Some members, like myself, who have been going for several years, have become almost like an extended family. So when member Susan Elliott mentioned that she was planning to go to Uganda, we all crowded round to hear the details. We were in for quite a surprise.
Susan, a mild-mannered woman of mature years, was not signed up for a comfy guided group tour, but was, despite her own concerns and misgivings, preparing to accompany the founder of Call to Care, a fledgling 2-year-old humanitarian organization that helps the children of Uganda.
Although I vaguely recalled reading about Madison resident and founder of Call to Care, Martha Hoffman in the Register, I was curious to meet the person who could so inspire Susan that she would go way beyond her comfort zone to attempt a trip of this kind. Outside of those interested in tracking the endangered mountain gorillas, Uganda does not attract many tourists. Although it has made great strides, it is still one of the world's poorest countries with 30 different indigenous languages and a major AIDS problem.
Sitting across from Martha in a local coffee shop, I began to learn why she inspires and motivates all those she meets. Her story began with a recurring dream she has had for a long time.
In her dream, she was helping children, but they were not her own family of three. Finally, in one dream, her grandmother appeared and handed her a little purse made out of bark ... the same dimly remembered purse, that when she was alive, she had given to Martha. It had been sent to her from a missionary friend in Uganda.
In the next few weeks, in an astounding series of events, Uganda seemed to show up everywhere in Martha's life until she became convinced that somehow she had a mission in Uganda. Martha's story is so remarkable that I would normally be filled with skepticism and misgivings, but as I watched and listened to this young mother, I was held by the earnest expression in her clear, blue eyes and the unmistakably honest and low key way she relates what propelled her to Uganda and then to the founding of Call to Care, and any doubts are completely swept away.
Just as remarkable as Martha's story, are the accomplishments she has already achieved. Through her visits to an orphanage in Mukono, she has met the children she feels she was meant to help. Money she has raised has provided chickens and cows and supplied a well that now serves 800 people where previously there was only contaminated water. Handmade baskets and beads and shawls are brought from Uganda by Martha and sold at local bazaars and fairs. Currently, her organization is raising funds to construct a community child center which will provide a safe place for children to play and also have some of their vital needs met.
Margaret Mead once remarked, "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has."
Jean Cherni
is founder of Senior Living Solutions, a retirement advisory
service. Contact her at jeancherni@sbcglobal.net or
15 The Ponds, Branford 06405.
H. Pearce Company REALTORS®
is a full-service real estate company with more than 100
agents and branch offices in greater New Haven and the Shoreline.
Corporate and & Commercial offices are located in North
Haven, where the company was founded in 1958. All listings
can be found in color on the web at: www.hpearce.com. |
