Save Street Children Uganda Orphanage
In 2010, Gregg Curtis, a team member of The Good Earth, had the opportunity to visit Uganda on a mission trip with his son Keaton (click here for video). In Kampala, at the Save Street Children Uganda Orphanage, Gregg met Byaruhanga Innocent, the Executive Director of the organization and a former street child himself. SASCU is striving to educate, protect, and equip ex-street and other vulnerable children. Uganda has a staggering number of street children as a result of internal wars, social injustices in homes, and premature parent deaths caused by HIV/AIDS. As you can imagine, one child’s needs including education, housing, food, supplies, medical and social welfare is costly. The Good Earth’s goal is to raise funds and awareness for SASCU so that more children get the help they need.
In the summer of 2016, SASCU Staff, students and missionaries and local workers teamed up to begin developing land that was graciously given to them. They named it Providence Farm, meaning “God will provide”. SASCU/Providence Farm’s goal towards sustainability is through the development and growth of the farm land; breeding of animals; and donations and sponsorships to provide for the on-going needs of the SASCU orphans and other vulnerable children.
Follow our ongoing journey through the video updates below. We invite you to partner with us through prayer and support! Visit SASCU for more information.
Donate Now! Sponsor a Child!
Make checks payable to:
Save the Street Children International
Mail to:
The Good Earth Garden Center
15601 Cantrell Road
Little Rock, Arkansas 72223
SASCU Providence Farm 2021 Update
2021 Update from Byaruhanga Innocent (on site Executive Director):
Greetings from Providence Farm in Uganda!
It’s coming to close to two years since the world was hit by COVID 19 and as you know, ministries like ours which thoroughly depends on donations, were struck hard by the pandemic because most of the people that used to give towards the well-being of the children have been facing financial difficulties. We are so thankful to God that even though things haven’t been easy, God has continued to provide for the needs of the children through people of good hearts like you. Special thanks to our dear family at The Good Earth, who have continued their support of Providence Farm.
After the first lockdown due to Covid 19 and medical costs that were too costly for us, coupled with continuous sickness of the children and staff at Providence Farm that never stopped at all, led us to establish a Medical Clinic equipped with a qualified nurse at Providence Farm. We are glad that the rate of children sickness reduced rapidly and we have realized cost saving compared to how much we used to spend in other hospitals. I am glad to inform you that although most of our children and their caregivers at Providence Farm contracted Covid 19 between June and August this year, that none of them lost life and they have all fully recovered and are healthy.
For two years, schools in Uganda have been closed because of the pandemic, and all children are not studying in the whole country. I am glad to share with you that our children at Providence Farm have been fortunate enough to continue their studies through homeschooling by the teachers and guidance from our social workers.
We have had a challenge of staff accommodation at Providence Farm; our teachers and some other staff have been staying offsite, which has been a bit costly and reduced the amount of time they could spend with students even during good times. Those staying at Providence Farm have been struggling also because their sleeping condition were not good.
With support from our partners, a 7 bedroom house with a sitting room has been constructed and our staff and teachers are finally all staying in a conducive environment.
The children’s van that we previously had was old and cars below 2004 models are no longer allowed in the country. We are so thankful that Christ Community Church Little Rock and Good Earth were able to purchase for us a new children’s van 2010 model which is more safe and cost effective with a favorable fuel consumption.
With the aim of realizing sustainability, 5 more acres of eucalyptus trees have been planted and we are thankful to our partners who continue to invest in the sustainability of the ministry by planting more trees. This will provide funds in 4 to 7 years, which will mean that when the children move on to higher education opportunities, the funds for their tuition will be available from selling trees for electricity poles and for timber purposes.
As a way to strengthen their member partners, we were so fortunate to have been chosen by Latekstay Alliance Uganda for a piggery project at Providence Farm which aims to equip SASCU as an organization to be sustainable and self-reliant. The piggery project will also focus on the vulnerable households within Luweero district. Vulnerable families with financing from partners shall receive piglets for income generation.
On a personal note, despite significant health challenges and obstacles, we are so thankful to God for the joy he has brought into our lives through our adopted 18 month old daughter Atarah, and our newest addition, baby Louis, and for proving that he is a God who fulfills his promises.
Thank you for your continued support of Good Earth and Providence Farm!
2022 Goals include:
20 more acres of eucalyptus (approximately $550 per acre)
Adding to the goat herd
Increasing flock of chickens
Creating a community soccer field
Construction of a community Christian church
Ongoing Financial Needs include:
Providence Farm Partner ($100 monthly) Sponsors education, housing, meals, uniforms, medical, and general needs of a child
General Fund- helps with necessary monthly operating expenses, unexpected medical expenses, and community outreach (Any amount, monthly or one time)
General Farm Fund (any amount, monthly or one time) – helps with vet care, feed, crops and care, workers, upkeep, buy a goat ($75 for a pregnant goat).
Giving in any amount helps us reach out 2022 goals as does sharing about this ministry and prayers. For more information about sponsorship opportunities, please visit SASCU.
SASCU Providence Farm 2020 Update
This year was challenging for Providence Farm, as it was for everyone. Good Earth team members were not able to make the trip to Uganda this year but we kept in constant contact throughout the year via Zoom calls. We wanted to share what this year looked like at the farm.
All schools were closed in Uganda due to COVID 19. The 22 children that live at the farm have been very fortunate to continue school. Three teachers were able to move to Lowero so they could daily teach at the farm and the children could continue their education. This was a huge blessing! The kids also learned more about gardening through hands on activities. They had a lot more time to read books and the bible and improve their writing skills. Their spiritual lives have changed greatly and they have embraced sharing and caring for one another.
One of the children, Reagan, age 4, started experiencing health issues that turned out to be serious and required brain surgery and a hospital stay. We are very pleased to report he is back at Providence Farm and doing well now!
On the 11th of June, SASCU got the news of an abandoned child in the neighboring district of Nakasongola. Their social workers then worked together with the Child & Family protection Unit and the probation officers respectively. Baby Atarah was then rescued and adopted by Gloria and Innocent through the spiritual and financial support from many beloved families. She will turn 7 months the month of December. What a gift!
New water channels were made to cut down on flooding. Three additional acres of eucalyptus trees were planted and are doing well. The bean field yielded even more this year and additional acreage was planted. A big harvest is expected. Because the goat farm continues to grow, a long-lasting, stronger goat pen has just been completed.
New kinds of vegetables were planted, such as cabbage, spinach and eggplant, to boost the children’s health. This has helped us reduce our monthly food budget and the children are growing up strong and healthy.
There are still goals and needs; prices for food that the farm cannot produce remain high. We would like to continue on our journey to sustainability. Medical expenses have increased; in the past, the kids would be at school and some medical care is included in their tuition.
2020 Goals include:
Electricity for the Mission House at the farm ($1,200)
20 more acres of eucalyptus (approximately $550 per acre)
Adding to the goat herd
Increasing flock of chickens
Creating a community soccer field
Construction of a community Christian church
Ongoing Financial Needs include:
Providence Farm Partner ($100 monthly) Sponsors education, housing, meals, uniforms, medical, and general needs of a child
General Fund- helps with necessary monthly operating expenses, unexpected medical expenses, and community outreach (Any amount, monthly or one time)
General Farm Fund (any amount, monthly or one time) – helps with vet care, feed, crops and care, workers, upkeep, buy a goat ($75 for a pregnant goat).
Giving in any amount helps us reach out 2020 goals as does sharing about this ministry and prayers. For more information about sponsorship opportunities, please visit SASCU.
2019 Summer Update
Thank you for partnering with Good Earth through your purchases, donations and prayers to help us share the love of God with orphans and vulnerable children in Uganda.
Through your generous donations, the boys’ and girls’ dorms are complete with bunk beds, mattresses, sheets, pillows, dinner tables, and mosquito nets. Twenty SASCU orphans now live at Providence Farm Children’s Village. Also, the newly built outdoor kitchen is complete and our sweet house moms, Hope and Sarah, serve porridge, rice, beans and fruit daily. Some of this is grown by Providence Farm.
During our stay, our team first spent time playing and connecting with over 100 kids at SASCU Future Hope School. So much energy! Next, we joined SASCU staff in their weekly community outreach to feed beans and rice to street kids living in the slums, and encourage them. They are always so grateful! Most of our time was spent at Providence Farm, connecting with precious orphaned children. We played games, made crafts, sang songs, learned about Jesus and read a lot of books! These children have such joyful spirits.
Our team painted a 20 x 50 ft. fun and whimsical mural all about music, worship, and faith in God. They loved it! We also painted a 20 ft container, which was donated for storage, and put each of the kids’ handprints, as well as the workers and ours, on the front. We are happy to report that the 40 foot container you so graciously helped fill has arrived in Kampala, Uganda and will soon be taken to Providence Farm. Updates and pictures coming soon.
We planted rows of red beans and harvested crops. During our time there, 40 new pregnant goats were purchased and delivered through a KMF grant. Our herd went from 92 when we arrived, to 146 by the time left, with babies being born every day!
God is on the move in and through SASCU ministries and we feel honored to be a part of this journey; it’s a beautiful thing. Join us in partnering with SASCU as we love and care for orphans and move toward sustainability! For more information about sponsorship opportunities, please visit SASCU.
2019 Spring Update
2019 Goals & Needs
There have been many great developments since 2010; if you are unfamiliar with this journey, we invite you to keep scrolling for more annual updates. Our first goal for 2019 is very exciting; to fill a 40 foot shipping container! We hope to fill it to the brim with goods needed to reach our other goals for the year, including build and outfit a boys’ dorm, latrine, and kitchen at Providence Farm, move the orphans from the inner city to the farm, as well as expand the goat herd. And we can’t reach these goals without your help!
Once the container arrives here at The Good Earth in March (specific date TBA very soon), we welcome donation of the following new or gently used items: clothing for children 3+, shoes, socks, bathing towels, linens for twin beds, pillows, pillow cases, non-electric kitchen equipment and utensils, and fencing materials for the goat pen. Visit our recent blog post about the shipping container project for more information!
Funding is always helpful as well. Here is a link directly to our donation page. SASCU is a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, which means all donations are tax deductive. Here are some direct sponsorship opportunities: $75 per pregnant goat, 10 foot T-posts ($12.50 each), and 6 foot by 100 foot rolls of welded wire ($140 each).
Many of you have directly donated goods, funds or prayed for SASCU in the past; we are so grateful to you! If you have made any purchase at The Good Earth in the past, you are a part of this journey. If you have shared one of our social media posts or recommended us to a friend or family member, you are a part of this journey. Simply put, your support of our small business has a direct impact on our ability to support both our local community and Ugandan children in need. We don’t take you choosing The Good Earth lightly; it means the world to us.
Summer 2018 Update
Thank you for your interest in our 2018 summer trip to Uganda and update on our continued relationship with SASCU orphanage, school and farm! During this trip, we were able to spend time at the orphanage and school, connecting with and loving on the orphans, while playing games, singing songs, doing crafts and building relationships. We joined SASCU staff in their weekly outreach of visiting and serving food in two slum areas, and shared the Jesus film with SASCU and their surrounding community (in their native language, Luganda). These orphans are intelligent, joyful young people, full of hope and faith, destined to make an impact on their community.
Through generous donations, we purchased medical supplies and medicines, several mattresses, much needed cups and bowls, and farm supplies. We took 14 trunks full of items donated by Good Earth customers and Christ Community Church. The orphans and workers were so thrilled to be given new shoes, socks, under garments, clothes, sports balls, toys, candy, school supplies, yarn, sheets and so much more. They loved it!
Our team spent the other half of our time at SASCU’s Providence Farm, clearing 5 acres for crops and a large goat pen, weeding and hoeing 2 acres for planting beans, putting in more poles for future irrigation, worming 93 goats, planting beans, as well as harvesting maize and sweet potatoes. The house is now complete with solar lighting and doors on each room. We watched as a new building was being constructed for a girls dorm. The bore well continues to provide clear drinking water for the farm and surrounding village.
Thank you for partnering with Good Earth through your purchases, donations and prayers to help us share the love of God with orphans and vulnerable children in Uganda. We greatly appreciate the donation of wormer from Doubletree Veterinary Clinic and irrigation supplies from Keeling Company; your donations have furthered the goal of sustainability. We are continually humbled and blessed to be a part of this journey.
Summer 2017 Update
We’re back from Uganda and have lots to share! Our Good Earth community, including customers, friends, family, and local businesses, as well as Christ Community Church, donated items for the orphans and farm. We brought 11 trunks filled with supplies including irrigation parts donated by Keeling Company, donations of clothes, shoes, school supplies, medicine, toiletries, sports balls and supplies for projects from Good Earth. This enabled us to make great strides towards a more sustainable ministry for these vulnerable children in Uganda.
During our recent trip, we worked with SASCU to clear 10 acres for planting maize, coffee, eucalyptus, beans, and mangos, installed irrigation and solar lighting, built two new grazing pens for the goats, built new rabbit hutches, and organized boring for a new well to irrigate the farm. We feel blessed and honored for our continued relationships, and for the opportunity to love and care for these amazing children, offering them hope through Jesus Christ. For His glory and our joy. You can help! There continues to be a need for prayers, donations and sponsorships; please visit SASCU’s page for more information.
Summer 2016 Update
This video is about our recent mission trip to Uganda, specifically the SASCU school and orphanage, and the construction and development of Providence Farm. Our family went to the SASCU orphanage and school and got to spend time with the students loving on them; the students were so excited to receive all the gifts of shoes, clothes, toys, toothbrushes, books and more that had been donated by our Good Earth customers and local community. We went through the slums and heard their stories and prayed with whomever asked. Our main focus was to begin developing the 100 acres of land donated to SASCU.
We worked with the leaders of SASCU (Innocent and Gloria), many students and area Ugandans to build a huge goat shelter and pen, then went and purchased 18 goats. They are so happy in their new home. The Lord provided funds for us to have a well dug and a 4 hole bathroom. It was hard and good and we all learned a lot working as a team. Our goal is to begin helping SASCU orphanage become sustainable through animals and farming. A local farmer brought his tractor and cleared 4 acres to be cultivated for crops and gardens. We also have rabbit hutches being built to raise and sell rabbits. We feel so blessed to have served together as a family. There continues to be a need for provisions and sponsorships; please visit sascu.org for more information.
Fall 2015 Update
This fall, Innocent Byaruhanga, the Executive Director of SASCU visited Arkansas and The Good Earth. Many of you met Innocent at our Pooches & Pumpkins event and some even purchased Ugandan jewelry to support the SASCU orphanage. His stay with Gregg and Julie Curtis was full of appointments with various local organizations, in the attempt to build additional partnerships to further fundraising efforts and to educate about the plight of Uganda’s street children.
The Good Earth Garden Center values their ongoing relationships with local schools, including Robinson High School, which is just down the road. Julie approached the principal, Mary Carolyn Bailey, about Innocent speaking to the students concerning the difficulties faced by the street children of Uganda. Ms. Bailey embraced the opportunity and quickly arranged for Innocent to speak to the entire student body. Gregg was also able to share how the partnership between The Good Earth and SASCU began years ago when he and his son visited on a mission trip (see video below).
We are so excited about how this one afternoon of sharing opened up new opportunities for SASCU! The enthusiasm and leadership of Ms. Bailey, and the drive of the students and families of Robinson High are making a difference. The students sold Ugandan handcrafted jewelry at lunch and participated in a drive for personal and school supplies in which they have collected over 6 large boxes. The Good Earth will be teaming up with Robinson by sponsoring the cost of shipping these much needed items to Uganda. Many students have chosen to take part in the newly established PenPal program to continue this relationship between Robinson High and the SASCU children. KARK even featured this movement and celebrated how the whole school has been called to make a difference and the impact this is having! See the KARK Community Matters segment here.
We would like to thank Ms. Bailey, the Robinson high students and families, and our Good Earth community for embracing this worthy cause. We look forward to continuing our support. It’s heartwarming to see the students and parents being Robinson Proud and community minded!
How can you get involved? The Good Earth offers a range of beautiful, handcrafted Uganda jewelry; a perfect gift for your self or loved ones. And remember, 100% of proceeds go back to SASCU! Thank you and many blessings!
