Sarah Nadunga

Sarah Nadunga was born in a village outside of Namatala, Uganda in 1978. Sarah could easily be nicknamed, Smiling Sarah. It sounds like a childish nickname, but it’s near impossible to catch Sarah without a beaming smile on her face and a sparkle in her eye. Though her English is limited, her charming charisma is enough to light up a room, without saying a word. She was the first born with 12 younger brothers and sisters to follow. Sarah had the privilege to attend primary school at age six and finished with Senior One (Freshman in High School) at age 18. Upon finishing school, Sarah moved to Namatala to marry and capture a higher income than what was available in her home village. After being married for almost two years, Sarah found herself with two beautiful children ages two (Enock) and one (Shalon). Enock became very sick and died from Malaria at age two. Five years later, Shalon also died of Malaria. This left Sarah and her husband childless. A short time after the death of her two children Sarah became very ill. She had the symptoms of HIV but knew that couldn’t be right because her husband promised her he was clean before they were married. After hospitalization, sure enough, Sarah was diagnosed with HIV. Though her husband deliberately lied to Sarah, she agreed to loyally stand by his side. They had two more children together, Pilimon and Patricia. When the children reached ages three and one, Sarah’s husband abandoned her and the children to be with another woman.

Now living with her two children along with her sister and daughter, Sarah lives in a one-room cement home. Though her house is small, it is a very nice home in Namatala standards. She has electricity for light and her sowing machine, three mattresses for her and her children, thick cement walls, and a small food storage. Her son Pilimon Ochom is 10 years old and her daughter Patricia Kulume is 8 years old. Pilimon and Ochom both enjoy school and playing soccer. Sarah has the opportunity to send them to a Child of Hope primary school at an affordable price. Sarah has her own small sewing business at her home where she sews dresses, scarves, and even uniforms for school. She rents a sewing machine at 5,000 shillings ($2.00) per month. Sarah hopes, with the help of 1,000 Shillings, to soon purchase her own sewing machine that costs roughly 200,000 shillings ($80.00). Sarah has been sewing for almost seven years, and as she says, “I sew little for two years but I have been a master of sewing for five years.” She enjoys sewing because it is peaceful, she can work from home, and it supports the needs of her family.

Sarah is very grateful for the opportunity to send her two children to school, the privilege to work as a seamstress, and the financial stability is offers her to feed her children three meals each day. She enjoys playing sports with her children, particularly soccer and volleyball. Sarah loves cooking and eating. Her favorite food is matoke, which is a steamed green banana. Sarah goes as far to say, “I could eat matoke three meals a day until I die.”