to increasing Melody's salary.

I love the encouragement of God through the wisest man on earth, Solomon:  "Honor the Lord with your wealth" and "Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due."  (Proverbs 3:9 and 27)

Could this be one of the ways in which you could honor the Lord with your wealth?  We look forward to hearing from you.  Join our NGM Team and help us love more children from Uganda ... one person at a time.