In rural Uganda, Christmas is commonly celebrated by going to church and having a special meal with family. On this special day you may get to even eat meat; and if you are particularly fortunate, you will get a new outfit. Presents are not a part of Ugandan's Christmas tradition.
There is something kind of nice about that, let's try and celebrate a more Ugandan Christmas this year! Giving presents is a fun part of how many people celebrate Christmas in Canada and the US. Though it is great to have a reminder from our Ugandan friends to keep the emphasis on spending time together. We are so thankful for all of the amazing gifts that have been given to help Our Village be able to come alongside families in our communities. This year we want to put our focus on what many of our youth say would be the best gift they could receive. We want to give the gift of education to the youth in our communities. If you watch the video below of our youth, you will hear that they want an education more than any material gift.
We recently shared on facebook about Angel, one of our youth who graduated from the Our Village primary (elementary) school this year, and will be starting junior high this coming February. Angel is one of 13 youth that we partner with, and hope to help start junior high this February. Also, we have 14 youth who will have finished high school this year and are ready to go on to college or a trades program in February. 2017 is going to be a big year!
The primary reason we celebrate this time of year is the birth of Jesus Christ. At Our Village, we believe that to truly empower people we must build communities rooted in the love of Jesus Christ. We have found that without this foundation, people lack the support they need to succeed in education and in using the tools they are equipped with. No one can do it alone. We have also found that empowered people empower people. In under one month, we will be celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ. Let's celebrate Him every day in how we live.
