Two weeks ago, I was in Uganda.

Two weeks ago, I sat on my knees on JjaJja Hope’s floor, praying for her health as we held hands.

Two weeks and a day ago, I sat videoing Dorothy, the woman who makes our baskets.  She shared bits and pieces of her life and her family with me as I watched her make a beautiful gold and black kibbo basket. A few hours later, I ate fried chicken with the woman who was our first benevolence fund recipient, and she told me, as her son translated, how she came to be where she is now.  And as her eyes sparkled, she told me about her children, clearly so beloved.

Two weeks and three days ago, I drank Sprite in a glass bottle with a dear Ugandan friend and her husband as we watched their three children, all adopted, play around us.

Two weeks and four days ago, I met Teo, who makes our magazine bead necklaces.  She showed me around her shop, pointing out the wares she made and the paintings created by her brother.  Then I walked a few doors down and met Rita, who displayed her handmade shoulder bags, adorned with special features that made them stand out from the other craft vendors’ bags.

These six women, different as they could possibly be, are a glimpse of the ladies who will be in our program. Love for family, creativity, care for others, worth ethic.  These gifts are in all of us, manifested in different ways according to who we know, how we are nurtured, where we come from, where we go.  As I sat with these ladies, it was like I saw some of TMRP’s most treasured values personified.  Meeting them feels like I’ve read the prologue, and now I can’t wait to dive into what is yet to be written in this unfolding story.  Something sparked inside me, inside our team, and we are very much ready to be serving in Uganda.

Because for every woman that we met in Uganda, there is another woman somewhere who is struggling:

Maybe a woman with a dream of owning her own craft shop, but without the skills or the funds to do it.

Maybe an elderly lady who lacks an income source to obtain needed medical care.

Maybe a mama whose eyes sparkle when she talks about her children, but who can’t afford to send them to school.

Maybe a brilliant basket weaver who can’t afford supplies to continue her craft.

Maybe a childless woman who has the passion, but not the financial security, to adopt.

I don’t know these ladies yet, but I know I want to be with them — sharing their stories, maybe eating fried chicken, learning how to make kibbos — all of us moving forward together.

Unfortunately, to run the kind of program we have been called to takes money.  As much as we would love to throw caution to the wind, fly to Uganda next month, and start interviewing program applicants, the level of care and nurture and security required to make the TMRP program all it has the potential to be will take funding.  If you would like to partner with us in this, visit our “donate” page.

So knowing this, why haven’t we been posting lots of pictures of the people we met and served in Uganda?  Wouldn’t they pique people’s interest and cause increased support?

Well, probably.

However, because of our own experience in Uganda as well as wisdom gleaned from other ministries, our founders and board feel strongly that a person’s story is that person’s story, and it is not ours to share on the web or otherwise without that person’s express permission.  As a mama, I would feel really funny about someone coming into my neighborhood, taking pictures of my family, and putting them on the internet as representations of that person’s cause.  If this is true in the US, it also holds in the rest of the world.

So what does this mean for our ministry and the media that we use?  It means that we only post identifying media of people when it meets the following criteria:

1. We have specific permission to take the photo/shoot the video.

2. We have specific permission to post said media online.

3. The person in the media has a specific link to TMRP, through partnership, business transaction, or ministry activities.

The end goal of this policy is hopefully that we are able to be good stewards of the relationships we are blessed with and the dignity of the people we serve and partner with.

When we are permanently in Uganda, we will have plenty of people whose faces you will get to know.  For now, check out the blog post about Dorothy, and stay tuned for upcoming profiles of our other partners.

We wanted to take a minute to introduce you to our new friend Dorothy. One of our contacts in Uganda, Fred, found out about her and the beautiful kibbo baskets she makes, and we knew we had to meet with her while we were in Uganda.

We were able to catch up with her last Thursday as she was finishing up a basket.  As we sat and watched her work, she shared a little bit about herself, as well as giving us some really useful information about basket making.  Growing up, Dorothy came from a place where basket-making was common, so it was only natural that she also picked up the craft.  Watching her work, it is obvious that her hands are well-practiced, and her baskets are intricate  and sturdy.  She chuckled as the spelled out for us the difficulty level of the different types of baskets: These are the young person baskets.  These are the mama-made baskets.  These are the baskets that the JjaJjas (grandmothers) make. All were beautiful.

The basket that we watched Dorothy complete.

Many of the baskets we brought back with us were made by Dorothy.  We also placed a standing monthly basket order with her to continue to develop this relationship and provide her with consistant basket-sale income.

We are excited to be partnering with Dorothy!  Your purchase at The Mighty River Project’s online store ensures that we can continue partnerships with ladies like these!

…the people we meet will see Jesus through the way we treat each other and them.

…our five-person team will stay healthy as to maximize our time in-country.

…we will have unity and clarity as we visit the people and places on and off our agenda.

…our planned/scheduled time, as well as our flex/not-yet-scheduled time, will be fruitful, and that we will be flexible with whatever comes our way.

…we will see this trip as a mission-field in itself, not just a stepping stone to our long-term program.

We look forward to sharing on our facebook page and on the blog throughout the week, so check back frequently for updates!

Thank you all for your partnership in bringing us this far!  We appreciate y’all!

It’s time for another giveaway! We are experimenting with magazine bead earrings, and wanted to share the fruits of our labor with one lucky winner!  We’re giving away a set of seven pair of magazine bead earrings — one for every day of the week.  This means that YOU could be the first one to get your hands on these!

To enter, all you have to do is share the link to this giveaway with someone (via facebook, twitter, word of mouth, phone call, email, flyer distribution, etc.), then leave a comment on THIS POST telling us who you shared with.

The easiest way to share is to give people the shortened link, which is

bit.ly/14earrings

So easy, so don’t miss out!

Rules:

-One entry per person.

-Entries will close Friday, April 20 at 9pm.

-Winner will be drawn by from eligible entries using random.org and notified via email by Saturday, April 21.  Winner MUST respond to the notification email within48 hours or we will redraw for a secondary winner.

-No purchase necessary to win, just leave a comment.

Happy sharing, and good luck!

(This pleasant little package of 14 earrings will be on its way to someone soon!)

First, we have about a dozen magazine bead necklaces left in this lot. We would love to have these gone before we leave for the vision trip, so we’ll have lots of room left for the next batch. Go here to view and purchase!

Second, we will have an exhibitor booth at the Together for Adoption Regional Conference in Winston Salem on April 28. If you are already planning on going, please stop by and say hello! If you aren’t yet planning on going, and you’re in or around North Carolina, we highly recommend attending! This conference has something for everyone, whether you haven’t considered adoption/orphan care or are an adoptive parent or are active in orphan care or are a ministry leader, there will be something for YOU at this conference! We are excited to be a small part of  one of the driving forces of orphan care in the Church.

Third, we are on the brink of needing some willing hands for a variety of tasks.  We’re all, thankfully, gifted in different ways, and we would love to put your gifts to use! Recently, we have been so blessed to have a boutique cookie maker, a CPA, and a teacher to volunteer their skills and connections to benefit TMRP. Talk about a wide range of talents!  Please email us if you would like to be on our standby list of volunteers! And when you email, tell us what you’re great at and what makes your heart sing and what makes you come alive, so we can avoid the square-volunteer-in-a-round-volunteer-position problem!

Fourth, we are looking for several large duffle bags to leave with contacts in Uganda. If you have a duffle you could spare, please let us know! We will greatly appreciate not having to lead our Ugandan friends on a duffle bag hunt every time they have something to send us!

Thanks for being our heroes, y’all! Every little step gets us closer to Uganda!

Lately, though, more than the planning, the people have been on my heart.  Will we cross paths with any of the women who will ultimately be in our program?  Will any of the kids who will giggle and shout mzungu [which means 'white person'], ‘ow ah yoo?! as we walk past eventually sit on one of the tiny preschool-classroom-style chairs I have been researching, eating pineapple and rice and beans while we sing songs?

I have no idea who the future holds for our program.  But I know they are out there.

Maybe one of those ladies who will join our program in a few months just had a gorgeous baby with a head full of hair, who will be toddling around grinning when we move into the TMRP property.

Maybe another is weaving a stunning, colorful kibbo basket, wondering who will ultimately purchase it.

Maybe another is facing the disheartening heaviness of illness.

Maybe one can sing like an angel, and will teach my daughters the words to her favorite Luganda song.

I don’t know who or where they are right now, but I feel a kinship and a love for each of them already.  And I pray for them, often.  And I am following a God who is infinitely more than the time and space I am bound by, who is guiding them to us, step by step, just as he is guiding us to them.

Will you pray with us for Divine Guidance as we head for Uganda, both short and long-term?  Will you join us in prayer for the families we will partner with?

Thanks to each of you for your partnership on this journey!  We cannot WAIT for the day when we introduce these dear women to you!

Click here to visit the online store.

If you’re wondering what in the world a “magazine bead” is, it is a bead that is made out of a long, triangular strip of magazine or poster paper, which is then varnished and strung into a necklace.  Many women in Uganda know how to make these necklaces, and they have become a great source of income for many in the past several years.

Congratulations to Mary Johnson, the winner of our giveaway sponsored by Suga’!  Mary, keep your eyes out for an email from us soon!

Thanks to each of you who entered, shared, and donated.  We appreciate you all!

Stay tuned for more excitement! We have a new batch of magazine bead necklaces that will be for sale soon, and you never know when we might have another giveaway