When one of our members invited a visiting relative to speak with our Kiwanis Club and with Palencia Elementary School K-Kids, we had no idea how this meeting would start us on a journey to help children in an African school in Kampala, Uganda.

Through our partnership with Eagles Nest school, not only have we helped to improve the school and the living conditions of over 700 kids, but the experience has certainly enriched our lives as well.

Eagles Nest is a school in Kampala, Uganda that provides food, clothing, shelter, education and church and community support. The Dodzweit family and their team run a boarding school in Kampala that houses and educates over 700 children and young adults (from pre-school through high school).  Their programs help prepare the children and young people for productive and promising adult lives.  In addition, they assist refugees from surrounding countries who have suffered under the terrors of conflict and war.

A Note from Shane

Dear Kiwanis Club,

I want to thank you so much for helping us to complete our toilet for the school and community. This project has done more than just help our school but also the community. We hold many community events and that toilet was the main facility for all those events. Our previous toilet was in a terrible condition and was also a breeding ground for a number of diseases. Since its condition was no secret to you, you can imagine what kind of diseases that we were dealing with in that toilet. During the rainy seasons it was almost impossible to use the facility in its former condition. But beyond the health issues that used to plague us with the old toilet; this new toilet has brought a sense of pride that was not there before. Our students come from some of the poorest communities, where their parents make less than a dollar a day. So you can imagine the environment they grow up in.  They come from refugee camps, villages, and slum areas. And can go their whole life without stepping into a facility as good as this. But when they entered this facility it showed them that they deserve so much more. It may seem like a small thing but this facility can instill a sense of pride in the people who use it. It lets them know that they might live in poverty for the moment but they deserve so much more. We thank you for giving them the best, because I know that is what they deserve. 

Sincerely,
Shane Dodzweit, Eagles Nest School