Why the Cups?

If you look at a table full of school supplies, you might wonder, "Why did they buy cups?"

To answer that question, you need to understand

a bit of Ugandan culture.

In England, they drink tea. In America, they drink

coffee. In the Mukabire house, they drink hot

chocolate. And in Uganda, they drink porridge.

No, this is not similar to anything that you might

know as "porridge". Oatmeal, Cream of Wheat,

Grits--none of it is the same as Ugandan porridge.

In Uganda, a staple food is Posho (poe-show). Posho is essentially the same as white cornmeal. The cornmeal is mixed with hot water until it is the consistency of very thick, gluey mashed potatoes. It is very dense and very filling. But pretty flavorless. So it is almost always served with some sort of soup.

Every East African country has their own version of Posho. In Tanzania, it is called Ugale (oo-gah-lay). In Congo, it is Fufu (foo-foo). And it is all the same--a thick, dense, cornmeal & water mixture.

But Posho can also be made into porridge. You simply mix the cornmeal powder with LOTS of water so that it is thin and drinkable. If families have enough money, they add sugar to the porridge so that it has at least a sweet flavor. Again, it is very filling! It is also served hot, so it is a comforting drink to have in the cold, early mornings.

Well, Union Vision Primary School (like many village schools) cannot provide lunch for the children. But they can provide porridge in the mornings. They have actually had bags of Posho going unused for one simple reason: they had no way to serve the porridge to the students. Subi Foundation was so glad to learn this, because it was something that could be quickly remedied. Hence, the cups.

But underlying this situation is a much more serious problem than a lack of cups. For many of these children, a cup of porridge in the morning is the only food they get during the day. And at night, their family supper might be quite meager. That morning cup of porridge at school just might be the only guaranteed food some of these children get.

And yet, when the children in the village were asked if they wanted food or school supplies, they chose school supplies! As hungry as they are, they would rather have school supplies! Anyone who has every gone to school hungry knows just how difficult it is to actually learn anything. But these kids would rather battle the hunger, as long as it means that they will have access to an education. Why? Because education is the only way that they are going to have a future without hunger. They will endure hungry school days so that their bellies can be full in their adult days.

Meanwhile, a cup of porridge seems the least that we can do to help them get through their hungry school days.

And that's why we bought the cups.