Sarah's Story
Every day while in Uganda we went to morning mass at 7.30am, the Chapel was always full to capacity, especially with teenagers who attend the Secondary School close by.
On our 3rd day there, after mass, I was approached by a young woman who was very thin and frail looking, she told me she was ill and needed medical assistance. We already had a prearranged appointment that day so I told her to speak with me the next day.
I asked Daisy, one of our Ugandan Guides, about her and was told that her name was Sarah Mutesi and she was married with 2 young children. She was taking some sort of seizures and her husband had abandoned her because of the fits. As a result of her illness she could not work to provide for herself and her children and was solely dependent on the good will of the rest of the community.
The whole time we were there Sarah always wore a hat and coat as she was always cold because she was so frail.
Daisy said Sarah went to mass every day to pray for a miracle.
I told Daisy to organise for her to see a Doctor and I would cover the cost of it. I gave Daisy a sum of money and Sarah got to see a Doctor who diagnosed her with Epilepsy, I gave a further sum of money and Sarah was able to get the medicine she needed.
A couple of weeks after we returned home, Daisy contacted me by What’s App and told me that Sarah had got a job and was working to support herself. She sent me a photo of her and I couldn’t believe it was the same person, no coat, no hat, she was smiling, happy and had even got her hair done, something very important to us women!
The 2 sums of money I gave to Daisy were not huge by our standards but it made such a difference to Sarah, it literally was to her the difference between life and death and a future for her children.
I will always feel humbled and privileged by the fact that I personally was the answer to Sarah’s prayers.
So the next time you see a charity box don’t pass it by, your few coins can make such a difference to someone else’s life.
Una McClements
On our 3rd day there, after mass, I was approached by a young woman who was very thin and frail looking, she told me she was ill and needed medical assistance. We already had a prearranged appointment that day so I told her to speak with me the next day.
I asked Daisy, one of our Ugandan Guides, about her and was told that her name was Sarah Mutesi and she was married with 2 young children. She was taking some sort of seizures and her husband had abandoned her because of the fits. As a result of her illness she could not work to provide for herself and her children and was solely dependent on the good will of the rest of the community.
The whole time we were there Sarah always wore a hat and coat as she was always cold because she was so frail.
Daisy said Sarah went to mass every day to pray for a miracle.
I told Daisy to organise for her to see a Doctor and I would cover the cost of it. I gave Daisy a sum of money and Sarah got to see a Doctor who diagnosed her with Epilepsy, I gave a further sum of money and Sarah was able to get the medicine she needed.
A couple of weeks after we returned home, Daisy contacted me by What’s App and told me that Sarah had got a job and was working to support herself. She sent me a photo of her and I couldn’t believe it was the same person, no coat, no hat, she was smiling, happy and had even got her hair done, something very important to us women!
The 2 sums of money I gave to Daisy were not huge by our standards but it made such a difference to Sarah, it literally was to her the difference between life and death and a future for her children.
I will always feel humbled and privileged by the fact that I personally was the answer to Sarah’s prayers.
So the next time you see a charity box don’t pass it by, your few coins can make such a difference to someone else’s life.
Una McClements