September 2025 - Raising Spirits and Support
Jeff Bruin, Cam Mathieson, Nicole Van Seters, Kyle Dampsy
Sunrise Dinner Awakens the Senses and Opens Hearts
The Sunrise Sensorial Dinner was a beautiful success - an evening that touched hearts and inspired hope. Guests were immersed in an unforgettable sensory experience where Natasha Hall’s soulful violin performance intertwined with Chef Kyle Dampsy’s innovative molecular cuisine and Cam Mathieson’s organic light installations. Together, they created a space filled with creativity, compassion, and purpose—all in support of Sunrise Center’s vision for sustainability and education.
The evening’s mission was clear: to raise $28,000 for the construction of a 50-bed extension to our girls’ dormitory. This expansion represents more than new beds—it’s an investment in safety, empowerment, and opportunity for girls who dream of a better future.
Partnership for Sustainable Impact
We are now in the process of partnering with a Ugandan NGO to offer boarding amenities to children in their international sponsorship program. Their boarding tuition will directly subsidize scholarships for local day students from low-income families, ensuring that every child—regardless of background—has equal access to education.
This model creates a self-sustaining ecosystem:
Each boarding student contributes: C$240 per term
Three terms per year: C$720 annually per student
Total projected local income: C$36,000 per year
This means the new dormitory will pay for itself in its very first year, turning generosity into long-term impact.
Much Love and Gratitude For Supporting Our Vision for Sustainability
The Kelsch Family Green Light Foundation
Tatianna & Ted Maxwell
Doug & Sophia Hurst
Marcus and Lila Faevey
Karen & Dave Sowiak
Lisa Sawyer
Ted & Nadja Hall
Rainer and Maureen Muenter
Andrew Caron
Jeff Bruin
Arie & Margaret Van Seters
Anna Reid and Mary Kalbun
Evan Zaleschuk
Ian & Theresa Urquhart
Michael Tolfree
Angela Van Seters
Stuart & Willow McKinnon
Susan and Steve Merz Anderson
Invest in Our Girls’ Dormitory
Help Us Cross the Finish Line!
Thanks to the incredible generosity of our supporters, we’ve already raised $22,206 of our $24,000 goal to build a safe, comfortable home for our girls.
We’re 93% of the way there — just $1,794 left to make this dream a reality! Every contribution brings us one step closer to providing security and opportunity for our students.
Your Gift Makes a Difference
Each donation directly supports the construction of the new dormitory. Here’s what your generosity can provide
$12 – 100 bricks
$13 – 1 bag of cement
$14 – 1 iron roof sheet
$140 – 1 bucket of paint
$140 – 1 roll of electrical wire
$160 – 1 door
$180 – 1 window
$400 – 1 truckload of plaster sand
Every item adds up to something extraordinary — a home filled with light and hope.
Help Us Complete the Bunk Bed Campaign
We’ve also raised $650 of our $2,500 goal to furnish the dorm with bunk beds — that’s 26% of the way there, with 16 bunk beds still to go!
Each $100 bunk bed provides two girls with a safe, cozy place to sleep — and their boarding tuition, in turn, funds scholarships for two more children from low-income families.
$100 = One Bunk Bed = Four Changed Lives.
Your gift doesn’t end today — it keeps giving, year after year.
Special thanks to Goff Imagery for donating her amazing talents to capture images of our special evening
www.goffimagery.com
instagram @goffimagery
Buiga Sunrise School Partners with Diaspora Guardian
A new partnership founded on transparency, professionalism, and community empowerment. Buiga Sunrise School is proud to announce a partnership with Diaspora Guardian, a mission driven-hybrid (for-profit and non-profit) organization helping persons in the diaspora and at home manage and oversee projects in Uganda with transparency, professionalism, and integrity.
Through this collaboration, the school will strengthen its management systems, enhance accountability, and expand community impact. Diaspora Guardian’s mission to eliminate risks such as fraud, delays, and poor oversight while reinvesting in women’s empowerment, youth skilling, and sustainable rural development aligns perfectly with Buiga Sunrise School’s vision for quality education and responsible leadership. We are creating a partnership where education, integrity, and community transformation go hand in hand.
As we move forward, Buiga Sunrise School will share updates on progress and new opportunities born from this collaboration.
Together, we are building a brighter, more accountable future for education in Uganda.
Gentle Hearts-”Passion Ignites Greatness”
Hello, my name is Nakabuya Jovia, a student midwife in my final semester and the hopeful founder of Gentle Hearts Maternity.
Being one of the most active students at my school, I was chosen to represent my school in the up-coming medical schools seminar. The seminar's theme will be " Mental Health" and I will be discussing and sharing how domestic violence is contributing to an increasing rate of mental disorders and illnesses.
I chose to discuss domestic violence because I received so much knowledge about it when I was part of The Girls' Empowerment Group at Buiga Sunrise School during my primary education years.
Domestic violence was one of the topics we learned as part of empowerment and a big part of that was learning about our rights!
So surely I believe passing this knowledge to other women and girls will bring awareness, encourage open discussion and promote healing around domestic abuse.
Student of the Month
Meet Ndagire Shivan also known as “cat girl”. She is a top class pupil awaiting graduation from kindergarten in November. Her passion for reading has helped her develop unmatched reading ability at her age. Thanks to Access Knowledge Africa for providing reading materials to Sunrise students.
“If you think you are too small to make a difference, try spending the night with a mosquito.”
Staff Member of the Month
Meet Pamba, one of the oldest staff at Buiga Sunrise. In a world where integrity and loyalty are scarce, people with such qualities become priceless. Sunrise is blessed to have such a person whose qualities have stood the test for 15yrs. With such experience, she has always been the guide to most of the team members.
Pamba is currently the girl’s matron in the boarding section at Buiga Sunrise school. This month she has been teaching the girls how to focus on discovering themselves within the noisy world.
“He who lends his ears to every drumbeat will never hear his own song.”
This is Pamba’s favourite proverb to every young soul.