Our Story

Humble Beginnings

Being the last born of 10 children, in a rural village in Uganda, my chances at obtaining an education was slim. One of my eldest sisters recognized this and bought me to live with her family in the city. She meant well, though being a young mom she struggled to provide for my school fees and keep me in school consistently. By the time I was in Primary 3, I remember some adults coming into my class and pointing me out. A few weeks later they came back and told me a gentleman and his family from the U.S was going to sponsor me. This moment changed my life forever. From primary school up through college I was given the opportunity to go to school, hear about God’s love through weekly Bible studies, and given basic necessities, such as school supplies, soap, toothpaste, clothes, and shoes.

A Step of Faith

After college I worked for a couple of years in accounting and tourism industry but always felt called back to help the needy children from the poor communities that I once lived in. In 2006, I quit my steady paying job to serve in community projects and started building a team of Ugandan and international volunteers who went on outreach projects around Kampala. My sponsor gave me an incredible gift, not only the gift of education but of love and value of self-confidence. I wanted to pass that on. 

We began with what we could do at the time, love on these children and share the love of Christ. As the word began to spread about what we were doing, more volunteers started joining us, I had a desire to give back to these children in a tangible way of empowering them.

In 2007, I traveled to United States with a simple speaking schedule in the churches and communities of the volunteers I got to know. I had a list of 15 orphaned and vulnerable children who needed sponsors. By early 2008 all 15 children received sponsors and were the first children under the Empower a Child sponsorship program. Later that year Empower A Child was registered as of 501 c 3 non-profit in the U.S.

It’s been powerful to witness some of the first children on the Empower a Child sponsorship program been to graduate and enter the workforce as empowered leaders.

God has taken be on me on a incredible journey from a small village in western Uganda, to the blessing of being sponsored as a child, to entrusting a vision with me bring sustainable change to thousands of children’s lives in East Africa. 

I invite you to come be apart of this journey and see how God will use you to impact in the life of a child.

Blessings,

Wilson Hannington Kabeera
Founder & Executive Director