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Home at Last
Former child soldiers George, Flavia and David Left: (L-R) George, Flavia and David are three of the former child soldiers and orphans of war now living at the Watoto village in Gulu, Uganda.


Providing a Refuge for Widows and Orphans at War
Northern Uganda is a region devastated by war. Senseless murders and brutality left behind fear, bitterness and emotional pain. But it also left behind tens of thousands of women and children in desperate need of help…

Gulu, Uganda, has become famous for all the wrong reasons. It was the center of the 22-year war between the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) and the Ugandan government. Here, the LRA notoriously abducted children and turned them into brutal killers. There’s been a cease-fire for the past few years, but it has left the entire region completely devastated.

During the war, villages were raided and their homes were burned, as the LRA beat, raped and executed thousands. Kidnapped from their homes and schools, they forced children to watch as they tortured and murdered others, hoping to transform them into desensitized killers themselves.

Over the years, tens of thousands lived through unthinkable circumstances—enduring rape, torture and forced labor.

Even now, after the war, so many children are still living in the bush areas, afraid to go back to their villages. The places they once called home now reject them because of the atrocities they were forced to perform.

“The People of Gulu Will Arise”
Last year, Joyce Meyer Ministries partnered with Watoto external link, a ministry focused on helping orphaned and vulnerable children in Africa, to begin building a new village in Gulu for war widows, orphans of war, and former child soldiers. In October, Dave and Joyce had the opportunity to meet some of the very first residents, who are already thriving.

Each home consists of eight kids along with a house mother. Here, widows of war are matched with orphans, and it is truly an environment where they can love and care for each other. They are also provided a valuable education and the critical spiritual support they need to truly recover from the pain of the past.

Today, this village is home to sixty-nine women and children, and when completed, it will consist of nearly one hundred homes in all.

During our two-day crusade, Joyce spoke these powerful words over the city: “The people of Gulu will arise. And the youth will become leaders in this land. They will become leaders in this nation.”

Friends and partners, you are a part of making these words come to pass. Your support is reaching these women and children who have known nothing but fear, violence and emotional pain. And because of you, they are receiving the healing and hope they so desperately need through Christ.

Because of you, the people of Gulu will arise. 


Words from Joyce - A Defining Moment

“The image of this place is permanently burned into my mind. I’ve been to many places in this world and seen far too much injustice, but the IDP camp in northern Uganda has affected me like none other…”

“These conditions are unacceptable and we are in the position to change them, at least for some of these children. We can give them hope… I will not leave here the same person who came. I leave with them in my heart and I take the images of their faces with me everywhere I go. I will simply refuse to do nothing.”

—Joyce Meyer 


Odongs Story: A Former Child Soldier
Odong, former child soldier
“Get up, boy. It’s time to watch your friends die,” the rebel soldier yelled to Odong. He was forced to watch helplessly as the soldiers bludgeoned his friends in the head over and over until they lay motionless. Under threats of death, the rebels forced him to commit heinous acts of evil as well. Then one day, after years of torment, Odong was sent out to collect firewood…and he ran.

Today, Odong is able to experience the childhood he never had—going to school, making friends and learning about the love of God. He is able to receive the support he needs to continue healing from painful memories of the past through Watoto programs, while living with his grandmother in a nearby village.

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  1. "ICC Takes Decisive Step for Justice in Uganda," external link accessed on April 3, 2009.
  2. "The Facts," external link accessed April 3, 2009.
  3. "Children in Conflict," external link accessed April 9, 2009.
Child Soldiers
Did you know?

  • 69 orphans and widows of war now live at the new Watoto village in Gulu.

 

  • 30,000 Ugandan boys and girls were abducted by the LRA.1

 

  • Each year, about 300,000 children are exploited as soldiers worldwide.2

 

  • Child soldiers are currently active in 86 countries and territories.3