Student of the Month Stories
 HillaryFebruary 2023 |  MarkariasFebruary 2020 |  FatumaNovember 2019 |
|---|---|---|
 NakesaOctober 2019 |  AngellaSeptember 2019 |  BakerAugust 2019 |
 EmmaJuly 2019 |  CarolineJune 2019 |  CedrickMay 2019 |
 GraciousMarch 2019 |  GiftJune 2021 |
Ashaba Markarias
This is Ashaba Markarias. Growing up in Namuwongo slum, Markarias has faced plenty of hardships in her childhood. But the most difficult thing that she had to pass through was the death of her mother when Markarias was only 4 years old. Though death is far more familiar in developing countries, it doesn’t take away from the effect it can have on a child.
Markarias was raised by her father and her older sisters until her father remarried. Now her stepmother is the one primarily supporting her. However, it wasn’t easy for her stepmother to step in and take care of 4 girls and Markarias found herself in and out of school because of financial hardships.
When Markarias was told that she was offered the SONBT scholarship, she couldn’t believe she would be at a boarding school where she wouldn’t have to worry about being sent home for the lack of school fees. After being in the SONBT scholarship program for a year now, Markarias has expressed her joy in being in a school where teachers give attention to each student, unlike the government schools she grew up in.
Markarias fondly remembers the day her sister graduated and since then has dreamt the same thing for herself. She has dreams to become a doctor and help those who are in need as well as be able to give back to her family who has always supported her. With Makarias’ efforts and with the support of her step mother and SONBT, there are high hopes for bright future.
Nabirye Fatuma
This is Fatuma. Having only been with SONBT for 6 months, she is one of our newest students who is benefiting from the scholarship program. Fatuma grew up in a rural area far from Kampala. Typically, the options for quality education are scarce and expensive for the low-income lifestyle in rural areas. When Fatuma’s mother got the chance to start a hair salon in the city, Fatuma also got the chance for an upgrade in education.
However, as her mother’s financial situation fluctuated, so did Fatuma’s education. She moved from school to school and had to repeat grades based on different standards in each school. Nonetheless, Fatuma has persevered and shown that she is passionate about her education. Now in the SONBT scholarship program, Fatuma does not have to worry about constantly changing schools and repeating classes. There is stability and comfort that allows her to focus on her studies.
This year has also been Fatuma’s first experience in boarding school. She remembers the days of being a day-schooler where doing homework was almost impossible in the midst of the non-stop chaos in the slum where she lives. Fatuma now appreciates the peaceful environment that allows her to concentrate on schoolwork in the evenings.
Fatuma has experienced a series of night and day differences in her education. From low-income schools in the village, to multiple government schools in the city, and now a private boarding school. These rapid and drastic changes are not rare for children in Uganda and it brings a significant disadvantage in their education. SONBT desires to provide a stable and conducive schooling experience for many children in slum areas who have never had that opportunity. Fatuma is grateful for those who are making that a possibility for her. Thank you!
Mbabazi Angella
This is Mbabazi Angella. Angella is 13 years old and finishing up her last term of grade 5. Angella grew up in the slum community of Namuwongo where she lives with both of her parents and siblings. Her father works as a security guard and her mother sweeps the streets of Kampala, a common occupation for mothers who still need time to take care of a family at home.
An important aspect of the SONBT scholarship program is to provide a conducive, peaceful environment in which students can focus on their studies and avoid the potential hazards of the slum.
This is something that Angella has personally appreciated after experiencing boarding school for the first time. She reflects on her past schooling experience where she could be sent home for having not paid school fees, which lead to dangerously wandering around the slum to entertain herself. Now being in the SONBT scholarship program, this is no longer a problem that Angella has to deal with. She can study without worrying about being sent home and she has productive activities with which to entertain herself, such as netball and dodgeball.
One of Angella’s favorite memories from school this year is the day that they celebrated her birthday in class. She says she felt so special and loved being able to spend it with the new friends she has met this year. These new, exciting experiences cause Angella to look forward to the rest of her schooling. She is motivated to work hard towards her future goals of working at a bank.
Nakesa Brenda
This is Nakesa Brenda. Brenda was born and raised in the slum community of Katanga just outside of Kampala. Slum communities tend to be a world within themselves with a particular culture and a different code of conduct. Many children, including Brenda, spend their early years without experiencing life outside of their unique community.
One area where this can be found is education. There are many schools in Katanga but they all offer a minimal standard and many of them turn out to look more like daycare centers than schools. But for many children, that is all they know school to be. The SONBT scholarship program provides a totally new and eye-opening experience for children whose whole lives have been in slum communities. For some children, it is a seamless transition, but for others, it comes with many challenges.
For Brenda, entering boarding school in January for the first time was frightening experience that came with a lot of uncertainty. A new environment, new people, new rules, etc. Brenda could hardly adjust and her coping mechanism was silence. She couldn’t talk to teachers, wouldn’t make friends, and was barely able to complete her schoolwork.
If you saw Brenda now, you wouldn’t believe that she is the same girl as depicted above. After having a full year of school under her belt, Brenda has truly blossomed. A once quiet girl is now talkative with plenty of friends and she feels at home in her schooling environment. Not only that, but her school performance has improved because of her increased confidence in talking with her teachers.
SONBT aims at providing underprivileged children with a quality education, but there are so many more benefits that come with that. Brenda has a newfound confidence in herself and is now thriving in a setting that was once intimidating. Thank you for not only making education possible for Brenda, but also helping her grow and develop personally.
Munikivu Baker
This is Munikivu Baker. Baker is 13 years old and he is one term away from completing his primary grade 4. Growing up in a slum community called Namuwongo, Baker has faced many difficulties to get to where he is now. Namuwongo is located in a low valley near the industrial area of Kampala, making it an environment that is affected by smoke from factories and extreme flooding during heavy rains. During the frequent flooding, water mixes with sewage and results in the rapid spreading of disease during the rainy seasons and creating an awful environment for children.
Baker is among the minority of children who has grown up with both parents present and active in his life. His mother fries chicken on the roadside and his father is a mechanic. Though having humble professions, Bakers parents earn enough to make a living in Namuwongo and have actively contributed in enrolling Baker into the SONBT Scholarship Program. Baker, taking after his father, also has goals of becoming a mechanic so he can contribute to helping with the needs of his family.
Being one of seven children in his family, Baker’s siblings are a big motivation for him to study hard so that he can find work and help support them. He understands that being accepted in the SONBT Scholarship Program is not an opportunity that every child gets since many of his own siblings are not in school. Baker is the oldest child in his family, so he is hoping to help his parents take on the role of providing for the younger children in the family.
Baker is thankful to have the chance to receive an education from a wonderful school that is outside of the city where there is no congestion, no fumes from factories, and no threats of flooding. He is thankful to be in a place where he can study and play in a peaceful and conducive environment away from the discomforts of Namuwongo. Baker is on track for a quality education, leading to better work opportunities which will eventually allow him to achieve his goals of helping his parents take care of his younger siblings. It is the SONBT Scholarship Program that has been able to give Baker the head start he needs to make his dreams reality!
Yuma Emma
This is Yuma Emma. Emma is one of the newest students in the SONBT scholarship program and he is already proving himself as a leader both academically and in his character. Though he joined school at the beginning of 2nd term, you wouldn’t know by his test scores that he got a late start. With his humble leadership and an appreciation for schooling, Emma embodies what we are promoting through the SONBT scholarship program.
Emma grew up in a rural village about 4 hours away from Uganda’s capital city. In 2016, Emma’s mother relocated to further her skillset in hairdressing and start her own salon. She ended up settling in the slum community of Katanga because of the appeals of cheap rent and proximity to town. Emma and his sister Fatuma relocated with their mother and had to adjust from living in a quiet village to a noisy, crowded, and unsafe slum. Meanwhile, their father remained in the village to farm.
Like many Ugandan children, Emma got used to the cycle of enrolling in school and then dropping out due to the absence of school fees. Emma recounted the toll it took on him to see his mother in a constant state of distress as she struggled to support him and his sister.
Now, with the support from the SONBT scholarship program, Emma no longer has to worry about dropping out of school. He is in an environment where he is secure and thriving as he builds a foundation for future success. Emma’s future goals and dreams are to manage a bank and to see the government do something to help children who live on the streets. He is very thankful for the opportunity SONBT has given him to study.
Ondo Caroline
This is Caroline. Caroline is half way through her first year of high school, a place in her life where she wasn’t sure she would ever reach. After completing her primary education, Caroline’s family did not have the resources to fund her secondary level. One of the factors that contributed to the financial hardships was her father having two wives with two separate families. Polygamy is a common practice in Uganda and though Caroline’s father is still involved and active in Caroline’s life, taking care of two families is a heavy financial burden.
As you could imagine, Caroline’s father’s polygamous situation was accompanied with plenty of domestic strife. As she was growing up, Caroline remembers the constant arguments between her parents and lived in fear that one of them would leave. Attending boarding school in her primary education was a way that Caroline could be removed from the troubling homelife. So being unsure of the possibility of secondary education, she was worried of being stuck at home in an unstable environment.
Caroline was thrilled to be included in the SONBT scholarship program and given the chance to go to secondary school. She loves everything about her school, especially her teachers and the chance to play netball with her friends. Caroline’s future goals include becoming a lawyer so that she can help people in poverty who are being taken advantage of. Despite the issues at home, Caroline still loves her family and wants to use the opportunity for education to get a good job and help support her struggling parents.
Lulaba Cedrick
This is Lulaba Cedrick. The stereotypes often say that there are those gifted academically and others who are gifted in sports. However, Cedrick has managed to thrive in both arenas. While an exceptionally talented soccer player, Cedrick is currently one of our highest performing students in the classroom. When he’s not on the field, you can find him in the books.
Growing up was not so easy for Cedrick. He first came from a distant village to Katanga Slum because of its proximity to Uganda’s main government hospital. At just 4 years old, Cedrick was diagnosed with anemia and needed a blood transfusion. To make matters worse, Cedrick’s condition scared off his father, leaving a single mother behind to care for her son. The frequent need for hospital visits kept Cedrick and his mother in Katanga and they have remained there up until now.
Because of his soccer talent, Cedrick was chosen for a sponsorship to cover his primary education. However, once he had completed primary school he found himself at home with little hope for secondary education. That is when SONBT met Cedrick. With the partnership between SONBT and his mother, Cedrick has been given the opportunity to enter into his first year of secondary school.
Excelling in biology and inspired by his own medical complications, Cedrick is aspiring to be a doctor so that he may help those who are suffering. His future goals also include being able to help his mother who has struggled since his childhood to provide for her son in difficult circumstances. Cedrick gives thanks to God, his mother, and to SONBT for the opportunity he has been given to further his education.
Nabwire Gracious
This is Nabwire Gracious. Gracious is entering into one of the most important school years in Ugandan education. In her last year of primary school, Gracious will have to put her nose to the grindstone as she studies for the Grade 7 National Exams. Her results will determine whether or not she will be able to continue on to secondary school. It has been quite the journey for Gracious to reach this exciting point in her education. She has spent years of being in and out of school due to the availability of school fees. It hasn’t been easy for Gracious’ parents who have given all of their efforts to support 8 children.
Gracious grew up in Namuwongo, a slum community that is interwoven through the industrial area of Kampala. While at home, Gracious can be found giving her mother a hand with her many younger brothers and sisters. Though only twelve years old, she has more experience taking care of children than most mothers have by the age of thirty! Gracious is thrilled to get the opportunity to put her home life on pause while she joins the boarding section at St. Joseph Primary School to complete her primary education. Though surely missing the extra set of hands around the house, her mother is very supportive and has fought tooth and nail to help Gracious qualify for the SONBT scholarship program.
Excelling in English and science, Gracious has the ambitious goal of becoming a doctor so that she may help people in need and assist her mother in providing for the needs of the family. During the small breaks from her busy school schedule you can find Gracious playing netball, a popular sport for girls in Uganda that looks like a mix between handball and basketball. Though particularly gifted in academics, Gracious will still need all the prayers and support she can get in order to finish strong in this monumental year in her education. She is grateful to everyone who has made it possible for her to reach this step!
Mahoro Gift
This is Mahoro Gift. As is the case for all of our students, the last 15 months have been the most confusing, frustrating, and concerning time in Gift’s education. The Covid pandemic has wreaked havoc on the Ugandan education system after facing multiple lockdowns, failed attempts of distance learning, and overall confusion in finding a way forward. Gift is one of the millions of children in Uganda who are experiencing major setbacks in their education. After finally getting a chance to go back to school, another lockdown was announced because of rapid spread of the recent Covid variant that devastated India.
Gift is not only facing problems with her education right now, but life at home during this pandemic is worse than the typical experience of living in a slum area. Gift lives with her mother in Katanga slum where Covid quickly spreads because of the dense population and poor hygiene which is descriptive of any slum community. Because of that, Gift is confined to her house unless she is sent to buy food from the market.
Gift is particularly discouraged that she can’t be at school because she loves learning. Her favorite subject is literacy, and she desires to become a teacher and teach literacy herself. Gift is surrounded by many kids in Katanga who cannot read and write or speak English. She is grateful to get the opportunity to learn such things because she sees the importance of literacy in everyday life. She can’t wait until she can go back to school without worrying if they will be unexpectedly sent home.
As the United States is nearly back to normal, Covid’s impact on Uganda is only rising. Please continue praying for Gift and our other students as well as their families during this time. Thank you for standing with us through thick and thin!
Muganzi Hillary
Hillary has just begun his first year in high school after scoring the highest primary school grades in SONBT history.
Hillary grew up with his father in Western Uganda, about 4 hours away from Kampala. During a holiday break, he came to the city to visit his mother who lives in Katanga Slum and ended up living with her long term. Despite the step down in living conditions, Hillary's parents agreed that more opportunities would be available to him if he grew up around the city.
Although his parents may have made a wise decision, Hillary was not too thrilled about it. He looks forward to when he can escape the poor sanitation and high crime rates of the slum. Being in the SONBT scholarship program has given Hillary some relief as he is currently in the safe, clean, spacious environment of his boarding school.
Our hope is that the education that he is receiving now will open doors for Hillary's future so he can permanently escape the slum life and even offer a helping hand to family members who are still there.