11-year old Sharon…now has sponsors
Sharon resides with her elderly grandmother and her 4 year old brother in Bunyore in deplorable conditions.
When we visited the region this past April, our volunteer told us that while the other sponsored orphans were practicing songs and dances of thanks for a formal presentation during our visit, Sharon had approached our Project Volunteer Liaison. She told her that she was an orphan and could sing and dance also. They allowed her to join the group. Sharon, sang her heart out for us and also recited a very moving poem about “Mr. AIDS”, the ‘monster that comes and steals the parents of children.’ Our volunteers and board members were moved to tears. We visited her dwelling unit the next day and found her living in abject poverty. We learned that her parents both died shortly after the birth of her brother. Her bedroom consisted of an old wood-framed bed with wooden slats that were covered in a urine soaked burlap sack. There was a small window opening in which flies and mosquitoes flew freely in and out of her room. This is where Sharon sleeps with her 4 year old brother.
Shortly after our visit the area was hit by heavy rains and the birth of new mosquitoes…and we learned that all of our sponsored children were ill with Malaria and Typhoid. Sharon was in dire need of a sponsor as she is very bright and wants to succeed in school. Daily survival is a struggle for her. Her elderly grandmother told us that she provides digging on local farms to help raise funds for Sharon’s school fees. But this work is not always available and Sharon needed to attend school regularly. Thanks to the compassion of volunteer and travel companion Katie Scaglione and her mother Debbie and another co-sponsor Debra Moran, Sharon is now well cared for and doing exceptionally well!!!
