My Journey and the Vision for Vumbula Uganda Youth Home

My name is Ssenyange Robert, and I am a twenty-seven-year-old Christian, born in Uganda, Africa. Being an orphan myself, along with my sister (Nantayi Harriet) and my brother (Godfrey Baziwane), is the main reason I started Vumbula Uganda Youth Home.

Before all this, my country experienced war due to political matters. Many people, especially children, were affected, and many lost their parents. I lost my grandfather and aunt during the war, leaving my mother to raise not only us but also her sister’s children. Despite our struggles, my mother had a heart full of love for children. She took in orphans she found sleeping in the bush without shelter or food. She planted food to feed us and used herbal medicine when we fell sick, as she could not afford hospital treatment.

When I was thirteen years old, my mother became very ill and passed away. We were left alone—my sister, my brother, and fifteen other children my mother had been caring for. Life became extremely difficult, and the house we lived in was on the verge of collapse. Thankfully, missionaries who had come to our village rescued us. My sister, brother, and I were taken to a missionary church, where we were able to go to school. However, when the missionaries returned to their home countries, caretakers were left in charge of the orphans.

As years passed, I decided to look for a job to support my younger siblings. At the orphanage, I learned various skills, including mechanics, because I loved repairing cars. At seventeen, I found a job on the streets of our town.

Despite my new responsibilities, I never forgot my mother’s heart and the values she instilled in me. She taught me to be a good person and to help those in need whenever I could. Above all, she taught me to pray, love, and serve God wholeheartedly. Inspired by her example, I returned to my home village to help suffering children and make a difference in their lives. I provided them with what little food and clothing I could, but I had no shelter to offer since the land we once had was taken away by villagers. Without legal documents, I could not reclaim it.

God, however, had a plan. He sent a kind-hearted man who gave me and the children a simple house to rent. With the little income I earned from working at a car wash, I was able to feed them. But as the number of orphans grew, now reaching 70, it became increasingly difficult to provide for them alone.

This led me to seek sponsors and volunteers who could help care for the children. We officially registered Vumbula Uganda Youth Home so that these children could receive sponsorship, an education, and the basic necessities every child deserves.

Our Vision for the Future

Our ultimate goal is to create a sustainable future for these children. To achieve this, we need to:
• Build a primary school to ensure quality education for the orphans and vulnerable children in our community.
• Buy land for farming so we can grow our own food and raise livestock, making VUYH more self-sustaining.
• Construct guest housing for volunteers and visitors who come to support our mission.

With your prayers, love, and support, we believe this vision will become a reality. Together, we can transform lives and create a future where no child has to suffer alone.