Building bonds

Some memories just stick in the mind.

For Mountain Brook resident Hunter Williams, it is the reel of images of a Ugandan boy running near him with worn, paper-thin flip-flops, and stopping suddenly to investigate the nail that pierced through his flip-flop and deep into his foot.

The boy didn’t cry or hesitate at the pain as he yanked it out, threw it aside and said he was fine with a sense of normalcy. He kept right on running and playing soccer after that. 

“I was shocked by how tough he was. That he had a nail in his foot then just kept going on,” Williams said. “There’s something to be said in that.”

Medical care is sparse in Uganda, and children grow up learning to deal with minor injuries such as this one, Williams said.

Williams also remembers that this took place in one of the most notorious slums in Uganda, where he said there is a lot of crime and poverty and most families live in shacks that are often as small as2 by 3 feet. He had been there playing soccer with the children all afternoon, a normal activity during his Sozo Children mission.

This was only one of many memories that left a life-changing impression on Williams.

Originally started in Birmingham in 2012, Sozo Children is a grassroots organization that started after a group of people went to Uganda and recognized the need for more children’s homes and care. With approximately half the population under the age of 14, and about half of those children living abandoned or as orphans, Williams said there is no way for them to support themselves. 

“After they saw how many children were being neglected or abused, they knew they had to do something about it,” Williams said.

Since then, the organization has built four separate homes spread out near the Ugandan capital of  Kampala. The homes individually house 80 children and provide financial and medical aid, as well as education. They also care for another 40 children who live near and are impoverished, with only one providing parent or relative. 

Williams got involved with Sozo Children two years ago after one of his friends took a trip to Uganda.

“I heard so much about it. I really thought it would be a good idea for me to go over and see what it’s about and do whatever it is to help. I ended up having an absolutely incredible, life-changing experience,” Williams said.

That’s why he went back again this summer. He plans to keep going back.

“Really, it all revolved around just loving on the kids,” Williams said. “They’re all just so deprived, just any sort of love and faith makes all the difference.”

Williams and his group spent the two weeks overseas with the children doing activities such as arts and crafts, sports and dancing. A day in the life of the Sozo Children organization while in Uganda consists of morning house chores until the children are back from school, afternoons helping the children with homework and eating and playing with them, and a few opportunities to travel to sightsee at places such as the Nile River. 

Williams said Sozo Children focuses more on the experience of bringing joy to children and building them safer, fuller lifestyles versus bringing them gifts so the community doesn’t depend on them. The organization is also about building bonds and growing trust within the communities, a lot of which is done while the children are in school during the day. With Sozo Children being such a young organization, Williams said this is another crucial role people visiting Uganda through the organization are expected to carry out.

“It’s a culture shock, but go into it with an open heart. Really try to immerse yourself in what they go through every day. It really does enrich the experience,” he said.

As a result of spending time in Uganda, Williams said he wants to travel more in the future. Since starting college this year at Hampden-Sydney College, the dean of students has reached out to him about traveling with a group of students who go on a service trip to the Dominican Republic every year.

He said that although he hopes to go on the trip and probably will eventually, he’s not sure if he is going to go this year.

“I made too many promises to go to Uganda to not return there soon,” Williams said. 

To Birmingham residents who want to get involved with Sozo Children, Williams said he has seen a resounding effect on the lives of people involved in the organization. He said he has seen it open up people to a whole new culture.

In addition to that, each year Sozo Children holds a fun run and 5K to benefit the organization. Sozo Children also has a brick-and-mortar headquarters in the Avondale area, along with a consignment store the organization operates for an extra source of revenue. Williams said even though most of the organization’s revenue still comes from donations, it hopes for a more sufficient portion to come from the consignment store one day.     

Williams encourages anyone who wants to help to submit an application or go to its website, sozochildren.org, for more information. Although it is a faith-based Christian organization, Williams said anyone is welcome to join their team to help the children in Uganda.