(Jerseys donated for Peace Passers by University of Albany, NY Men’s Soccer Team)

Dear Peace Passers,

I wish you could have personally seen the great joy that your donations of soccer balls and gear brought to the children of Kagoma Gate and Busoga villages in Uganda. Kagoma Gate was deemed by the Ugandan Government in 2008 to be the poorest village in all of Uganda. Busoga is very near the bottom of that list. These children were first in shock, then amazed, then broke into very loud cheers of happiness and celebration when they realized that they were getting new clothes, shoes, and play equipment.

The soccer clothes replaced badly torn, threadbare, and ill fitting garments and have become the new clothing (the only set of clothing) for each person who received them. I saw them wearing these clothes every day with great pride. They have never even had shoes before. The soccer equipment gave them a chance to be children, to just play and laugh, a very bright spot in their very difficult days of trying just to survive the harsh conditions under which they live. We constructed soccer nets so the setting for playing a game was complete. And Busoga now has an official soccer team complete with matching uniforms.

Football as they call it there is THE sport of choice. They were grinning ear to ear as they donned the jerseys, T shirts, shorts, socks and shoes and formed teams. The sound of pure happiness filled the air. Thank you – each of you truly made a difference in the lives of these children. You brought radiant smiles to their faces, gave them a means to make their days a little more bearable, and clothed their bodies in what they considered great finery. Your warm hearts touched many across the continents. Thank you, thank you, thank you for caring and sharing. Testimony written by Denise Stasik with The Giving Circle Africa