Kingfishers and Fish Eagles

Saturday 18th

A strenuous drive through the Masese slum came to a halt when the busses could go no further. The breakfast was delivered the last 500yards on foot, by the students. Over 170 students were given sandwiches, bananas and a drink. Teams entertained the children with games and teaching and all enjoyed another eye opening morning.

The afternoon was spent on a river boat taken to the bubbling spring that Speke discovered to be the source of the Nile. Birds of all shapes, sizes and colours from a tiny but beautiful Kingfisher to the majestic African Fish Eagle with its 8 foot 6 inch wing span.

An evening meeting some old friends including Rev Neal Stanton who was last in Jinja with the team 10 years ago, and two friends of Nigel and Julies from Sheffield.

We met Unis, a polio victim, who told us his amazing story. We first met him 3 years ago in one of the villages where we’d funded a new house to be built for him. Over the lat few years Unis has always made the effort to walk with his crutches to where we are working, and often acted as translator for us. His unwavering positive attitude and smile are captivating. In October Peter travelled to Kampala with Unis to buy special shoes needed with his calipers, only to find the shop had a workshop and training scheme. In January Unis embarked upon this training and hopes to set up shop and train others in Jinja. He’s a remarkable man, and I can’t do his story justice in these few sentences.