Today we’d like to introduce you to Chad Griffin.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Chad. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
In May 2013, I became a Facebook friend of Frank Sekayuba who at the time was an elementary school teacher in Kampala, Uganda where he also managed a small orphanage and served as a church administrator. We connected immediately. In March 2014, Frank helped with one of our sports camps in Vietnam where we met for the first time. He shared with me his vision for helping vulnerable children within Uganda. My wife, Amy, and I agreed that we had been called upon to open a children’s home in Fort Portal, Uganda. Yonder Life was then founded in an effort to collaboratively work with what has become Yonder Ministries, our Ugandan based non-governmental organization.
We currently have 26 children we keep fed, healthy, and in school. We have 17 acres of farmland with goats, pigs, rabbits, a cat, and a dog. This land is very fertile and we grow several different types of crops and food. We will eventually purchase an additional 15-20 acres of surrounding land.
Once the purchase is complete, a children’s home will be built. The home will be comprised of five stand-alone houses each of which will accommodate up to 12 children (60 children total), a fellowship hall, a workers’ house, a guesthouse for volunteers, and primary and secondary schools that will educate up to 1,200 students.
Our goal is for the children’s home to be self-sustainable. In that vein, it is our plan that the home will have a working farm and livestock, but we realize a source of on-going income will be required to effectively operate the home. As education in Uganda is largely tuition-based, so income from the schools will ultimately fund the children’s home.
The children’s home will be a temporary residence for the majority of our children. With parental or guardian consent, children will be nominated to attend the children’s home by people within the local community. YM will further screen nominees to evaluate if they would be a good fit. At home, children will receive free room, board, education, and vocational training. Simultaneously, we will help empower their families to foster a safe and sustainable home environment to which the children would return. Children with no living relatives will be taken in full-time while we work to find a domestic or foreign family to foster or adopt the child.
Families will be empowered by: (1) Promoting HIV/AIDS awareness and prevention—AIDS is the main cause of an ever-increasing number of deaths and breakdown of the family structure within Uganda. (2) Building an awareness of parental and guardianship responsibility as it relates to the well-being of the child, family and overall community. (3) Helping families and their communities discover, appreciate and leverage their God-given resources and potential so they can improve their lives and those of their neighbors. (4) Educating the community on farming techniques, and when possible provide improved seeds, to improve crop yield and quality.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
Working in a third world country from the other side of the earth is always an issue. We started this non-profit with no prior experience in the field. We fumbled our way through paperwork to get approved by the IRS to be a 501C3 and received our NGO, Non-Governmental Organization, stature by the country of Uganda. Language can always be a barrier but we’ve been blessed with locals who we quickly developed relationships with who we could trust. We bought our first plot of land thinking it was much bigger than it was, a misunderstanding between acres and hectares. Then the overwhelming amount of poverty in the nation can be very discouraging. It often feels like you’re not making a difference. We always refocus and remember that if we can just change one life, it’s worth it.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with Yonder Life – tell our readers more, for example, what you’re most proud of as an organization and what sets you apart from others.
Yonder Life pursues a circular approach to its mission with a concurrent focus on the child, the family, and the surrounding community. The benefit of this approach is that we look at the root causes of the challenges we are addressing, and we realize that each child with whom we work has a family and that each family is part of a larger community. Each element needs attention to achieve the best results. Behind every child is a crying grandmother, uncle or cousin or a neighbor dying of hunger, so it is a circular strategy that we are putting in place to change one life at a time.
So, what’s next? Any big plans?
My wife, Amy, and I will be moving to Fort Portal, Uganda in 2023. Our youngest child will be graduating high school at that time. We know we can do more by being on the ground there full time. We are very excited and scared. We choose to focus on the joy and excitement.
Contact Info:
- Website: http://www.yonderlife.org
- Phone: 8179921830
- Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/yonderlife
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