Caroline (of East Nantmeal Christian Fellowship) spent the past six months serving in Uganda with the Potter’s Field IGNITE Program. During this time Caroline has fallen in love with the children that attend PFK Uganda and one of those precious children is Freddy!
I had only been in Uganda one week when I met Fredrick at a food stand right near his house. The first time I saw him he ran to greet me before even knowing who I was! I instantly fell in love with this smiley boy as he held my hand and told me his name was “Freddy.” I was more than excited to find out that he has been coming to Kids Club for about a year now! He first heard about PFK because he saw many different kids wearing the blue t-shirts that are handed out. Curiosity drove him to ask where everyone had gotten them, and one of his friends told him about our Saturday kids program! So, through the clubs, I have been able to get to know him better since that first week.
Fredrick told me that his favorite color is white because it is the color that Jesus wears. It seems that each time I see him he has a funny story to tell me about his week. Freddy spends most of his time at school or doing house chores, but the times in-between he tries to make interesting so he can share with me the highlight of his week! He lives with his younger sister, Emily, and his mom only a few minutes walk from Calvary Chapel Entebbe. Once he told me that he never sees his father because he works in a village very far away. He is also not exactly sure of his age, but he guesses he is around six years old. At this young age, it is already clear that he takes a fatherly role with his two-year-old sister. Each Saturday he walks with her to Kids Club and keeps a close eye on her. Once I noticed him crying terribly so I went up to him and asked, “Freddy, what’s wrong?” He responded through the tears that he had lost his sister. The situation was solved quickly; we found her and his worries were cleared. But it’s moments like these that have caused me to realize how large his role is within his family even though he has hardly begun the first grade. It continues to impress me that he takes the initiative to get him and his sister ready every week and never wants to miss a Kids club. In fact, every week at the end of the day he asks me, “Will I see you next Saturday?”
Freddy with his sister!
Having him at Kids Club is such a game changer because he always brings so much energy to the group. He is always ready to play, and singing is his favorite thing to do! This was figured out early on because he loves the songs “Father Abraham” and “Yesu Jangu” (Jesus come), and it is common to hear him walking around singing those tunes. Also, during lessons he pays attention very well! He says it is too hard for him to pick a favorite Bible story, but did say that he learned about Adam and Eve last week at PFK and he was able to retell the entire story from memory! At the end of Kids Club, he follows us to the boat and has asked many times, “Can I also come?” It’s sad for me to tell him that he cannot, but it is so encouraging to me to know that he will always have the love and support that children need. That support may not come from his home, but it will always come from God and the Potter’s Field Kids Club. Please continue to pray for Fredrick and his sister, Emily. Pray that they would always be allowed to come on Saturdays and learn more about their heavenly Father who loves them and what it looks like to grow in a deeper relationship with Him.
