Our Story
Cheka Child began with the inspiration of a group of six friends who love Uganda and wanted to help encourage nine children they knew who were struggling in life and needed some hope and a future.
One of the friends who initiated Cheka Child called Richard. Richard had benefitted from sponsorship as a child and knew the impact this idea would have.
Initially, the friends took money from their own pockets to pay the school fees for some vulnerable children. Once they saw the impact on the families, they knew more help was needed.
As the organization grew, the vision grew too. Now Cheka Child not only supports families with school fees for their children; the team also provides: a food stipend, family discipleship and mentoring, business training for widows, and participates in building up the local community.
This is exciting as the growth allows more families, like YOU, to come alongside Cheka Child and be apart of creating lasting change in families and children in Arua, Uganda.
Our Location: Arua, Uganda
Success Statistics:
- Cheka Child currently supports 37 children and young people to access quality education in private schools and vocational school and one at university. In 2018, at the beginning of Cheka Child’s history, 9 children were initially helped to get to government schools paying out about $40 per term from the pockets of the founders. Today, Cheka Child pays about $4000 per term that comes through overseas sponsors.
- To date, Cheka Child has handed out 160 female goats as a livelihood programme for widows and widowers.
- Cheka Child has supported 4 widows with business training and start-up grants to help provide for their families.
- Cheka Child has provided communities with 10 new and renovated water points consisting of 1 borehole, 8 protected springs and a well and reaching over 7000 people. Recipients will have less diarrhea and typhoid.
- Cheka Child has provided 185 food aid packages that provides for the most vulnerable such as widows and orphans especially during the Covid pandemic.
- 36 solar lamps were provided for the sponsored children and the Cheka Child families to allow them to study at night
Our Team
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David and Emma Craig
The Craig family has called Arua, Uganda home since 2012 and are sent as missionaries with Pioneers UK.
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Nelly
Nellie is a social worker whose drive to care means she is always on the lookout for children to come alongside.
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Richard
Richard is a key vision bearer for Cheka Child. Richard is in accountant training and is a businessman.
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Eunice
Staff Worker
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Trustee
Hi, my name is Andy Cumming. I became involved with Cheka Child following various conversations with David Craig. We shared a room together whilst at University, for three years, so I know him pretty well! Thankfully our friendship has endured whilst he has been in Uganda, mainly through WhatsApp.
When David was visiting in 2019, we caught up and discussed the possibility of setting up a Scottish-based charity to help raise funds for the Cheka Child work. His passion helped me to see how it is possible to help people at every level of life. From basic of food and water provision, to education, and most importantly to come to know and trust the Lord Jesus as their personal Saviour – the ultimate need of every person, everywhere.
It is amazing to see how Cheka Child has developed over the years and I enjoy the regular Zoom meetings with the other UK Trustees and the Ugandan team.
Even though the charity is small, I believe that it is making an impact for good for the lives of the sponsored children, their families, and hopefully the whole community. I hope that one day I will be able to visit Arua to meet everyone involved!
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Trustee
I very much enjoy having the opportunity to partner with the Cheka Child team who deliver such a wonderful service – they really do help fulfil God’s promise to bring a hope and a future to people in need.
As a trustee, I attend regular (virtual) meetings, attend mission-focused events to promote the work of Cheka Child and am a signatory for the UK bank account. When I was asked to join the team, I was excited to become a part of the charity, having visited David and Emma in Arua in 2017, when I met the team. I knew this was a truly dedicated group of people with a genuine passion for challenging poverty and injustice in Arua. This is very meaningful to me.
I am excited to see the next chapter unfold for Cheka as we look to God for his goodness, grace and provision.
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Trustee
What drew me to the work of Cheka was meeting the Ugandans who were keen to see what could be done to expand the work they were already doing informally to support vulnerable local children.
I like being part of Cheka Child since I see the difference it makes in the lives of the children we support as well as the benefits to the communities through the goat distribution and water projects.
It would be great to see the work grow to meet the needs of a wider group of children as there are many more who could benefit from sponsorship if it was available. Also to see how more local funds could be generated for future sustainability.