Hillcrest Academy reaches out to children in Uganda

Recently, students, parents and staff of Hillcrest Academy gave over 300 school kits to children in Uganda. Mr. Howard Shapiro, retired Hillcrest Principal and now the coordinator of the Namuwongo Literacy Project, was present at an assembly to celebrate this accomplishment. Mr. Shapiro shared his personal experiences of working with Ugandan children and told how the Ugandan students will cherish these school supplies.

Over the last many years, Hillcrest students have filled a shoebox for needy children in Africa. This year Hillcrest student embarked on a new African support venture that had a school related mission - School Kits for Uganda. This project assists students in a poor area of Africa and furthers their education through the Namuwongo Literacy Project associated with McGill University. Each Hillcrest student was given a special school kit box to fill with school supplies.

The Namuwongo Literacy Project aims to provide literacy opportunities for children in Namuwongo, Uganda who would otherwise receive no formal schooling whatsoever. In some cases, the children may have had schooling, but the majority has had no formal schooling.

Due to the financial burdens, the caregivers are unable to provide the necessary monies for fees, books, supplies and uniforms. Namuwongo is a shanty town, located on the outskirts of Kampala, Uganda.

Shanty towns, "marginal" or informal settlements, are units of irregular, low-cost dwellings, usually on lands belonging to third parties, and most often located on the periphery of cities.

These dwellings are often assembled from pieces of plywood, corrugated metal, sheets of plastic, and any other material that will provide cover. It is a settlement not recognized by the government of Uganda. Inhabitants are mainly from northern Uganda which has been beset by violence, both physical and emotional.

The children receiving these school kits reside in the shanty town of Namuwongo and surrounding villages and many have been orphaned by war, familial violence and disease.

We would like to thank everyone connected with this project, starting with Mr. Howard Shapiro.

Doug Clarke

Principal, Hillcrest Academy

Photo:Hillcrest

(Photo: Courtesy of Hillcrest Academy)