More Maama Kits

One afternoon in May, Kylie and I biked to Jack’s house (my piki driver) after I found out his wife, Gus, was pregnant. After giving her a Maama Kit, I stopped on the way home to buy cabbage on the side of the road.

By the way, I have no idea what I was doing buying a cabbage, without a market bag, while riding a bike, but I did it. Thankfully, I ran into a friend I call “Mama Rose.” She offered me her plastic grocery sack.

I know she was going to buy food, but I really needed that sack, and she was offering...

You also have to know that people here charge you for sacks sometimes, so you always try to carry one with you. It was totally a non-thinking day for me.

Mama Rose has two pregnant daughters, and she wanted Maama Kits for them. She had heard I had them, but she was afraid I would make her pay for them. She hugged me so hard when I told her they were free, just like God’s love. After talking some more. I left her smiling on the side of the road.

Kylie and I biked home, got the kits, and God told me I should ride back to give them to her instead of waiting until we would meet again in 2 days. She was so happy (AND I returned her grocery sack AND gave her three extras)!

This happened back in May.

When she saw me last week, she told me one of her girls had had a boy in Kampala and she wanted me to write down a name on a piece of paper so she could give it to her daughter to name her son.

I wanted to laugh.

This lady wanted me to name her grandchild, when I had never even met the mother. Of course, many children here are given multiple names. It doesn't mean that whatever I name it will be how it is known, but it was just the thought. Wow!


This last month, I met Scoviah. She came to my house for a Maama Kit.

She is 18. Not married. And she had to drop out of school until the baby comes.

She's in 5th grade.

She wants to go back after the baby is born.

David, a pastor in town, brought his wife by to see Doug while I was in Kampala with the kids.

I think it's awesome that Doug is handing out Maama Kits, too.

Maama kits yield a return.

I had a repeat "customer" in June.

Christine (Alice's sister) came by to show me Letasi Onyiru Marion.

I had given her a Maama kit earlier.

Isn't she beautiful?

Here is Alice, proudly holding her neice.

Maama Kits

I had a very humbling experience today. Thank you, Jesus.

My friend Melissa (Mercy’s mother) who has been staying in Kampala waiting to take her adopted daughter home, began a project last fall that I am fortunate to take advantage of.

She has been buying Maama Kits and giving them away. She does this with the help of people donating with pay pal on her blog. You can do that HERE, if you are interested.

Anyway, I took 10 Maama Kits from Melissa last fall, and after giving them out and being blessed by hearing these lady’s stories, I decided to get some more this last time I went to Kampala.

Each one only costs $5 (right now they are $6.25 because the price of cotton went up, but we're hoping they go back down), but they provide a MUCH needed service for the women here.

Each kit contains a plastic sheet, a bar of soap, a pair of gloves, a roll of cotton, a rope to tie off the umbilical cord, a clean razor blade to cut the umbilical cord, and some other simple things needed for the birth of a baby. If they go to the hospital, they are charged more, and if they deliver at home, they just make do with dirty things and sometimes rusty razor blades, etc.

Alice has been telling people about the Kits since she saw me handing them out to her friends last month.

I gave one to Janie, and she had tears in her eyes as she thanked me.

I gave one to Lillian, and she told me the that just the day before, she had gone to the clinic to get checked, and they had suggested she buy her things to prepare, but she didn’t have the 10,000 shillings, and didn’t know how she would get it. She was so blessed by this Maama Kit arriving perfectly in God’s timing.

I also gave one to Alice's sister, Christine (and finally had my camera). Alice is on the left, and Christine is on the right.

This week, I met Helen.

She is a sweet, kind lady who lives near Alice.

She was so gracious, and we chatted “little, little” in Lugbara.

I also met Annette.

She is married to Alice’s husband’s brother.

She arrived with Alice at my house at 8:45 in the morning.

She had left her home in the village at 6am, walking to meet me.

She reached Alice’s, they "took tea," and then came to my house. I’m guessing she got to Alice’s around 8am.

That means that this pregnant woman walked 2 HOURS to get this kit that costs $5!!

She sat, I gave her some water and a snack, and I said as many things as I could to her in Lugbara (which wasn’t much).

I couldn’t get over the journey she had made that morning!

How blessed are we!

This was life-changing for her.

But how much better is the life-changing gift of Jesus Christ!

Would she have walked two hours for that?

She would have had she known that I had Living Water from a well that never runs dry, and it is FREE.