It was just after Idi Amin's fall from power in 1979 when some 500,000 Ugandans had been murdered during his eight years of misrule, that I went to Uganda with Ray Barnett to work on a book called "Uganda Holocaust" (Pickering & Inglis, UK) and later published by Zondervan in the USA.
While we were traveling around this devastated country in a vehicle supplied by World Vision, we picked up a young boy who, while in the van with us, began singing. After being deeply touched by this, Ray Barnett got the idea of forming the African Children's Choir.
Since its inception, the African Children's Choir has helped to establish numerous schools and provide educational scholarships in Uganda, Rwanda, Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana, Sudan and South Africa. The Choir has been instrumental in financing tuition for thousands of children who would otherwise have no access to an education.
The first Choir was formed in 1984, selected from orphaned and vulnerable children in the Kampala and Luwero areas of Uganda. After the Choir was trained to perform and readied for living in new and different cultures, the children traveled from Uganda to tour amongst the North American Church communities.
They immediately impressed audiences with their vibrancy and outstanding musical talent and quickly became a mouthpiece for the plight of the many thousands of vulnerable children like them in Uganda. The funds they earned through donations provided for their own support and education and more!
The proceeds of the first African Children's Choir tour also funded the building of an orphanage back in Kampala from which a second African Children's Choir was selected.
And so the story of the Choir's work began. In the early years they would tour principally in United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. The proceeds of their tours and the sponsorship support they would attract funded a growing program of establishing literacy schools to enable the very neediest children to get a foot up into proper education.
Meanwhile, the continuing care, education and development of returning Choir children was assured through the proceeds of Choir tours and the generosity of sponsors and donors.
To date over seven hundred vulnerable children have been through the Choir program and the funds they have generated have provided the opportunity of education and hope for many thousands like them in some of the most desperate and needy areas of Africa.
Now the African Children's Choir is facing a financial crisis and is appealing for help to continue its vital work.
In a message to supporters, the Choir's founder, Ray Barnett said, "The 25th Anniversary of the day the first African Children's Choir came to North America is almost upon us - in fact, September 2009, marks that special time. In almost 25 years, we have seen miracles in answer to prayer. We have impacted, with your help, the lives of tens of thousands of children in famine, in civil wars and in abject poverty. Together we have weathered many storms!
"Through the terrible civil war in Sudan, we were building schools when no one else was working there. We also helped relieve the disaster of the Lost Boys of the Sudan.
"Through the devastating famines of Somalia we provided much needed supplies with danger everywhere.
"During and in the aftermath of the civil war in Uganda, we were working to save the lives of desperate children.
"More recently, we have been helping to alleviate the plight of aids orphans and Grandmas in the Nkomazi region of South Africa; we were there during the recent conflict in Kenya, and this Christmas to bring hope to children in war-torn Congo.
"We have been asked to help in other critical areas in Zimbabwe there is an unprecedented open door.
"Through our schools and Music for Life Centers, you have been with us every step of the way.
"I have often said, you remove a mountain one shovel full at a time. In our case that is translated into, 'ONE CHILD AT A TIME.'"
Ray Barnett, who was born in Colerain, Northern Ireland, went on to say, "Now we are faced with what may be the most difficult mountain in our almost 25 years of existence. We have lost many of our faithful monthly partners because they have lost their jobs. For those of you affected in this way, we are fervently praying that you will be blessed by God in ways you never expected and that your finances and all you have lost will be restored.
"Those of you who are able, I appeal to you to remove this financial mountain. If all who are able take the shovel to this mountain, making the best effort possible, the finances will be supplied. We will then be able to keep moving ahead and God's work of caring for the orphans and other needy children will continue and we will be able to meet our commitments to them.
"To children like one little boy in our program - Sipho who was born to a poor family with 4 other siblings. All 4 of his brothers and sisters and his mother have died and now he lives with an alcoholic father. When asked what his name was, he replied, 'Sipho, going to die soon.' He says his father told him he will end up dead like the rest of his family.
"One little girl came along to a recent concert with her money box. She wanted to help the Choir and specifically to help Sipho. There was exactly $161 in her box.
"If each one of you could match her very special gift, we would see another miracle of provision reaching out to the thousands of children in our care in these turbulent times. Maybe you can't give that much right now, but maybe you can give more to help the African Children's Choir at this critical time!"
To make a donation, please go to http://africanchildrenschoir.com/help/donate.php?appeal=julappl&amt=161&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Email%20marketing%20software&utm_content=86424590&utm_campaign=July+Appeal+Letter+_+klkln&utm_term=Donate+Now
Source: Assist News Service
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Hi there, for some reason you diden't mention that I (Dan Wooding) wrote this, even though it has lots of first-person information.
Would you mind correcting please!
Dan Wooding