October 2025 Newsletter
What’s happening?
Oh what a sweet, yet incredibly busy, time I’ve had in America. I’m here for about another week and it’s jam packed, but I’m also so ready to be back home with my boys.
While I’ve been in the US fundraising, meeting with many of you, and visiting friends and family for my yearly visit, things have been going so well in Uganda. Joy, Ben, and Moses have went to Visitation Days for both Primary and Secondary schools, Prayer day for our 3 candidate students in Secondary, and dealt with each and every issue that’s come along while I’ve been gone. I’m truly blessed with such a great team that always goes above and beyond in everything they do. All of our students have shown great progress on their midterm report cards, from the pictures and reports I’ve been given, and 2 of our candidates have finished testing and headed home for a very long school holiday as the tests get graded. All of the other Primary and Secondary students come home for their long holiday the week after I return, and the final candidate finishes his tests the first week in December. We are so proud of all of our boys and how hard they are trying to catch up and improve in their studies. Paul, our University student, comes home just before Christmas, and the 2 boys in their internship finish up in December and immediately start working and getting paid the very next week! Looking back on the lives of these young men and knowing where they came from just a few years ago and where they are now, is just so beautiful and only a work that the Lord could do. We are so very thankful for the special donors who help us to keep these young men in school and pour into them on holidays so that their futures are more hopeful, both spiritually and physically.
Since this is the longest holiday of the year we always send as many rehabilitated young men as we can to church camp. For the younger guys, they will have a week long youth camp with Joy and Ben’s church. Last year they had a blast and came back asking when they could go again! For the older boys they go to Teen Mission, which is a Bible bootcamp and evangelism training. After a brief week of teamwork and Gospel training and non-stop biblical teaching and training they go out into villages all over Uganda to do evangelism and community service. We always see such great spiritual growth and excitement when these guys return to us. Typically this program is 6 weeks, but due to elections this year, it’s only 4.
I am SO EXCITED to go back and surprise my staff and boys that we get to start looking for Land! Thanks to some very generous donors we are closer than ever to being able to purchase land and continue to grow the organization in Uganda! Being able to own land means that we will be able to start farming projects (animals, produce, and fruits) which not only help the organization become more self sustaining, but also gives jobs and responsibilities to the guys we work with. We will be able to delegate certain jobs to different boys and help them to learn responsibility and strong work ethic as they rehabilitate, also giving them something to do so they are not idle on the streets. We are praying for a good plot of land within town, which, while more expensive, is the location we need. We must stay within town, near to where the young men are on the streets, since we have so many boys dumped at our gate for medical care, almost every week. Even if there are no buildings/structures on the land at first, if we can even start with a simple plot of land we can begin farming it and preparing to build as we raise more funds. Unfortunately land in town is usually way more than land in a village, and the fact that we need it to be titled for safety and security in ownership, all adds extra fees. I am watching God open so many big doors as I’m here in the States this year, and I can’t wait to see how he continues to use me and this ministry to bring more boys to Christ and see a generation regain hope that has been lost for so long. This journey has been a long time coming, but we trust in God’s beautiful timing and are ready to step when he says to do so.
I have also had some of the sweetest, seemingly random, God connections during this trip. While I know that nothing is random, when it comes to God, the way that these connections have arisen has just been so beautiful. Word of mouth connections leading to more and more. Coffee shop stops leading to beautiful friendships and encouragement. Church visits and connections in places I never expected. God has been doing so much in my time here in the States and I can’t wait to go back and share with my amazing team all of the things HE’s been working on.
Thank you to everyone who shares these newsletters, shares our stories, and shares about the ministry. You’re all a great blessing to all of us at Experience Hope Ministries.
What’s to come?
I am soon packing to head back home to Uganda. I have been so blessed to have received many medical supplies that have been donated and can’t wait to fill my boxes to fill our medical cabinets at the project. These quality medical supplies truly help so very much and we have seen such drastic changes in wounds and illnesses because of them. Not only does medical care help our guys physically but it’s a pathway for them to come to know Christ. As we treat these guys we pray over them and for them, we tell them about the Gospel of Christ, we invite them for warm and nutritious meals and a safe and welcome place to come. Medical care has been one of the biggest outlets for sharing the love of Christ this year, and we expect it to continue, due to the lack of quality care and service that these young men receive in Jinja.
All of our students will soon be home for almost 3 months because of the election season. We are working on programs to keep them busy at the project house, before and after their church camps, outside of the typical bible study programs we do. Holiday season + election season = a lot of unrest, persecution to the street connected youth, and an influx in street kids around town. School holidays are always busy times, but this one is usually the busiest. I can’t wait to see all of our boys though!
We also do a Christmas program every year during Christmas week. We cook a hefty, warm and nutritious meal for all street kids who want to come, share the Gospel, sing worship songs, and give everyone a t-shirt, pants, and shoes. We will be starting to plan and prepare for this when I get back also, as it takes time to get all of the clothes and shoes in the right sizes and prepare for such a big event.
Jinja has had several rallies since I left, each with chaotic crowds and trouble. Please continue to pray for all of us as things continue to ramp up. There have been many more break-ins, murders, and robberies around town too. We are all trusting in God to protect us and keep us safe and continue to provide for our boys in the process.
Thank you
Thank you to the seed sowers who have donated to help us purchase land soon, and we would be ever so grateful if others feel led to also give toward this great need so that we can purchase outright and not have a loan to pay. Thank you to those who donate to help us keep our boys in school, and add new students every year. In 2026 we have another 8 students who we are anticipating will be entering school. Something that the students and families have given up on because of the great expense. Thank you to those who give faithfully to help us continue to do daily bible studies and feeding projects, keep boys housed, and provide both basic and life saving medical care for each and every street connected child/young adult we encounter. These seemingly simple acts of love are life changing for the guys we work with. They now have a hope and a future in Jesus and in life in general.
Thank you is only a small phrase that we can say to all of you who pray for us, support us, and help us to continue the work we do with these young men. We have many challenges every day, but God continues to give us wisdom and discernment to pour into the guys we work with. Sometimes we see failure and it’s easy to get discouraged, but then God always shows us a wink of success and renews the hope we have for these young men. While there are still many who are not ready to change, there are many who can’t turn back to their old ways. We count each successful transformation a great blessing from God. Thank you for standing with us in this gap as we serve those that God has called us to work with here in Uganda. May God bless you!
How can you help?
Prayer requests:
Praises! Swalic has now weaned off of all seizure medicine and is doing amazing! It’s been so sweet video calling him from the US and seeing his sweet smile.
Praises! We can officially begin looking for land and have a place of our own for the ministry! Prayers that God puts the best fit for the best price in our path, with no legal issues along the way.
Pray for safety for myself, my staff, and my boys as crime and violence continue to escalate here and presidential candidates now are making their way around Uganda
Pray for our students as they finish the 3rd term of school this year and enter a very long holiday season.
Pray for the hearts of so many people here who thrive on deceit and taking advantage of people.
Pray for financial donors who can help partner with us to do the work that GOD has called us to. It’s only by HIS will that we are here doing what we are doing and we need financial partners to do this work. Tangible things such as a safe room, food, school fees, and medical care show these young men that they’re not given up on, like so many people here tell them. Education and Medical are typically our biggest expenses and both are life changing for these young men.
How is God calling you to partner with us?
Through prayer? Through financial giving? We believe that even as just one of these young men changes, there’s many more ready to start a new life also, due to the testimony of the one. God calls some of us to go, some of us to stay, some of us to give and some of us to pray. Where do you fit in? Please consider joining us in bringing hope and healing to these precious young men! So many in their community have given up on them, but we know that God has called them to more!
TAX DEDUCTIBLE CHECKS mailed to:
GoSendMe Global
PO Box 913106
Sherman, TX 75091
(Make checks out to “GoSendMe Global” and include a note with the check- but not written directly on the check- that it is for me, Tara Henson, Uganda)
VENMO: @Tara-Henson-1
PAYPAL: @TaraHenson
ZELLE: thens1213@gmail.com
How to Connect
EMAIL: thens1213@gmail.com
Isaiah 1:17 (CSB)
“Learn to do what is good.
Pursue justice.
Correct the oppressor.
Defend the rights of the fatherless. Plead the widow’s cause.”
