 "Photo: Photo Courtesy of Project H.O.P.E.")
 "Photo: Photo Courtesy of Project H.O.P.E.")
Project H.O.P.E.’s approach to helping the people of Northern Uganda is based on the fact that many of them want to learn how to sustain themselves.
“Ugandans, even though they’re in such poor conditions, they won’t ask you for stuff,” said freshman Keith Parrish, a member of Project H.O.P.E. “They just want you to show them how they can go on their own, you know? They don’t want the fish – they want to know how to fish.”
Project H.O.P.E., which stands for Help Open People’s Eyes, tries to lend a hand to Ugandan children who have been displaced by a civil war that has plagued the country for 24 years. According to Invisible Children, a larger national-aid group for Ugandan children, almost 90 percent of the soldiers in one faction fighting in the civil war were children. Project H.O.P.E. also aims to sustain peace and prevent further violence.
Project H.O.P.E was started at Kalani High School by Dana Plotkin, a University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa graduate and Kalani High social studies teacher, as an offshoot of Invisible Children. One difference between Invisible Children and Project H.O.P.E. is that the money raised in Project H.O.P.E. goes directly to the schools in Uganda. Although much of the money that Invisible Children raises goes toward helping Ugandan children, some of it is used for advertising and sponsoring people to travel to and inform schools about the problem.
The organization has managed to fundraise about $15,000 that has been used for scholarships and other related aid to Sacred Heart Secondary School in Uganda.
“We are also investing in sustainable income-generating projects,” Plotkin said. “We are building a small store on campus, the profits of which will help the school and community.”
This year, the organization’s main goal is to raise $30,000 for an in-school kiosk that will serve as a barbershop and school store and will help the students achieve more independence and sustainability. The main reason for setting up the shop is to generate income that will help the school sustain itself – Plotkin said that the profits “would stay in the school” – and be less dependent on foreign aid. Also, the addition will educate the students in skills, such as running a business, that can help them contribute to their community.
“Right now we’re in the process of getting enough money to stock the store,” Plotkin said. “The main goal for the profits would be partial scholarships but also go towards helping kids affected by the war and go back out to the community.
“They have to obviously have the grades, the traditional requirements,” he continued, “but they also have to be going into a field that will be giving back to Uganda like social work, juvenile justice, education, peace negotiation – anything that will help what we’re trying to do.”
This is the first year that the organization has successfully recruited members and fundraised on the college level.
“We just haven’t had the right connections here at UH, like people who were committed to molding it into something ... but now that we’re attending it, I think this is the prime opportunity to do something,” Parrish said. “(Students) have specific focuses and majors that they’re interested in, and I think that compliments what we’re trying to accomplish such as majoring in geography or some type of human economics.
“I think that since they’re trying to focus on (it), ... they have more enthusiasm.”
Parrish said the group has made a couple hundred dollars for the kiosk by selling chocolates at Safeway. They also have been working a concession stand at the Stan Sheriff Center to help their cause.
The organization plans to branch out and extend its fundraising activities as the year progresses.
“So far we’re thinking of a movie night,” Parrish said. “Also, we have a link at a club in Chinatown, where there’s also a live band (Arkeo) that’s willing to play for us, where we can get door profits and spread awareness.”
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Inspired by Invisible Children, this year Project HOPE become more focused in its goals; concentrating on the specific needs of the students in Sacred Heart Secondary School. We are currently fundraising to build an on campus store at Sacred Heart Secondary School. Our goal is to help give them the tools for a self-sustainable, income-generating project, which will be built and operated by the students for the benefits of the students and the community. The project will cost around $3,000, we have already started fundraising for this project and have many future fundraisers planed.
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