Ugandan children find hope through music
CHAMBERSBURG, PA - With bright eyes, smiling faces and happy dispositions, the Watoto Children's Choir has spent the past few days at Rhodes Grove Camp rehearsing for a U.S. tour.
The choir, which consists of 18 children ages 7-13 from Uganda who have been abandoned or orphaned, will spend the next six months touring the U.S. The group will perform its new production "Oh, What Love," which features worship songs that share the stories of the children and the hope they have because of God's Love.
Edwin Naijuka, a choir leader who was been involved with the program since 2013, said being a part of the choir allows the children the chance to spread the love of Jesus Christ through music and dance.
"Even if they sing the music and it's ministering to others, it also ministers to them before it even ministers to others," he said. "So, it gives them hope. It restores their confidence. It fills them up with more love for Jesus."
Choir Director Olivia Chandia said the music also helps the children find their individual talents, because some children will find they are good at singing and others will find they are good at drumming.
Watoto Childcare Ministry, which is the program that runs the children's choir, was founded in 1992 to help children living in Uganda who are orphaned, are vulnerable or have no support. The children who are a part of the program live in a village in Uganda and receive an education, food and get a family experience through the foster mother and brothers and sisters they live with.
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