Tuckahoe Builds Connections
By Mitch Pascal, Principal, Tuckahoe ES, Arlington, VA Last year Tuckahoe Elementary School embarked on a partnership with Matuwa Primary School in Bupoto, Uganda. As principal of Tuckahoe, I wanted to experience first hand Uganda’s culture and geography, as well as further develop the personal relationships we had begun to establish. So I traveled to…
2016: A Year in Review
It seems like just yesterday that Arlington Junior School opened for the first day of the school year. Our primary school students finished up the year on December 9th and will have a break until the first week of February. 2016 has been a great year for Arlington. We have seen a tremendous amount of…
How Bumwalye Has Been Supported By REACH
By: Wamanga Derrick, 5th Grade Student at Bumwalye Primary School First, I would like to appreciate all the good things which REACH for Uganda has done to help me and my school. REACH used a good heart to bring us scholastic materials, for example pens, pencils, books, mathematical sets, and rulers. This has showed me that…
How REACH Has Helped My School
By: Khanakwa Stella I am Khanakwa Stella and I am eleven years old. I am a pupil of Matuwa Primary School in Primary Six. Matuwa Primary School is found in Bupoto sub-county in Manafwa District in eastern Uganda. I am very grateful for what REACH for Uganda has done for the pupils of Matuwa Primary…
World AIDS Day 2016
December 1st is recognized internationally as World AIDS Day. The celebrations are dedicated to raising awareness of the AIDS pandemic and remembering those who died of the disease. To commemorate World AIDS Day, REACH held celebrations today at both of our clinics in Bumwalukani and in Bupoto. At our Bumwalukani clinic, the day started with…
The Impact of Sponsorship
By: Amy White, REACH sponsor and Board member When I first heard about REACH from John and Joyce Wanda, what initially appealed to me was the one-on-one connection to the sponsored children. I wanted my three elementary-aged children to connect in meaningful ways to other children across the globe. I wanted them to understand how…
I’ll never forget arriving in the village late at night…
By Beatrice Tierney, long-time friend and supporter of REACH I got connected to REACH in 2004 when I met John Wanda at Bethel Church. I was born in Italy and came to the US at an early age. I had to work very hard to get to where I am today. I feel very lucky and blessed. …
It’s easy to find ways to get involved with REACH…
By: Bree Hannafin, former REACH Ambassador It’s easy to find ways to get involved with REACH because there are so many opportunities to share your passion. Being a collegiate athlete, I knew I wanted to focus my time in Uganda around sports, so I tapped into my network to receive over 100lbs of donated equipment…
Never Too Old to Learn
By: Olivia Schneider and Daphne Mabonga Francis Wamusi is a 38-year-old father of 8 who also happens to be a 7th grade student at Bulobi Primary School. Not only does Francis tower over his 14-year-old classmates, but he is also older than his teacher and one of his children is actually a 5th grade student…
REACH Co-Founders Receive 2016 National Caring Award
By: Danielle Fortin, International Coordinator On Saturday, October 22nd, our co-founders John and Joyce Wanda traveled to Orlando, Florida to join the ranks of Mother Theresa, Pope Francis, Senator Kennedy and 58 other dignitaries as recipients of the 2016 National Caring Award. Founded in 1985, the Caring Institute works to promote the values of caring, integrity,…
2016 Debate Tournament
By: Olivia Schneider, Outreach Coordinator The Outreach Program Debate Tournament is an annual program in which teams from Arlington and other outreach schools compete in a series of debates. The goal of the program is for students to improve their public speaking, reasoning, and English skills, as well as encouraging friendly competition among the schools. The…
Reading Challenge 2016
By: Danielle Fortin, International Coordinator In 2006, the teachers of our sister school, Arlington Traditional School, solidified our partnership by bringing their annual Reading Challenge to Uganda with a theme of “Reading is Global.” ATS’ hope in including REACH in their tradition was to instill a positive reading culture with our students in Uganda to help their educational…