Children are telling their MUKISA stories

JOEL, 5 years old

My name is Joel Kiyingi, I am 5 years old. I have a condition called Cerebral palsy .Because of this condition, I was unable to sit, use my hands or even speak like other children, until 2013 when I joined Mukisa Foundation. I started with the therapy program only ,until last year when I joined the school. I currently attend both therapy and school.
I have learned to sit without support, feed my self, write, communicate my needs and crawl. I still fall over sometimes, but I am able to take my plate and cup to the kitchen after eating.
In school I have learnt shapes, colors and numbers. I also enjoy the singing very much.

HAJARA, 17 years old

My name is Hajara Nabulime,I am 17 years old ,my birthday is on 29.04.1999.I have two brothers and one sister and we live quite close to Mukisa foundation in Lungujja.I have down syndrome
I dropped out of school when I was 8 years old because my teachers said I could not learn anything. Since then I have been staying at home and helping with house work.
I hated staying at home during the day because the other children in my neighborhood would call me bad names and make fun of me.
I was so happy when I started going to the Mukisa school because here I have learnt to take care of myself, to read and write and I am currently learning to do different crafts such as necklaces and door mats which I can be able to sell and buy myself pretty dresses.

KATO, 6 years old

My name is Kato Elvis, My twin brother Waswa and I was bone on the 1st of December 2009. We are called miracle babies, not just because we are twins but also because we came 17 years after our older sister, when our parents had long given up on giving birth to more children.
We were born a month early, so we stayed in the hospital for a month before we could go home. When we got home, my head started to swell but when my parents went to the hospital they were told that there was no problem, but they insisted until they were told to start measuring my head circumference to see if indeed there was a change.
When the doctor saw the proof of increase in size, we were to send to Cure hospital, a specialized hospital for hydrocephalus and Spina bifida.I had an operation. This operation was not successful, so they did a second one in which they put a shunt to drain the excess fluid in my head which I still have up to now.
My mother was told that I have no brain and I will never be able to do anything for myself or be anything like my twin brother. But she did not give up on me .Instead, she kept taking me to anywhere where she was told until one day when she was referred to Mukisa Foundation in 2012.
When I got there, I could not seat by myself, crawl or use my hands, but now I cannot only feed myself, but started walking without help a few months ago!
My best achievement so far is joining the Mukisa school where I have learnt to read and write, sing, dance, and make lots of friends.
Everyone says that when I grow up I will become a musician because I seem to learn all songs very quickly and I love the drumming and even playing with the guitar, but I am not sure if that is really what I want to be because there are so many cool things that I am yet to learn, and might even do better than Music!