Uniquely Ugandan: August 2020

Dear family and friends,

As we write this, we reflect on that fact that we have been in the US for two full months!

We always had the plan of coming back for three weeks for a family wedding until COVID hit and the Uganda airport shut down. We were only able to get out on a charter flight with the hope that the airport would soon reopen and we could return back home to Gulu, Uganda. Yet in the same vein, we knew that there was a real possibility that it may be months until we got back. The airport is still shut down, therefore we are not able to return, even though we attempted to get back on a repatriation flight, it seems that we are in the US for an extended period of time.

As with all of you, our life has taken many unexpected turns in the last several months. Although we do long to be back in Uganda with our community, work, and home there, we are here and we have been so grateful for our time. Aubrey Anne has spent wonderful days with both sets of grandparents and her aunts, uncles, cousins, and extended family! Eric has been busy at work on his family farm and I had been able to do my work from here. With schools still shut down in Uganda, there is no opportunity of training and school visits, so I am doing the best I can with curriculum development from here.

Our days are pretty simple with work and attending to the daily duties of life. We have had a lot of family gatherings and celebrations including the beautiful wedding of Eric’s brother, Andrew and his wife Kiersta! We have been staying in an Airbnb close to Eric’s family’s farm and then we will move into a small home on one of the farm’s properties in the coming weeks.

Another joy is that we are expecting a new addition to our family! I am just finishing my first trimester and we plan to welcome our second child into our arms at the end of February. This surprise is one of the main reasons that we are now planning on staying in the US for the next several months. We think it is wise to stay here for prenatal care, the birth of our baby then return back to Uganda around mid-end of April.

You may be wondering what our current financial situation is, now that we are no longer in Uganda, especially those of you who are supporting us on a regular basis. Currently, Eric is working full-time on our family farm which is covering our expenses while we are here in the US. However, there are still a few ongoing expenses we have in Uganda. Secondly, we were a bit behind on our support raising when we came back to the US in June. We are asking that those of you who are giving on a recurring basis, continue to do that, as you are willing and able. This will help us cover the few expenses that we still have in Uganda and help us catch up and get ahead in our support for when we go back, Lord willing next year. If you have any questions or concerns in this area, please feel free to contact Eric. We would like to thank all of you who have and are faithfully supporting us financially. Finally, Eric has been able to participate in some exciting work with farmers in Uganda earlier this year that he will update you on in a later post.