I am so excited to launch my new fundraiser through Pure Charity to continue to support my journey serving as a speech therapist in Uganda for Hope Speaks. A huge thank you to all of you who have already so graciously supported me! My goal is to raise $8,000 ($45/day) to support Hope Speaks ministries and fund personal mission living costs. This will allow me to target and complete my 9 month clinical fellowship by May 2018.

I have now been living and serving as a speech therapist in Kampala, Uganda since August. My new life still feels surreal as I adjust to living no longer as a graduate student but immersed in the working world within a whole new culture. I am living with Ben and Kari David, the founders of Hope Speaks and their son, Judah. Judah arrived 2 weeks early (8/31/17), leaving just enough time for Kari to introduce me to her Kampala caseload before starting her maternity leave. Below you will find details of my typical work week as a traveling speech therapist!

                                                        Monday: International Schools

                                                 

On Monday's I travel to 3 different International schools around Kampala. Therapy sessions include targeting skills in the areas of articulation and phonological disorders, receptive and expressive language delays, as well as auditory comprehension deficits. I have also had the opportunity to collaborate with teachers and attend meetings regarding student progress. My favorite part may be hearing all of the children’s British accents :)

                                              Tuesday: Mukisa Foundation/Katanga Slum

                                                   

Mukisa’s mission is to offer hope for children with special needs and offers therapy on a first-come, first-serve basis. Services offered include occupational therapy, physical therapy, speech therapy, and sessions with social workers. Mukisa also has a vocational program for teenage girls with disabilities, preprimary classes, and programs for children with Autism. Caregivers are present during our therapy sessions which allows them to learn and develop skills to best support their child’s speech and language development at home. I have had the privilege to co-treat with a Ugandan speech therapist who also currently volunteers at Mukisa. We make a great team as he is able to translate for me and educates parents while I work with the children.


                    

As of July, Hope Speaks has opened a one room clinic in the Katanga Slum. Kari originally offered therapy every Friday, however the clinic quickly started to reach max capacity. Hope Speaks employs two Ugandan social workers who continue to identify more and more children in need of therapy. I now offer therapy every Tuesday and Friday afternoons to accommodate the need. The stories of the mothers we are working with are often heart breaking, yet portray ones of strong, resilient women seeking the best life possible for their children. Very often husbands will leave their wife after they have given birth to a child with special needs. Like Mukisa, therapy sessions entail educating caregivers how to best support their child's speech and language development outside of therapy. The social workers serve as my translators and manage the clients here. Often times during therapy, children playing outside will peer in the doors and watch our sessions to see all of our toys. Some of the kids love yelling, "Muzungu (white person) give me that ball!"

                                                  Wednesday: Dawn/Mercy Childcare

                                                 
                                            
On Wednesday mornings I travel to Dawn Children’s Center. Dawn is partnered with the Mukisa Foundation and is a school for kids with special needs through first grade. The teachers here are very knowledgeable about speech and language development due to completing trainings offered by Kari. This has been great for the students as collaboration occurs among therapists and teachers to support goal achievement.

                                                  

I then travel to Mercy Childcare out in the village on Wednesday afternoons. This organization sponsors abandon children and consists of 4 homes that the children are able to live in, creating a family-like environment. Social workers then identify family members and offer job skill and parental trainings in hopes to eventually reunite the child with a family member. Mercy Childcare is part of a broader organization called Mercy that has a church, health clinic, and plans to build a school for the sponsored children to attend. I work closely with the PT and OT and see children for therapy in the special needs ministry. It’s too hard to pick a favorite place I work at, but this one just might win!

                                                            Thursday: Private clients

                                                   

I also see private clients on Thursdays and scattered throughout my week including Saturday mornings/afternoons. These clients are seen in their homes, in cafe gardens, or in hotel conference rooms. I have also completed a therapy session in a car as our garden space was being used. We make therapy work in any location! In the meantime, Hope Speaks is working to find space and funds for a clinic of their own! This would significantly cut down on the amount of travel time and costs during the week, allowing more kids to be seen. Similar to international school students, private clients pay for therapy based on their income in order to sponsor other children seen at no cost. My Thursdays also leave time open for new evaluations and a chance to catch up on daily notes, evaluation reports, and manage new referrals.

            Friday: Kampala School for the Physically Handicapped/ Katanga Slum

                        

Friday mornings are reserved for the Kampala School of the Physically Handicapped. The students here are all dressed in pink uniforms! This is a government funded school and receives $1 per student for each school year. Needless to say, this school is not very well funded. On my first day here, I stepped in a classroom filled with students but without a teacher. A young student stood at the front of the room shouting the alphabet with a yard stick while students ran around the classroom. Unfortunately, teachers stop showing up when the schools run out of money at the end of each term. Despite the lack of funding, this school is such a joyful place filled with students of all ages and makes for an awesome day of therapy. I am then off to the slums each Friday afternoon.

                                              Thank you thank you thank you!

At this time last year, I was set on moving out west to start my life after graduate school. Little did I know I would be living halfway across the world, time zones away from the States serving in Uganda. I have grown to love my new life here and all that Uganda has to offer. I feel so grateful to be a part of an amazing ministry as I am able to offer therapy to children from all walks of life and abilities. Despite easily feeling overwhelmed by the vast need for many many more speech therapists in this country, I am continually reminded God is in control as he provides for Hope Speaks and works in and through us to carry out his mission. Within these first 2 months I have witnessed an 18 year old mother from the slums report daily completion of therapy exercises and tasks at home with her daughter who has hydrocephalus, a father report his child with autism is now able to verbally greet him in the morning, a child with cerebral palsy cue himself to say "more" by holding his lips together create to the "m" sound, and so so much more.

What keeps me going is knowing I am exactly where God has planned for me to be, serving his kingdom one child at a time. In the words of the wonderful Mumford & Sons, each day I strive for the Lord to “keep my eyes to serve, my hands to learn.” I ask that you pray for me, the staff of Hope Speaks, and the children we serve as we strive to carry out our mission: “bringing hope and raising voices for children with disabilities through speech language therapy, advocacy, and education.”

At last, if you feel inspired to be a part of this journey or continue to support me, please click on the link below to place an online donation! Thank you again for helping me make a difference, this could truly not be possible without your gracious support.


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