I am running in honor of the beautiful children of Nyaka. In May of 2014, I went to the Nyaka AIDS Orphans Project in Uganda, Africa for three weeks. While I was there, I tutored orphans in reading and writing and assisted with workshops for adolescent girls, covering topics such as self-esteem and sex education. All of the children I met there left a handprint on my heart and honoring them at this event is my way of not only supporting them, but also thanking them for giving me a different perspective on life.
About the Nyaka AIDS Orphans Project:
The Nyaka AIDS Orphans Project's mission is to work on behalf of HIV/AIDS orphans in rural Uganda to end systemic deprivation, poverty, and hunger through a holistic approach to community development, education, and health care.
Students that attend the Nyaka AIDS Orphans Project have lost one or both of their parents to HIV/AIDS. Besides providing an education free of school fees, Nyaka also provides textbooks, uniforms, shoes, two meals every school day, medicine, and scholastic materials to all of its students for free.
Nyaka has two primary schools for HIV/AIDS orphans: Nyaka Primary School and Kutamba Primary School. Together they have 463 students this year. Primary school in Uganda goes from Nursery Class (like Kindergarten) through Primary 7. Since 2015, all students who graduate from Nyaka Primary School or Kutamba Primary School will attend the Nyaka Vocational Secondary School. For older students, they are given scholarships to attend secondary or vocational schools in the region. Once a child becomes a Nyaka student, they are guaranteed an education until they achieve their academic goal. For many students, this will mean getting a diploma from a university. For others, it might mean getting a certificate from a vocational school after they graduate from primary school. An important part of Nyaka's mission is to ensure that their students go to secondary and high school. Without a secondary and high school education, girls are more likely to marry young or become sex workers, and all children are more likely to run away to the city to get a low wage job and never escape the cycle of poverty.
In addition to providing free schooling, Nyaka continues to oversee their children's development through counseling and medical care throughout their education. A strong education is Nyaka's greatest hope for their students to begin envisioning a life beyond the HIV/AIDS pandemic.