When I was a small boy in cattle camp, I had a dream that I would become a pastor among my people. In my dream I was wearing a white collar and standing before the church. I shared my dream with my cousins and they laughed at me.  No one in our family had ever been a pastor.During the terrible times when I was running for my life, I didn’t think much about what I would do in the future.  I just wanted to stay alive.  I ran hundreds of miles to what we thought was a safe place in Ethiopia.  Many died along the way. However, when I finally reached the crowded refugee camp, first in Ethiopia and then in Kenya, I had time again to consider my place in God’s plan. I learned to read so I could study the Bible, and I became a leader among the Sudanese people in the camp.I was chosen along with other “lost boys” to come to America in 2001, but I never forgot my dream. Seven years later, I returned to Sudan and part of my childhood dream became true – I received the white collar I had seen in my childhood dream. I was ordained in the Episcopal Church in Sudan, first as a deacon and then as a pastor.When I returned to Sudan, I was overwhelmed with the needs I saw there. Because of the danger caused by civil conflicts in South Sudan, I thought my original vision of returning to my homeland was not going to be possible soon. So, in June 2017 I travelled to northern Uganda where so many Sudanese people are staying in refugee camps. This seemed to be a good place to start a ministry, especially to children. However, there were so many obstacles – government requirements, proper licensing, and high costs – that I was discouraged. So, I asked God to show me where to begin.One of my heroes in the Old Testament is Nehemiah, because his story is so much like mine.  His people had been taken from their homes in Israel and were living in foreign lands, just like the Sudanese people today. They wept because of what had become of the place they loved, as we weep today when we learn what is happening at home. The beautiful city of Jerusalem he had known as a boy was in ruins, its people scattered. My own city of Bor is not the pleasant place of my childhood, and has been scarred by years of fighting. Now people are returning to see what remains of their home land.Nehemiah is not only my hero. He is my model. I am planning to take the same steps he took to serve his people as they returned home. Thanks to a sister organization, Heart of Africa, I will be making a survey trip back to my home area in South Sudan in January 2018. I will be visiting the city of Bor to see how best to help my people. I do not know at this time what all the needs are or if the area is secure enough for me to return on a permanent basis. However, like Nehemiah, I plan to meet with leaders of the government and churches to see how Africa Sunrise Communities can help.If you believe in this vision, you can help, too. We need to build a team of partners who will stand with us in this venture. Our current need is for personal support. If we carry out this mission, it must be a team effort. I have been working as a home health care worker to provide for my family. However, this is getting me no closer to my vision. I need to take a bold step to fulfill the vision to which God has called me and for which I have been training.Here are two ways you can help:

1. We need partners who will support us on a monthly basis, so we can give full time to the work in South Sudan.
2. While I am on this survey trip, Rebecca and I will take a “Family Leave” from our jobs with no pay. That will allow Rebecca to stay home with our children while I am away with no additional costs for child care. Because neither of us will be working, we will need funds for our basic living expenses.

We are at the doorway to our ministry in South Sudan, and I am filled with gratitude for your willingness to listen to my story and to be our partners. Now I ask you to consider what your part in this endeavor might be. Your friend and fellow worker,Jacob Thon GuotExecutive Director, Africa Sunrise CommunitiesP.S.  In Proverbs 19:18, God’s Word says, “Where there is no vision, the people perish.”  I know that my people are perishing, and I know that I have a vision to help them see the Good News and God’s solutions to their problems. 

Purpose for the TripThe purpose for this trip was to view firsthand the situation in Kiryandongo Refugee Camp in the Bweyale region of western Uganda, where some 53,000 South Sudanese refugees are living. These people have fled the warfare resulting from the incursion of Muslim militia fighters from Sudan in the north, but they are also running away from intertribal warfare within South Sudan itself. The y have found their way over the border into Uganda, where the United Nations and the Ugandan government have set up 13 camps like Kiryandongo, which is the largest one.When I began organizing Africa Sunrise Communities and trying to decide what my focus should be in working with my own people, I had thought that my mission was to return to Uganda to work within this refugee camp in setting up an elementary school, teaching the children, and, through them, begin to reach their parents with Christ’s message of peace and reconciliation. However, this trip showed me that there are already educational opportunities available for children in the camp.Conditions Within the Camp Several organizations are working within the camp. These include the United Nations High Commission for Refugees, International Rescue Committee, Windle Trust International, and several others.This Kiryandongo refugee settlement is on 27 square miles and contains a total of 18 “clusters.” Clusters are structured and designed to ease management of people and are basically smaller groups of people, families living together with an elected leader and supportive community structures.There is now much more tribal diversification in the camp than what I found when I was there last in 2014, though the Dinka and the Nuer tribes are still the largest groups.Living conditions are very primitive, with no running water or electricity. Homes are mostly mud huts. There are many water wells available, so water does not seem to be in short supply.There are schools, all of which charge at least a minimal tuition fee, even if they are called “free” schools. All children must purchase uniforms to attend school. School fees for children are typically about $12 tuition per child per month. One uniform costs around $9.School materials, such as chalkboards, textbooks, exercise books, etc., are procured by the United Nations. Because of all the variety of dialects spoken within the camp, the schools are taught in English. Most of the orphan children are out of school, as they have no one to pay their tuition and fees and to buy them uniforms.Orphans Will Become My New FocusI learned that the one group that is not being served well in the camp is that of young orphans. These boys and girls have lost their families to war and have fled alone to the refugee camp, much as I did at the age of 7 when war first broke out between Sudan and South Sudan. While they may be assigned in the camp to other families in which to be raised, the truth is that many of these children end up abandoned and having to fend for themselves. I am beginning to see that my focus should be on these children.From what I could find out, the official number of orphan children is 1,800 within the camp, but the chances are good that there are many more not included in this official count.These children are in need of a place of their own – a safe place to sleep, where they can be taken care of, with food available, with the means to go to school, and a place to come back to after school. Group homes seem to me to be the best way to care for the children. A group home would house 10-12 young children, ages about 4-10. Setting up such a group home will involve renting a dwelling within the camp and hiring a woman or a couple to be houseparents to see to the needs of the children.Where Do I Go From Here?It is necessary for me to set up a local non-government organization (NGO) with a different name, as my American-based Africa Sunrise Communities will not be recognized in Uganda. My local Ugandan organization’s name will be “Rising Hope Africa.” One of the reasons for my trip to Uganda was to begin the process of setting up this organization and registering it with the Ugandan authorities. The registration process is complicated by the fact that I am not a Ugandan citizen. I am in the process of filling out the registration forms and sending them back to Kampala, the capital of Uganda. Each step in this process calls for the payment of fees, such as the $150 registration fee, which I must send back with the papers.When Rising Hope Africa is registered in Uganda, I will have to set up a physical office in Kampala, which is about 3 hours away from the camp. This means renting office space there. The office will need to be staffed, at last minimally. This demonstrates to the Ugandan government that my intentions are to stay in Uganda and to work with government and other officials within the refugee camp. I will be partnering in every way possible with the Ugandan government and the United Nations and other NGOs working there.How You Can Help I am currently raising support to enable my family and myself to relocate to East Africa. As my family will not be living within the refugee camp themselves, I must set up a home for them, in Uganda or in Kenya, and send my children to school. I myself will also not be living in the refugee camp, but must find lodging nearby.It will cost $100,000 for the first year. This amount includes travel to Uganda, renting and setting up a home there, getting the children settled in school, finding a place for me to live, setting up an office in Kampala, renting and setting up an orphan group home in the refugee camp, hiring houseparents, in-country transportation costs, my salary, and ministry expenses. After that, my personal expenses will be $50,000 per year (including salary, living expenses, transportation, fees, etc.,) and the cost for running one group home will be $30,000 per year. Africa Sunrise Communities needs partners who will come alongside and commit to this ministry. We need you to pledge to give regularly (monthly, quarterly, or yearly) at a level that you can give to sustain this work. If one hundred supporters would pledge to give $100 a month, that would provide funds for me to go back to East Africa and to begin the ministry to which God has called me. Will you partner with me to help the orphan South Sudanese refugee children in Kiryandongo Camp? Will you support me in my mission to bring hope, education, and the Good News of Jesus Christ to my people?  May God bless you as you consider partnering with me in this work.Jacob Guot, Executive Director and Founder

My trip to Uganda is now underway. I am going to Bweyale Refugee Camp to make a general assessment of the situation there. I will meet with leaders of the refugees to talk about their needs and to assess the children’s educational needs from pre-school to 12^th grade. I need to know which agencies are working in education in the camp, what they are doing, and how I can partner with them. I will meet with three groups of leaders: Sudanese refugees (Dinka, Nuer, and others); local Ugandan civil authorities in the camp; and officials from the United Nations High Commission on Refugees (UNHCR).I am going to Kampala to register as a local organization in Uganda. I will register as Living Hope Africa, which will function as the local arm of Africa Sunrise Communities. Fundraising in the U.S. will continue to flow through Africa Sunrise Communities. A local organization gives me freedom to do work in Uganda as a US-based one will not allow me to work there.In Nairobi I will be visiting the family of refugees whom I am supporting.I will go to Juba, South Sudan, to learn about four orphaned Dinka children from my village of Bor. Their parents were killed during a conflict in Bor; they were abducted by the Murle tribe but handed back to the UNHCR during negotiations. The UN contacted me to see if I could support these children, who are in a UN refugee camp in Juba: one 5-year old, two 6-year-olds, and one 7-year-old.I will be helped by Lual, who is my cousin. He lives in Juba and knows how help me negotiate the various officials and departments I must meet with.Please pray for me during this trip, that I might be able to meet with the right people and make the right contacts, and that the next steps for Africa Sunrise Communities/Living Hope Africa will become clear.My trip to Uganda will cost approximately $7,500. This will take care of airfare, food, lodging, and ground transportation, visas, organization registration fees, etc. If you can help me meet these financial obligations, please send a check to Africa Sunrise Communities, PO Box 82, Wilmore, KY 40390 or visit our website at www.africasunrise.org/get-involved/ to give towards my trip. All gifts are tax deductible. Thank you for your prayers and your financial support.Jacob GuotExecutive Director and Founder

On the weekend of July 23-24, 2016, Jacob Guot visited the First United Methodist Church in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. He was accompanied by his whole family – his wife, Rebecca, his son Biar (7), his daughter Angieth (6), and his son Ayiei (nearly 3). Pastor Joe DiPaolo and the congregation of the church welcomed the Guot family warmly and gave them the opportunity to tell their story.Jacob was privileged to preach in the three Sunday morning services and the church held a reception for the family after the services. Jacob also visited some individual members of the congregation and was invited to meet with the Missions Committee of the church.A reception was held for the Guot family after the services and Jacob presented a recognition certificate to Pastor Joe DiPaolo for the church. Pictured is Rev. Jacob Guot with FUMC Pastor Joe DiPaolo with the congregation during the reception.Jacob told the story of his being forced to flee for his life as a 7-year-old boy. Through God’s hand of protection upon him, he grew up in a refugee camp and then was brought to the United States as one of South Sudan’s “lost boys” in 2001. He subsequently became an American citizen, learned English, and obtained an education. With his recent graduation from Asbury Theological Seminary in Wilmore, Kentucky, Jacob is now going to work to provide for his family.But his heart for South Sudan has led him to establish his non-profit organization, Africa Sunrise Communities, through which he is endeavoring to raise enough funds to take him and his family to Uganda to work inside a large South Sudanese refugee camp there. Jacob wants to give the children of the camp an education to give them hope for their own lives and to give his country of South Sudan a future.Will you help Jacob to bring hope and reconciliation to South Sudanese refugee children in Uganda? Please give generously to this effort. All gifts are tax-deductible. Yours truly,ASC Founder and President,Jacob Guot

Nearly 100,000 South Sudanese fled from their homes into Uganda when political disputes within the ruling party in South Sudan led to the breakout of violence.Within the settlement camps in Uganda, South Sudanese refugees are using their agricultural skills to raise funds for their children’s school fees. Among these concerned parents is James Maker Ter. He works every day to clear weeds from his farm. During their holidays, his five children work alongside him to expand the land they are working. Although the United Nation refugee agency is supporting him, “I have to do more,” he says, “in order to support my family. I see this land has a lot of opportunities and I have decided to cultivate and I know doing this job will strengthen me.”Last year he produced 50 bags of maize, each weighing around 25 pounds. He intends to produce more this year. Out of those 50 bags last year, he sold 20 of them to buy school uniforms for his children and to pay their medical bills.He is encouraging his fellow refugees in the displaced camps to take up their hoes and begin cultivation. Farming, he pointed out, does not require lots of capital. “When you produce more food, you will not have any problem. By engaging yourself into agriculture is likely to make you richer. If you sell clothes it may not work out in the hunger time, but if you have more grain stored and then your business can still boom,” said Maker.Another refugee, Mary Nyaber Koryom, who cares for 10 children in her house, says it has not been easy to provide for her children’s needs, like school uniforms and fees. “We have so many challenges to do this job. We lack tractors and buying pesticide become very expensive. We lack support to practice agriculture; we do this work for the sake of our own surviving in the camp,” she said.This is one of the two major thrusts of Africa Sunrise Communities – to help refugees in the Ugandan camps to take up gardening and agriculture, both for their own food source and for them to be able to afford schooling for their children. Your gift to our foundation can help to provide the means for these refugees to get started in providing for themselves and their families.(Information for this article was adapted from an article from the Sudan Tribune, March 6, 2016.)    

It seems South Sudan hasn’t seen peace since the creation of Adam and Eve. Its inhabitants may never see peace anytime soon, unless people of good conscience and benevolence would step in and help the most overlooked humans in the world. This part of the world has lost at least three generations to illiteracy due a deep-rooted civil war that started in the 1950’s as the result of oppression from the former Sudanese government of Arab Muslims.Nevertheless, South Sudan fought for decades and earned her long overdue independence from the north in 2011. Though free of its rule, there is still evidence that reveals the continuing influence of the largely Muslim country to the north. Influential elites from Sudan are determined to cause strife between southern tribes, which would allow them to seize power again. For more than 60 years, the north has tried to convert the Christian communities in South Sudan by force.This is the situation in which we at Africa Sunrise Communities (ASC) are dedicated to bringing peace. Through farming projects and education of all young South Sudanese irrespective of their tribes, we will foster reconciliation and restoration.The latest report from UN’s Refugee Agency has reported that a huge number of people have fled to the refugee camps mainly in Uganda as a result of renewed fighting in South Sudan. These refugees are women and children that have been uprooted from their country as a result of serious insecurity. They are literally running for their lives, leaving everything they own behind and living in camps with nothing.In these camps, they wait for food from the UN, which is scant and lacking in nutrition. The children are unable to receive education without funding. This is where Africa Sunrise Communities will be working to fill the gaps by providing gardening plots to encourage teamwork between tribes as well as a sustainable source of food. As we work to reconcile the older generations, we will educate the younger to raise up a generation that it educated and invested in bettering their country together.Written by Gabriel KwaiTreasurer and Board Member