July 2010
I have exciting news! My team and I have just completed the first Watoto 360˚ discipleship/ministry training program here in Kampala at Watoto Church.
The 5-month program far exceeded our expectations. I can say, without any doubt, that each of the 54 students who attended left with a living, vibrant, growing, Holy Spirit filled relationship with Jesus Christ.
It is amazing to me to see the transformation that has taken place in such a short time. Here are some examples:
Rachel, so shy she was not able to say her name in public — to closing the class in prayer and leading a group in street ministry
Joshua, from admitting that he didn’t want to be there — to active participation and team leadership
Jonathan, emotionless and bored — to joyful and involved
Many students who were fearful of ministry outside the church progressed so much that they were able to lead a team in street ministry, actively participate in ministry to AIDS affected people, teach children and adults, serve in church and engage people in discussions about the Lord.
There is not one member of the class that I have not seen significant change in with regards to their attitude, their commitment, their character, and/or their boldness to participate in class and in ministry. It’s a challenge with the diversity of students within the class. The key is getting them to a place where they want to change, to grow, to become better and to serve well. Once they get that, everything else falls into place. I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to lead them there.
Our 54 class members consisted of: 7 international (Switzerland, Norway , US, UK , Canada ), 13 Watoto Church members, 34 high school grads from Watoto.\
Variety of methods of learning;
Large group discussions
Small group studies
Interactive class sessions
Movies
Team building games
Personal reflection and study
Hands on ministry
in class, leading small groups, leading ministry teams, teaching lessons
in the church, district ministry on Sunday
in Watoto villages through Saturday sports program, trauma counseling
in the community, clean-up/betterment projects, visiting AIDS affected families, street ministry
in the city, young offenders detention center, prisons, hospital, school for offenders’ and prisoners’ children
Lesson topics included discipleship, personality/giftings, relational skills, worldview, holistic ministry, project planning, understanding culture, religions, character studies, supernatural living (ministry gifts, spiritual gifts, gifts of the Holy Spirit), leadership (including servant leadership) and of course understanding Watoto Church and its vision. We emphasize developing good habits in one’s life; i.e. health, fitness, rest, relationships, chores, prayer, journaling and, of course, daily devotions. Throughout the 5 month program each student read all of the NT, Psalms and Proverbs 3 times.
The next session of Watoto 360˚ begins on July 15th. We are excited to see what God is going to do in the lives of these young people. Thank you for your continued support and prayer. We need you.
March 2009
We are doing well in Kampala and pressing on with the work that is set before us. It is busy but we thank God that He always gives us the strength that we need.
Ross continues to be busy overseeing the maintenance program in the Watoto villages and at Bulrushes, the babies home. In the 3½ years that we have been here the work has grown from 109 building units to over 440 structures. It is his role to ensure that these are in excellent working order and to ensure that the properties are beautiful.
My (Linda) role has recently changed. In December I was able to hand over the management of the Guest Relations Department to Brenda; a very capable Ugandan lady. This is always our goal; to raise up someone else to do our work. She will manage over 120 teams that will visit Uganda this year. I am confident that she is able to do a fantastic job. I am in the process of starting a discipleship/mission school for Ugandan young adults and those from around the world who wish to come and help us here in Uganda . The purpose of the school is to raise up young leaders who will impact this nation for good. By the time the students leave the 6 month program they will know God better, they will know themselves better and they will have a clearer understanding of their calling. This will be accomplished through some book learning but the main focus will be experiential, hands-on training. I begin my first class this month and have had 50 people apply, a couple of whom are our own adult Watoto. This school will help Watoto accomplish its mandate to REBUILD this nation. Next intake is July 09. If you or someone you know is interested in a life adventure in Uganda let me know.
The biggest struggle for us is being separated from our children. Aimee (22 this month) and Jay (19) live together in Ontario where they are working and going to school. It is difficult for them, especially now with the “credit crunch” but we trust God to provide for them in every area. We are very proud of them. Cameron (15) is in Grade 10 at Rift Valley Academy in Kenya . He is doing extremely well there and has taken up the drums and has nurtured his artistic talent. We see him every 6 weeks but it’s not enough. Our Ugandan son, Jesse (23), is on tour in UK with the Watoto Children’s Choir, and continues to grow in character each day. We are grateful for our children who are a blessing to us and we trust God to sustain them and give them peace.
Thank you for your prayers and support. We value you and the part you play in our ministry. Our lives are richer because of you.
Ross and Linda Duncalfe
“He picks up the poor from out of the dirt, rescues the wretched who’ve been thrown out with the trash, seats them among the honoured guests, a place of honour among the brightest and best.” Psalm 113:7, 8
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October 31, 2008
This past weekend Cameron was involved a little bit of a “scary” incident while hiking near RVA. The Dean of Students has sent the attached report. I thought you might like to see it.
We are thankful for prayer for our kids. We know that God is in control of their lives and protects them. We have a peace about that.
Cameron is fine. Believe it or not he was thinking that a bullet wound in the leg or arm might have been a “cool” souvenir to bring back to Canada. If you know Cameron you will believe it…he thinks that way. Anyhow, thank you for continuing to pray for our family. We appreciate your support and love.
From the Dean of Men:
I am sure that your boys must have contacted you each about the event that took place over this past weekend. My apologies for not contacting each of you sooner. Late on Saturday afternoon, I was contacted by a staff member who had just been on the phone with your boys. They informed him that they were hiking near the water falls about 4 km away from campus and had had shots fired over their heads. They were obviously frightened and didn’t know what to do. They were very high up on a hillside above the tracks and were told to just sit tight and to not move.
I was contacted immediately by the staff member and then called our head of security. He contacted the local police to see if they were aware of any patrols in the area and to get their help. We were told that there were no patrols scheduled in that area on that day and that there were no police available to go with us. We then picked up a security guard from the RVA campus security and headed out immediately in my Landrover towards the Kijabe Railway Station. Having grown up here and having lived for the past 18 years at Kijabe, I was quite sure that I knew where the boys were and knew the quickest way to reach them. I was also suspicious that the ‘shooters’ were likely men from the forestry division who were sweeping through the forests looking for illegal charcoal burners.
On the way down the road towards the railway station, I did indeed come across a pickup truck full of uniformed officers from the forestry service. They said that they had been on patrol and had indeed fired warning shots at what they believed to be illegal charcoal burners. I informed them that we had students hiking in that area and that the supposed ‘charcoal burners’ were in fact our students. We then pushed on to the railway station and eventually made contact with the guys by cell phone and let them know that it was safe to come down. I had tried to reach them a couple of times by phone but because they were hiding, they only had an intermittent signal. They made it down the hill safely and we brought them back to RVA in time for dinner. I did alert their dorm parents about what had happened and fully intended to write to all of you on Sunday. Again, my apologies for not having done so.
We are contacting the forestry service to file a protest with them over this incident. It is not uncommon for them to patrol the forests in that area and even to fire warning shots in an effort to scare off the illegal charcoal burners. We have requested that they patrol in an ongoing effort to save our ever shrinking forest. Your boys were actually not in the forest but were in fact very high up on a ridge that has already been denuded. I suspect that the forestry service personnel thought the guys were fleeing from out of the forest as a result of the patrol. The forestry service personnel have never shot anyone and have only ever fired warning shots in the past. I am not trying to minimize the situation that your boys were in but rather hoping to help you understand what happened and why. Again, we will be putting procedures into place in an effort to ensure that this type of incident never happens again. Please don’t hesitate to contact me if you have any further questions.
Sincerely,
Dean of Students
Rift Valley Academy
July 2008
Hi from the Duncalfes in Kampala, Uganda.
During the month of June, Ross has been involved with providing maintenance service for Gulu North, the northern outreach of Kampala Pentecostal Church, the Home of Watoto in this bustling Ugandan town.
Backhoe, Bobcat and Brickmaker.
Three maintenance drivers drove a flatbed truck and other vehicles with these items together with steel for water tanks, water pumps and other equipment on the arduous 450 km road journey from Kampala. Gulu area is where the people have previously been ravished, raped and pillaged by the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA). The grass is over four feet high, the landscape flat as a pancake with no sizeable mounds of soil. There are no modern facilities such as hoists or cranes in Gulu. The black cotton soil, wet with recent rain, sticks to everything and hinders any movement. Unloading a 40-foot container from a flatbed truck in 39C heat was a real challenge!
After a brief prayer seeking the Lord’s help, we began unloading. Very soon we saw heads popping up out of the high grass and, before you knew it, a crowd of 10 – 15 young teen-age lads had gathered around, offering to pitch in and help. No older men though, for the war has decimated that age-group. After a hole had been dug, the flatbed backed in and soil moved to the height of the container, the machines were carefully backed out and supplies unloaded. The new helpers wanted money!
Through our new maintenance man in Gulu, John Okot, a local Acholi man, Ross was able to converse and tell the story of how KPC/Watoto was founded and has been working in Uganda for over 20 years. How that, unlike most NGOs, we were there to stay and help them by providing jobs, education and other benefits. Fortunately, Ross had brought lots of clean drinking water and big bags of ‘mandazi’, a popular type of sweet doughnuts. These were willingly accepted as payment. The lads disappeared back into the long grass, promising to come back to help when they hear the work begin on the buildings that will house a new Watoto village and church facilities.
Two of Ross’s maintenance men remained in Gulu to operate the heavy machinery. They were fearful of being left alone in LRA country knowing only the pastor of KPC Gulu. Supportive words from Ross and further prayer gave them strength. A team of brickmakers will soon join them. Two days later, exhausted but rejoicing and thanking God for His provision and protection, Ross returned the 450km journey home to local duties in Kampala.
Please pray for the outreach of the church in Gulu and as the new Watoto village work is begun. Former child soldiers, traumatized young victims of the war, and other needy children will be nurtured and told of Jesus’ love and redemption. They will be educated and medically treated where necessary. Pray for Ross and other workers making the long journeys up to Gulu and back to Kampala twice a month as the buildings take shape.
Urgent Financial Need.
We are currently $20,000 behind in our 2008 budget. Please pray for the Lord’s provision.
Jay, our nearly-19-year-old son, has returned to Canada to work and further his studies. Please pray for him and his sister, Aimee, as they cope with life together in Mississauga, Ontario. Cameron is at school in Kijabe, Kenya.
May 2008
Thank you for your love, prayers, interest and support. It is a great privilege for us to be a small part of what God is doing in Uganda.
Hello from the Duncalfes in Uganda – “The Warm Heart of Africa”. We have been busy these past months and wanted to send you an update of what your friendship and support is enabling us to do in Uganda with Kampala Pentecostal Church, (KPC) the home of WATOTO CHILD CARE MINISTRIES.
ROSS – Watoto Maintenance Supervisor.
First of all, the word ‘maintenance’ doesn’t exist in the local Ugandan language, so it is a culture that has to be taught. Since HIV/AIDS all but wiped out our skilled middle-aged folk, training younger people, who serve Watoto, in maintenance culture is one of Ross’ priorities. His challenging work gives him great joy. His teams are responsible for keeping in good order and repair:
275 Watoto homes in three villages for 2475 children and housemothers
2 secondary schools
2 primary schools
2 school dormitories
Baby Watoto, “The Bulrushes” — housing over 80 cute babies
Generators that provide electricity and water, tractors, trailers, bobcats, bulldozers, forklifts, compactors for building sites
LINDA - Events and Guest Relations Director
Linda has trained a team of KPC members to host the hundreds of visitors who come to build Watoto homes and schools each year. Each host accompanies his/her group of visitors and makes sure that the orientation to Uganda; accommodation, transportation and every need is cared for, for the average stay of two weeks.
Hundreds of volunteers are trained to help at events in hospitality, seating, ushering, crowd control, registration, etc. Some specific events are:
Heaven’s Gates and Hell’s Flames Drama with 27 performances over seven days, resulting in over 6500 adult conversions to Christ
86 visiting teams coming to build homes and schools in 2008
Processing and hosting individual overseas volunteers; 29 have come in the past six months and 80 applications are in process
Advance plans for September 2008 Watoto Conference with about 1000 delegates expected from countries, both in Africa and the rest of the world
Our children are willing partners with us in this venture for the Lord. It is very difficult to be separated from them, but we are thankful that they are in God’s hands. They are:
AIMEE - our daughter has finished her first year in Special Events and Hospitality at George Brown College in Toronto, Canada.
JAY - our elder son has completed High School at Rosslyn Academy in Nairobi, Kenya and is returning to Canada to do further studies at the University of Toronto in September, 2008. He is pursuing a Bachelor of Arts degree, for now.
CAMERON - our younger son attends Rift Valley Academy, Ross’ alma mater, about 30 kilometers outside Nairobi in Kenya. Cam is in this boarding school in the ninth grade and his ambition is to one day be a graphic artist.
We thank you, most sincerely, for your prayer support which is so vital to us. Please continue to uphold before the Lord:
strength and wisdom for our leadership roles
protection from Satan’s attacks in travelling and health
the ability to cope with the recent 50 – 70% rise in the costs of fuel, food, water and electricity etc. As a result of unrest in Kenya, our corridor to the ocean supply route has been disrupted and costs increased drastically
recovery from the 2007 shortfall in our personal budget of $11,000.00 which urgently must be covered.
An email from you to us in Uganda linda.duncalfe@kpc.co.ug letting us know of your prayers and support, would be so much appreciated.
We want you to know that we are so blessed to serve the Lord out here. There are sacrifices – especially sending our teenagers back to Canada to cope with life alone. And also for Cameron, who goes to boarding school 700 km away. We are so thrilled that each one of them has coped well with all that life has become for them. They all love Africa and are supportive and involved in our work here.
Thank you so much for all your faithful support in the past. Be assured, you are a great blessing to us.
Sincerely, in Christ’s Great Service,
Ross and Linda Duncalfe,
Kampala, Uganda, Africa