Written by: Kelly Davis
I thought about submitting last years post re: waking up to a rooster reveille at 3 am in Gulu, Uganda and laying in bed anticipating my first meeting of the day with Sister Rosemary; but that would not do. This meeting would be different. In the time since last year’s meeting we had taken on a project for the Sister that demanded special attention and what I mean by that is: drop whatever else you’re doing and focus your attention on this because failure is not an option. Sr. Rosemary had about 200 students showing up for the coming semester and all of the washrooms that would serve them were in such a state of disrepair as to be essentially unusable. The urgency of this task was magnified by the fact that the students returning to school was a group of young ladies preparing themselves to take on the world, against all odds. To update, Sister Rosemary Nyirumbe (named as one of Time magazine’s Top 100 Most Influential People and a CNN Hero, please look her up, https://www.franciscanmedia.org/st-anthony-messenger/the-remarkable-sister-rosemary-nyirumbe/, the most inspirational person I have ever met!) is the founder of and currently runs St. Monica’s Girls’ Tailoring Centre. The school teaches young girls trades such as sewing, hospitality, child care and literacy skills needed to function in the business world. These girls are from from disadvantaged backgrounds and most have nowhere else to go. To quote the sister, “They are not begging or asking for money. They are learning a trade.” Pipeline, with the help of partners 100 Ideas Ltd (architect) and Avalex (contractor) completed the task with minimal disruption to the class schedule. The purpose of our visit today was to officially turn the new washroom over to the school (which had in fact been turned over several months earlier). We assembled in the washroom with the good sister, several of the nuns from the school and the entire Pipeline team to review and critique the finished product. It was unanimous that the washroom had never looked better and that we had done those deserving girls proud. What happened next took me by surprise. While congratulating us on the success of the project, Sister Rosemary broke down in tears of gratitude, which, as always happens on these trips, caused the entire room to follow suite. I have never been more proud of Pipeline Worldwide.
Written by: Shannon Mulcahy
Twelve years old
In 6th grade I became very aware of the war in Uganda, The Invisible Child, and the unimaginable atrocities surrounding Joseph Kony.
The LRA tore families and communities apart without a second thought. Children were kidnapped and forced to join the Rebel Army against their will. The children were forced to kill loved ones and so much more.
At age twelve my fire and my love for Uganda was ignited. No child should ever have to experience what happened after being abducted into the LRA. My heart was set on coming to Northern Uganda to serve in any way needed.
Before coming on the 2024 Uganda trip with Pipeline Worldwide I watched the Sewing Hope Documentary which tied in perfectly with meeting Sister Rosemary Nyirumbe.
Sister Rosemary is a true freedom fighter for the community of people she serves in northern Uganda and South Sudan. Today we had the privilege of visiting Saint Monica’s campus in Gulu, Uganda!
What an amazing opportunity it was to finally meet Sister Rosemary and tour the campus facility. Sister Rosemary is leading girls to purpose and healing through the work she does. The work is complex and can be difficult at times but Sister sees hope in all circumstances.
I am so grateful and so blessed to have met Sister Rosemary, the girls and the staff at Saint Monica’s with my Pipeline family.
Pipeline Worldwide has given me the opportunity to meet a handful of people in the Ugandan community, visit and serve multiple organizations supported by Pipeline and collaborate with like minded individuals to best serve the needs of their communities.
Today is one for the books.
Sewing Hope Documentary- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fo2cR_rPoxg
Sewing Hope Foundation-
Pipeline Worldwide’s Mission-
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