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Ocer is Acholi for “He has risen!”

Dear Friends,

The youth in Northern Uganda suffered terribly for two decades due to the conflict and abduction of boys to be child soldiers and girls to support them. Initially they abducted older youth, but over time they took younger and younger children. Those who were taken were forced to commit atrocities on their neighbors, burning villages and killing people. Others were forced to flee their homes at night to safe havens to hide from the rebels. Nearly all lost family members and suffered incredible traumas. Many were left orphaned or widows with numerous children. The education of the children was interrupted and delayed, stealing not only their present lives, but also their future.

In 2006, following the signing of the Peace Accords, the Society of Jesus started a new high school—Ocer Campion Jesuit College in Gulu as a means of helping with the healing and reconciliation of the people. Hear is the voice of one student,

“I grew up in violence because I was born at the time of the civil war of the Lord’s Resistance Army. I spent most of my life witnessing brutal acts conducted by the rebels in our areas, killings, burning down of schools, people’s homes and more. These memories are still fresh in my mind, but I am glad I am at {Ocer Campion} school participating in activities that help me to take away my thoughts.” Lilian, Senior 4

Ocer Campion Jesuit College is special because it offers an extra preparatory year to enable students to address their learning gaps and properly prepare them for a rigorous high school curriculum. In December 2014 they graduated their first class. Their O-level scores were ranked highest for the region demonstrating the power of this model. The vision of the Jesuits is to continue to increase the quality of the education at Ocer Campion by leveraging the expertise of international volunteers, which benefits both the staff and students.

Pope Francis echoes Jesus and the scriptures calling us with his message to be a light in the darkness, to be hope for the hopeless, to heal our world!! In response to this great invitation, we as a faith community have embarked on an ambitious goal to raise $100,000 for Ocer Campion Jesuit College. These funds will be used to build a two-story house on the school campus for international volunteer teachers, counselors, coaches, medical, and support staff. In this way we will enable others to give generously of their time and talents to help improve the quality of the education and life for the students and their families.

Please won’t you join us and help these students to rise from the ashes of their childhood to become fully the youth that God intended? Donate Now! or Come to an Event!

Thank you for bringing renewed hope to these youth!

To learn more about Ocer Campion Jesuit College visit Our Partner page.

May God bless you abundantly, Laura

Power Down for Education in Uganda

We @echangendeavors are powering down our mobile device to raise $100,000 for education in northern Uganda: #PowerDown4EdUg. Students at Ocer Campion Jesuit College (OCJC) in Gulu Uganda do not have access to technology for learning purposes, let alone personal use. In solidarity with these students, we are giving up using our mobile phones and other mobile devices for 24 hours and donating $24 to improve the quality of their education.

In this way, we are affirming the value of high school education for all youth and facilitating a higher quality of education in Uganda. The funds raised will go towards the building of a two-story house on campus for international volunteers, teachers, coaches, medical personnel, entrepreneurs and others who come and work with the youth for extended stays.

Ocer Campion Jesuit College http://ocercampion.org was initiated following the signing of the Peace Accords in Gulu in 2006 as means of reconciliation and restoration in northern Uganda following two decades of war and violence. During the conflict, thousands of youth were abducted and forced to be child soldiers or to support the soldiers. Many more youth lived in fear of being abducted, so they went to camps for internally displaced persons (IDP) that were underfunded or nightly they retreated to shelters in Gulu town. All of which negatively affected their education. Ocer Campion offers an extra initial year for students to address gaps in their knowledge and skills to ensure they are properly prepared to begin high school studies. This methodology has proven to be powerful! This last December Ocer Campion graduated their first class of students and earned the highest ranking on the national O-level exams out of all the schools in Gulu district.

Now is your opportunity to be part of this grand endeavor to give these youth a second chance at a good education. Take on our challenge to power down for education in Uganda – #PowerDown4EdUg and donate $24 for Ocer Campion Jesuit College.

The #PowerDown4EdUg Challenge in 5 Easy Steps

Tell all the people in your circles WHEN you will be powering down your mobile devices and WHAT inspired you to take on this challenge.
Power down your mobile phone and other mobile devices and give to another adult to verify you did it!
Have a carefree, no technology day and see what happens differently.
Make your donation by texting the word UGANDA to 41444.
Post a brief video or message to tell everyone you know that you completed the challenge and what you gained from the experience. Finally, don’t forget to challenge others to take on the #PowerDown4EdUg challenge too!

For all your posts, use #PowerDown4EdUg and refer to us @echangendeavors

Come join us this Lenten season and take on this charity challenge of letting go of your mobile technology to help youth improve their educational opportunities in Uganda.

Thank you for your support!

Click below to view our videos:

http://youtu.be/r28AYymTRHE

http://youtu.be/SxU5SlBJkyM

Welcome and thank you for visiting eChange Endeavors!

We are a community inspired by our Catholic faith to serve one another in love. We have committed resources and ourselves to create inclusive empowerment opportunities for our Brothers and Sisters in Africa. We currently work in Uganda, East Africa.

We are Inspiring Hope through our efforts at small business creation, strengthening and improving the social services sector, and encouraging education at all levels.

We are Renewing Community by serving as a catalyst to empower widows, single mothers, disabled persons, youth, refugees or families living in poverty.

Hope lives when small, community-centered businesses are created and expanded, when basic health care and social services are met, and when educational opportunities are a real option.

Come join our community!