Youth Camp Mto Moyoni Uganda

What a fantastic time we had at the Vaderhart youth school in Jinja in Uganda. For two weeks, 28 young adults from Project Held received education about the love of the Father. It is unbelievable what has happened in the hearts of these beautiful young people. We have heard many testimonies! We thought it was very special to experience this up close and spend two weeks with these young people and see the transformation taking place in them.


In addition to wonderful education by the Mto Moyoni team (meaning ''river in the heart''), there was also time for sports and games, dance, good food and time for good conversations. The young people went quite deep during the camp, most of them grew up in children's homes and have been through a lot in their relatively short lives. So beautiful to see that they have chosen to go through certain issues, which has made their hearts a lot lighter. For most of them this was truly life changing! We have made a short compilation with various testimonials, click below to view this.


This youth school has been made possible thanks to a number of sponsors, we would like to thank them very much! In addition to child sponsorship, which ensures that the children have food, a roof over their heads and can go to school, we want to help the children in a deeper way. That is why we offered this youth school. We are deeply grateful to see that now more than ever, the youth realize that they are not alone and that they have a Heavenly Father who cares for and loves them.

Last youth school was a try-out for us and we can say that it greatly exceeded our expectations. The positive impact on lives is very great! We also want to offer this youth school to several young people in the future. If you would like to contribute to this, you can do so here. Two weeks of youth school, including accommodation, food and education costs €195 pp

Thank you again for your involvement in Project Held and we hope you enjoy the beautiful compilation of the youth school!


Christmas

To make this year's Christmas celebration unforgettable, we ask if you would like to contribute. You can do this by using the information below. Thanks in advance!

You can transfer your Christmas gift to the account of the Project Held Foundation, account number NL45 INGB 0009 4022 93, stating Christmas gift and possibly. name of sponsored child. You can also donate via the QR code below. Thanks in advance!

NEWS!

YES! The time has finally come, after months of preparation it is now possible to communicate with your sponsored child via the Nofam app!

This opportunity is something beautiful and unique in the world! Instead of communicating with a letter, you can do this via an app on your phone. To be more involved with your sponsored child and the project, we now offer the Nofam app. A unique app in which you can be closer to your sponsored child through the digital world.



How does it work?

By downloading the Nofam app and logging in with the information we give you, you will arrive in an environment where your sponsored child(ren) are located. A message will immediately be ready for you about your sponsored child's project.

You can then send a message, ask a question or take a photo via this app
and/or share a video of what you experienced. This message will be sent to the employee of the project where your sponsored child lives and together they will send you a message back.

“This means that you have more insight into what is happening and what they are up against
walk and especially what progress your sponsored child is making!”


Because this is new, also for our projects, we ask for a little patience
with the responses from the project, but we trust that this app offers the opportunity to get closer to each other and go on a trip with your sponsored child.

If you also want to experience this unique experience and are not yet a sponsor, then quickly embark on this journey and register as a sponsor.

Why are we so enthusiastic?


Thanks to this app, the lines with your sponsored child and the project he/she is part of will be much shorter and you will participate more in their world. Do you also want this wonderful experience with your sponsored child?

In the future, even more will be possible via this app and we can hardly wait for all the developments that will come to offer both you, the sponsor and the children on our projects a unique experience that can be life-changing for both.


Back to school

Not only in the Netherlands did all children go back to school this week. In Africa too, children go back to school after a short break. Unfortunately, with a few exceptions. These children are either unable to go to school, or the school fees have not been paid. School costs have increased enormously and sponsorship cannot cover all costs. Some children depend on the donations that people give so that they can go to school.

But fortunately most children are going to school or will go to school soon. see the video below (click on the photo to see the video, you don't have to download it) or via the QR code and see how it works. Great to see that these children can go to school thanks to sponsorship. Of course, thanks to everyone who is part of it!

Or via the Instagram post of one of the projects themselves:

1 year ago

Exactly one year ago, on June 21, our first meeting with the Nofam Foundation took place. A lot has changed in a year, but one thing has remained the same: our shared commitment to helping vulnerable children around the world.


Where we ultimately have the same goal, namely helping children in poverty and offering them a better future, we deploy our expertise in a different area.

As poverty traps many children in a survival mode, they lose their childhood and risk a future marked by deep wounds. The result is often that they end up in prostitution or crime at a young age. Our goal is to help as many children as possible out of this situation and give them a chance to escape from poverty. Through sponsorship they can go to school and live in a safe environment and build their future.


Nofam is a specialist in the digital world and helps us with their platform to enable the crucial connections between sponsors and children. In addition, you strengthen the impact by joining forces.


What a privilege to sit together today, exactly one year after our first meeting, and celebrate this beautiful collaboration. We look forward to the many years of collaboration ahead of us and to continuing to support many children while deepening the connection between sponsor and child/project.


Many thanks to Saša and Erik for their dedication and passion in this important work. Let's keep striving for a world where every child has the chance for a future with hope!

Where there is a will…

He came out on top of his class and scored a 10!

Laurence was born in South Sudan and has been in the children's home in Sudan since 2009, which is now housed in Uganda. Both parents died of HIV. Since he has been in the home he has always been a serious boy with rarely a smile. A hug or a tickle brought a smile to his face, but he was still processing a lot.
Now, after living in the center for years, that is different. Laurence is a fun-loving boy and is one of the best in school. Laurence is bright and likes school and likes to play with cars and a slingshot also he likes to play softball.

In recent months there were exams at Laurence's school and Laurence has shown that if you want, everything can be achieved. He came out top of his class on the tests and scored a 10!

Laurence's sponsor has had to cancel the sponsorship due to personal reasons. Laurence would be very happy with a new sponsor who believes in him and supports him in his further school years!

Would you like to be his sponsor! Click on the button below and show that you believe in Laurence!

Christmas 2022

Many thanks to everyone who has contributed to making Christmas the party of the year in our projects. Whether the children had the opportunity to celebrate with family, or together with the other children at the center, our projects have pulled out all the stops to make it a fantastic party and celebrate the birth of Jesus.

Delicious food, presents, new clothes you can think of but in all projects these were the main themes that made the party so successful. But also being together, the music and dance and the Christmas musical were discussed.

In most projects, the children also have a longer period of time off from school, so they could return to the center to be together and celebrate Christmas together. A memory for all that they will never forget. Our big thanks to the sponsors and donors for making this possible thanks to them.

Christmas for everyone!


Just a little while and then it will be Christmas again and we will celebrate the birth of Jesus all over the world. It's also a party with all our sponsor projects! Just like the children in the Netherlands, they are also looking forward to Christmas.

The lights are lit, Christmas carols are sung and the Christmas story is told and often acted out. The Christmas letters from sponsors are distributed to the children, the children receive a present and finally they enjoy a delicious Christmas meal together.

To make this possible, we need your help! You can help by giving a Christmas gift via the QR code or the button below

You can also give a Christmas gift via paypal or our bank account:

Stichting Project Held
NL 45 INGB 0009 4022 93
Tnv Christmas 2022 Project Held

You can give a Christmas gift for your own sponsored child. If you have financial space, you can also give for several children so that every child has a great Christmas. On average € 25 per child is needed, of course we are happy with all donations that come in.

We want to thank you so much for your support, without you we could never have helped so many children. You really make a difference in a child's life! We at Project Held also notice that it is becoming increasingly difficult for people to meet their financial obligations, after all, everything is becoming more expensive.

We also see this in the number of sponsored children, which unfortunately fell last year. That is why we are so very happy with you as a sponsor and we want to thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your support for all these fantastic children!

Christmas letter for your sponsor child

You can send your digital Christmas wish for your sponsored child via our website. Through this link please register or log in to write the Christmas wish.

Do this before December 10! We then have enough time to forward the letters. For the children, a letter from someone far away, someone who thinks of him or her, is invaluable.

Sponsor meets sponsor child

Sponsor's story

We were also in Uganda a few years ago, but unfortunately I was not able to meet her then, while the rest of the Held team did speak to her. She was then very disappointed that I could not be there.

Of course we wrote to each other regularly and talked about our common hobby: cooking.

The moment the door opened and a very enthusiastic child flew around my neck was very emotional

The meeting

Fifteen minutes before the agreed time, I received a phone call from the Netherlands that my father had just passed away. Although this was not entirely unexpected, it still touches you. When we were waiting at the agreed place a little later and the van from the children's home arrived, the tension was palpable. The moment the door opened and a very enthusiastic child flew around my neck was very emotional, for both of us. We had some time to talk and get to know each other a little better. I noticed that she was a very intelligent girl who got good grades in school and had great ambitions to go to college.

When we had to say goodbye, she pushed a note into my hands in which she thanked me, among other things, for believing in her and making it possible for her to study and have a future. It was then that I really realized that by supporting her, I was not only making sure she has food and shelter, but that my modest contribution makes a difference of life and death for her, of a hopeful future instead of a life of poverty and hopelessness.

Mission trip Uganda (Part2)

One of the major investments you can make for a project is to visit it. When you visit, you can see how the project is progressing, where the need is greatest and what they encounter on a daily basis. You also get to know the children well with their own characters and background. At the same time, you can encourage and help people running the project with the daily challenges.

With this in mind, a small team traveled to Uganda to visit the projects there. Both Foodstep and Iris Ministries Uganda were visited and the journey went even further north to Gulu, a place where we ran a campaign several years ago and kept in touch with the team there and after all this time we now have a visited.

Iris Ministries Uganda:

The center led by Carolyn Figlioli started in South Sudan. During the war many children became orphaned or fled from the dangerous situation during the war that caused them to lose their parents. At that time, the children were taken care of at the center of Iris Ministries South Sudan. They stayed there until the bullets actually flew around the building so that they had to flee. With more than 125 children they fled to a neighboring country Uganda. This was many years ago and they have been living in Uganda ever since. The youngest is now 6 years old and many of the older children are now at the boarding school. There, too, the major challenge is tuition. This has become much more expensive since Covid, but since the children were not allowed to go to school for 2 years because of the lockdown, they have fallen behind and the motivation is greater than ever! For the past two years, God has done a miracle and made it possible for them to now have their own center with new buildings, a piece of land where they can grow and keep goats and chickens themselves. That does not alter the fact that every day is a challenge to meet all costs.

During our visit we had loom straps (always nice), crayons, puzzles and balloons. The boys played soccer with the new ball and everyone could join where he/she liked it. Sunday was the church service and one of the participants shared a word about the father heart of God. That He is love and always wants the best for you. The service was well organized and the kids host it together. The worship, the speaker, the testimonies (which is an important part of the service) and the offering. All people and children from the area are welcome and it is a big party.

Thanks to a generous donor we were able to give a water container for the police station so that women and children who are not safe on the street have fresh water and can wash, drink, prepare food, etc. without running the risk of being arrested by those who it's after them. How beautiful is that! All in all beautiful blessed days but unfortunately it was over after two days. One of the participants did see his sponsor child on the way back from Gulu. Always a beautiful special moment.