Liberal Democrat Christian Forum - Compassionate Support

Compassionate Support

Written by Matt Bird
Sunday, 05 August 2007
Compassion is an international development charity working to eliminate child poverty through child sponsorship around the world. Matt Bird, partnership development adviser to Compassion UK, tells LDCF about Harriet’s story. Born in a poor suburb of Kampala, Uganda, Harriet Mutumba faced huge obstacles in her life. As a child growing up in a family of seven children, Harriet struggled to get anything of her own. Her father, owner of a vegetable stall, made a meagre income while her mother stayed at home to take care of the children. The consequences of poverty were amplified when young Harriet went to school. Instead of being praised for her potential, Harriet was singled out for her poverty. "My most painful memory is when one of my classmates said my family must be really poor since my dad had only one pair of trousers," the 25-year-old recalls. "I decided then to never speak up in class and I began to dread going to school." Her shame at being poor drowned out her self-esteem. When she was 15 her father left the family, who were then forced to move a one-room shack fashioned out of rotten wood and prone to leaks. Though life was difficult for young Harriet, there was one place that served as her oasis from crushing poverty: her Compassion project. Harriet's life was forever changed for the better when she enrolled in a Compassion project in her community. "When I got into the Programme of Compassion, I got photos from my sponsor and I was very excited," Harriet says. "I thought at least it's someone, even if it's not someone that stays near me or someone that is in my class or in my school or in my community or in my country, but there's someone out there who loves me." Because her Compassion project paid for her school fees, Harriet began to shun her shame at going to school and started to blossom academically. However, she received another devastating blow when she didn't score highly enough on her state exams to get a government scholarship to a university. "I was very sure that my parents could not afford to sponsor me at the university," says Harriet. "I had lots of thoughts run through my mind, like becoming a prostitute since I had become a failure in life." But through it all two realities were faithful to Harriet: God's neverending love and the support from Compassion and her sponsors. Soon after graduating from high school Harriet was accepted into Compassion's Leadership Development Programme (LDP). The Programme allowed her to obtain a university education but Harriet says the skills she learned through the programme were unlike anything her peers learned at the university. "Other students who are in university but who are not in the Compassion Programme, miss [important] skills," Harriet says. "They train you to be an influential Christian leader and that's a servant leader, someone who will emulate Jesus when He washed the feet of His disciples. Not every student in university can get such skills." Today, Harriet investigates complaints of family abuse, including domestic violence and child abuse in her role as a lawyer with the Uganda Human Rights Commission. She interviews victims and counsels them to help change the culture of violence permeating the poor and vulnerable in her country. "I plan to advocate for children in a much bigger aspect," Harriet says. "I want to advocate for children out there who cannot speak for themselves." Never one to forget what God has given her, Harriet now sponsors her own Compassion child, Bryan from Ecuador. "The Bible tells me to whom much is given much is expected," Harriet says. "The Lord gave me a lot when I was still in the Programme of Compassion and He expects a lot from me. I am planning to use all the skills I got from the programmes to impact other people’s lives because the Lord gave me the sponsorship opportunity for that reason." Compassion ensures the education, nutrition, health care and faith development of over 850,000 children in 24 of the world’s poorest countries. Compassion is unique in the way that it works exclusively through local churches to develop schools and projects in the community. For just £18 per month you can ensure that a specific child is freed from poverty and receives the start in life they deserve. For further information about sponsoring a child see www.compassionuk.org or telephone 01932 836490.

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