Raising a generation of resilient Ugandan leaders.
In Lugandan, “Obumu” means
UNITY
A staggering 77% of Ugandans are under 25.
Making Uganda the Youngest Country on Earth.
Of this population, roughly 3 million are orphans.
Though ~1/3 of Ugandans serve as foster families, there is a critical need to provide housing, education, food, and practical job training skills to the rising generation.
Many see a crisis.
We see a generation to equip.
We Believe in the Youth.
Our Approach
Faith-Based
Obumu is rooted in the message of Jesus Christ and his call to radical, selfless love.
We believe that the message of Jesus is a liberating one that can serve as a foundation for Ugandan youth to develop into men and women of character and health.
“Let us love, not in word or speech, but in truth and action.” 1 John 3:17
Grassroots
We believe that lasting and impactful change starts from within communities.
In 2018, Senkusu Grace Godfrey took in the first orphan at Christ Cares Ministries. This seed has grown into a thriving network comprised of 8 team members serving 60+ children along with a physical location to serve and house them.
Long-Term
We’re not just providing quick fixes, we’re creating systems that both last and extend far beyond us.
Obumu invests in the teams on the ground and the people that do life in and alongside other Ugandans. Our partnerships and investments serve to foster dignity, trust, and shared ownership in both the present and the long-term.
Self-Sustaining
We believe in creating resilient, self funding systems that support and uplift Ugandan youth and their communities.
Our local teams assists in building small businesses, teaching entrepreneurial skills, and providing pathways to education.
Donation creates dependence.
Investment creates independence.
Relational
We believe that we are better when we are together. Our work begins and ends with people
Our partnerships are grounded in shared vision, relationships that outlive projects, and the championing of dignity. We source materials for our construction projects locally while creating spaces and programs that are open to anyone who needs them.
Obumu and its initiatives are led locally, and strengthened globally.
Obumu’s homes and schools are led day-to-day by Ugandan pastors, educators, and caregivers.
A small U.S. team supports fundraising, strategy, and storytelling so local leaders can focus on the children.
Our Team
Senkusu Grace Godfrey
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Senkusu Grace Godfrey //
Brother Grace founded and oversees our homes, schools, and local staff.
He is a licensed educator and pastor who was raised an orphan.
He is supported by Sister Eva, Brothers Aggrey and Rajab, and many other volunteers in Uganda who we wouldn’t exist without.
Joseph Chandler
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Joseph Chandler //
Brother Joseph, coordinates fundraising, partnerships, and long-term strategy.
He is a serial entrepreneur who has started and scaled many organizations.
He is supported by Kevin Bibas and Kyle Ketchum, who serve on the U.S board, as well as many volunteers.
With our global partners, we’re engaged in the following development projects
Community Center
A permanent home base for our children including safe housing, classrooms, storage, a library, and gathering spaces for the village all in one place.
Nursery and Primary School
A preschool for local children. In Uganda they call this “baby class.” It is consistently growing to be a preferred school for villagers to send their children to, including children sponsored by Compassion International.
Orphans’ tuition is waved and covered by our donors or the profits from non-orphan childrens’ school fees.
Hardware Store
As part of our mission to create self-sustaining, local ecosystems that break generational poverty cycles, Obumu supports the creation of small businesses that pass a portion of profits back.
Sister Eva operates a hardware store in Lyontonde, microfinanced by Obumu, that supports the Western Orphanage.
Water Purification
Entire villages depend on, and draw drinking water from, pools as pictured below. In our work to create better lives for children, we improve the entire villages’ infrastructure in the process, reducing typhoid and water-borne illness incidents, in partnership with organizations like the Ugandan Water Project.
It costs $140 to place a water filtration system that can improve the lives of thousands.
Central and Western Orphanages
In our central Uganda location, we rent a building housing 32 children. We hope to build a building of our own in 2025, donations allowing.
In our western location we have a large building that serves as a gathering place for meals and dancing every Saturday, and intermittent care throughout the week..
It will serve as a functioning orphanage once we have enough consistent funds to pay for schooling, feeding, and clothing of orphans in the West. Currently, the 33 children under our care are being housed with guardians who have so generously offered to care for them in the short term.
Piggery
An additional self-sufficiency initiative is a piggery (a farm for raising pigs) near the Lyontonde orphanage.
In addition to creating income to pay for childrens feeding, clothing, and schooling, the piggery provides a hands-on learning opportunity for children to take responsibility for an animal and raise it themselves.
Trade Instruction Initiatives
During the USA team’s visits to Uganda, they teach the children and staff skills and techniques in carpentry, sewing, music, and writing then leave behind the trade tools that the community could not afford themselves.
In the most recent trip, a guitar and carpentry equipment were donated after teaching the children to play basic worship songs around a fire and building a school desk.
Join the Story
There are three simple ways to help:
1. Give monthly
Join our monthly giving circle to provide stable food, schooling, and housing for our children. $60/month per child.
2. Share Obumu
Tell a friend, church, or company about our work and invite them to partner with us.
3. Fund a project
Help build classrooms, equip the lab, or launch a small business that creates local jobs
Obumu Corp. is a registered 501(c)(3) in the USA. All donations are tax deductible.
