Introduction:  Dear friends in Christ, Thank you very much for your interest in souls and the orphans of Uganda.  We are proposing the following and believe that, “Where there is no vision the people perish:” Proverbs 29:18

 

Section 1:  H.O.P.E. “Helping Orphans Prepare for Eternity” 

Update on the proposal: Praise the Lord for answered prayer.  Soroti has one orphanage up and running called Project SOAP (Soroti Orphans Assistance Program).  Masaka is finishing the first orphanage building there.  Here in Mbarara we are ready to begin construction.  The paperwork should make it through the city counsel this week and we will get to work.  Brother Cliff McDowell, who is the President/CEO of Providential Pictures Inc. and Go-Kart Animation Inc. in Toronto Canada, believes God would have him fund the building part of Project HOPE.  What a tremendous blessing.  We will still need people to contribute to the monthly care of the orphans.

Mbarara Location:  Mbarara District is 4 hours southwest of Kampala, the capital of Uganda.  The land for the primary HOPE orphanage is located in Mbarara town, which is in the heart of the Mbarara District.  Mbarara district has approximately 1,093,388 people as per the 2002 census.  Mbarara town has a population of over 100,000.   The exact number of orphans in Uganda and in the Mbarara area is uncertain but according to the AIDS Commission in 2000 approximately 20% of the child population or 1.7 million children in Uganda were orphaned by AIDS alone. Others have calculated the figure could be as high as 2.35 million.  Mbarara has had one of the largest concentrations of AIDS cases in Uganda.  Adding the orphans from other diseases you can see the staggering problem we face.

 

Our 5 year revised ministry plan for PROJECT HOPE:

 

1.  Spiritual: It is our plan to help orphans to know the Lord Jesus Christ and prepare for eternity, by  providing a clean and safe Christian home atmosphere where they can be shown and taught the love of God.  Through this and other means, we will preach the gospel to each orphan so they may put their faith in Jesus as their Saviour at an early age.  Once saved, it our purpose to continue to teach them the Word of God through Christian education both in the orphanage and school setting preparing them to serve God and lead productive lives.

 

2.   Orphanage Construction: There will be three phases of construction

                        Phase 1 – Mbarara - Year one – Construct Orphanage building and Educational building

           Year two – Receive the first 25 orphans

           Year three – Receive the next 25 orphans totaling 50 orphans.

Phase 2 - Kyahi – Construct the Orphanage building in year two

                                   Receive the first 25 orphans in year three

                                   Receive the next 25 orphans totaling 50 orphans in year four

                       Phase 3 - Ruti – Construct the Orphanage building in year three

                                   Receive the first 25 orphans in year four

                                   Receive the next 25 orphans totaling 50 orphans in year five

                                   

   A. Receiving orphans in stages allows the staff etc. to adapt and prepare.  To attempt to bring all 50 in the first year would overwhelm the workers and hinder the long range ministry.

   B. The main orphanages will be providing financial accountability for the purchase of food, supplies, personnel, and other accounting and operation of the satellite orphanages.

   C. Land for the two satellite orphanages in Kyahi and Ruti will be located at the local church to keep transportation problems to a minimum, and provide accountability and Biblical teaching at a maximum.

 

           3.   Christian School: To provide food, clothing and shelter without good Christian education is imprudent. We plan to establish a Christian school at each site for the purpose of ensuring a quality spiritual and secular education for each orphan.  We desire an elementary school be built and to begin in concurrence to the start of each orphanage.   

It is our plan to establish a Christian Secondary School (High School) by the 9^th year of Project H.O.P.E. in order to continue the education of the orphans in a Christian School environment.  Also it may be possible to start a technical school teaching carpentry, masonry, and metal workshops for the purposes of training the orphans and establishing work opportunities after becoming adults.  These schools would be established together with and located at one of the ministries in Soroti, Masaka and Mbarara.  This would also provide leaders and benefit to the society of Uganda.  Bible Institutes are already established at each site that will be ready to prepare the orphan students for a life of service and the ministry.

 

When the orphans begin graduating, young people from the three areas will be returning to the Ugandan society.  They will have a good education, Christian character and a burden to win their families and communities to Christ.  What an impact this will make in Uganda for our Lord Jesus Christ.

 

Mbarara Projection -Land:  The land for the orphanage in Mbarara has already been purchased and developed with a church and Bible college in operation.  The Christian School and Orphanage will be constructed at this same site as soon as funds are available.      

 

                          

 

Personnel:  We have several qualified personnel ready and in place within our church to begin the project as soon as funds are available.  One of the leading men of our church, Brother Edgar, seen here with his wife Mary, has already been a headmaster and has experience operating a school.  He will be heading up the school and orphanage and they will live on the  orphanage property as the supervising family.  Mary presently works at the University in Mbarara and would assist in organization at the orphanage.

 

 

 

We have several trained multilingual teachers in our church who are excited about serving the Lord.  Nelson, Abia and Dennis are already qualified teachers and members of our church in Mbarara.  We have other teachers within the church who are qualified and others who are finishing their training.  We have also selected some of our best men and women who would be living in the dorms as “Dorm Supervisors”.

 

Immediate Proposal Needs:

Proposed Building at Mbarara:  

Due to the smaller land space we have in the center of Mbarara, we are forced to build two story buildings.  The Orphanage Building is a 79’ x 25’ two story building with a 4’ walkway on second floor. This will house 50 Orphans.  Each of the 4 dorm rooms are 25’ X 20’ with 12 orphans in one room and 13 orphans in the other.  The girls will be located on the top floor and the boys on the bottom.  Each room will have one room monitor, totaling 50 orphans and 4 room supervisors.  The entire building includes: 4 dorm rooms, supervisors living quarters, kitchen, dining room, toilets, bathing rooms and one storage room.  In the village orphanages we would be able to get by with an outside kitchen and toilets.  The city will not allow this in Mbarara and requires that we have proper toilets and kitchen facilities connected to a septic tank or the city sewer line when they run it.

A Christian school building which is also a two story building.  This will have 7 - 20’ x 20’ classrooms, a 20’ x20’ library and a 20’ x 40’ dining room.

 

Proposed Building Expenses:

Plans have being drawn up by the architect and construction will begin soon.  A detailed list of building supplies will be supplied if needed.  We are trying to keep the costs to a minimum and at the same time, maintain the cultural aspects so the children will have no problems adjusting back into the Ugandan communities.  

 

Proposed Monthly Orphan Expenses: the cost per orphan per month:

Food:                                   $26.45*

Caretakers:                          $16.55**

Personal/General                 $10.00***

Education:                           $10.00****

Total:                                 $63.00          $3150 a month to opperate the entire orphanage

 

* We can feed one child for 29.4 cents a meal or 88.2 cents a day or $26.45 a month.

** Salaries in the Mbarara area are a bit higher than village areas.  Salaries for the entire staff taking care of 50 orphans would be under $700/mo. including cooks, laundry personnel, dorm parents, and the supervising family.

***Included in toiletries/personal/general are monthly averages of: bathing soap ($.30), shampoo ($.25), toothpaste ($.25), clothes (repair/replacement) ($3), laundry soap ($.50), electricity ($3), water$1.75), medical ($1).  As you can see the average normal cost here is a bit over $10 a month.  (This does not include anything for security or transportation)  

**** The cost for a government school in the Mbarara area is $17.64 for a government school and $44.11 for a private school.  However, I believe we can operate for $10/month/orphan.

None of the orphanage salaries will allow our workers to upgrade their lifestyles to a higher position.  They will be working for less in this ministry than they could make at other jobs.  They will be sacrificing for the ministry and the children they help.  The children will obviously be living somewhat better than normal.  They will have a bed, clean living conditions and biblical instruction from people who love them and care about them.  The food they will be eating will be the normal Ugandan food and their clothes will be like the normal family in Uganda.  However, food will be there each meal and their clothes will be clean and in repair.  We want to help the orphans to be prepared for eternity and have a burden to reach their fellow countrymen.  The education they will receive will be a first class Christian education.

        We have a tremendous opportunity and we must maintain a Christ honoring testimony in this country.  Many places cram kids into roach infested rooms, feed them little, treat them as step children and for the most part do not care about their spiritual welfare.  Their primary motivation is to get more money from supporters so they (not the orphans) can live well.  We want to not only fulfill your goals of helping orphans, but provide a ministry that will honor Christ, and meet the needs of this project in the best but most inexpensive manner possible.  We know this ministry costs money but the results far outweigh the costs.  Please know that we are trying to be very careful as to how that money would be spent and would provide accountability for whatever money is given to Project H.O.P.E..  We are asking you to partner with us to reach these children for Christ and prepare them for eternity.

 

Please give them H.O.P.E. - Helping Orphans Prepare for Eternity

 

Outfitting Expenses for Orphanage:

 

1.  Bunk Beds                  25 Pcs       83.00 ea      2,075.00

2.  Mattresses                 50 Pcs       17.65 ea         882.50

3.  Sheets                        50 Pcs        5.89 ea         294.50

4.  Basins                         24 Pcs          .99 ea          23.76

5.  Towels                        50 Pcs        1.48 ea          74.00

6.  Cooking Supplies          1 Set     250.00 ea        250.00

7.  Dining Tables               3 Pcs       90.00 ea        270.00

8.  Dining Chairs              50 Pcs       11.20 ea        560.00

9.  Cups, Plates, Etc        50 Sets       1.25 ea          62.50

10.  Lanterns                      3 Pcs        17.60 ea          52.80

11.  Mosquito Netting       50 Pcs        6.00 ea         300.00

12.  Clothing                       3 Sets      20.00 ea      1,000.00

                                                              Total:   $5845.06

 

Section 2:  The Future Sites of Project HOPE

 Mbarara district may have as many as 200,000 orphaned children alone.

 

All Properties Are Already Purchased:

Mbarara District:

1.  Kyahi – The second proposed site for H.O.P.E. Orphanage.  There are two acres of land which already contains a church, Bible Institute, and nursery school of 100 children.

 

 

 

 2.  Ruti – Opportunity for the third orphanage is in Ruti. Ruti is a flat area with an established church.  Praise the Lord!  Parklawn Baptist Church in Toronto Canada has purchased the land in Ruti for the orphanage.  The picture below is a group of West Coast Baptist College students with several orphans from the Ruti area.

 

 

 

 

We are asking God to touch your heart about giving these orphans HOPE by getting involved in Project H.O.P.E.

 

There are four costs that must be considered and in the order of priority are as follows:

1. Cost of the Orphanage buildings God is supplying this through Brother Cliff McDowell.  If you could help I know he would appreciate it very much.

2. Cost of the School buildings (Once we get them we MUST educate them properly)

3. Cost of outfiting the orphanage

4. Cost of the monthly support to sustain the orphans (we must be able to take care of them properly)

 

You may have a business and could make a large contribution to Project HOPE or you may be an individual and wish to make a smaller contribution.  It may be a one time gift or it could be given on a monthly basis to support an individual orphan or the project as a whole.  Whatever size or type please contact us.  If all you think you can do is pray, praise God, we really need your prayer support.  Let us know that you are going to be praying for us.  Maybe God would have you surrender your life to Him and come over and help us.  Any contribution should be sent through BIMI and earmarked for Project HOPE.

Please email us at: bryanstensaas@yahoo.com