This page is exclusively for the those seeking the most updated information on little 4 year-old Grace Mponye, from Mityana, Uganda. Please use this information for prayer...

March 10, 2008: We are very excited and grateful for your prayers. Finally our daughter Grace has come out of hospital today, with her eyes and sight looking better!!

March 8, 2008: We do appreciate your prayers and support during Grace's eyes surgery. She has finally had her last surgery (hopefully). She is recovering and rejoicing. We are rejoicing with our daughter, even after many days of agony, that now she can have a better look, and properly see!
Once again we say, ''Thank you''.

March 1, 2008: This is Grace in hospital after surgery. Please continue to pray for her because she is going to have another operation most likely on Monday. Her first operation was not done very well and has to be redone!

February 29, 2008: We do appreciate your prayers re Grace. Her first eye was successfully operated on yesterday. She is undergoing recovery now. She has another series of operations to be done on the second eye. We don't know when this will happen but we believe God for total wholeness of both her eyes.

February 27, 2008: Grace's eye surgery has been re-scheduled for tomorrow - Thursday 28th. She is in hospital now, admitted. We need your prayers in this respect too! Please pray.

February 20, 2008: Please pray for our daughter, Grace, as she is admitted Mulago hospital today, for the eye surgery, scheduled for tomorrow Thursday(morning). She will be having her first of the series of surgeries she is supposed to go through, so she can have better eye sight!

February 12, 2008: We took Grace to the eye specialist this last Tuesday and he gave us an appointment for this Thursday. She is going for a surgery appointment Thursday. She is in herself not very bad, although the doctor said one eye has no vision, but with hope to see after surgery.

July 31, 2007: Grace's eyes continue to improve with the medicine. We will continue the same course of treatment for a while longer.

June 4, 2007: Grace's eyes are still NOT very good, though we have noticed some improvement since she started using this medicine. We will take her back to the doctor the end of June. Then he will tell us what to do next.

May 15, 2007: Grace is now having some improvement but we still need to take her back to the doctor to see the next stage of action. We think it is better the operation is done, but we will await the doctor's verdict in a two weeks' time.

Apr. 2, 2007: I am sorry for not coming back to you soon regarding Grace's eye operation. I have been having a series of meetings with Pastors regarding ministry in our district. I have hardly had any access to the computer. Please forgive me. Anyhow, Grace was not operated on the Friday she was supposed to. She has instead been put on some medication and we are to take her back for another check up after two months, as we monitor her eyes. I will still be updating you of her progress. We have not yet used the funds that you gave for her operation. We have saved it for when the real  operation will take place.....(when) if the need arises. If anything changes, we will still return to you for update and advice.

Mar. 22, 2007: Robert reported - We are seeing Grace's doctor today for a check up which may result into a possible surgery. I will keep you posted.

Mar. 16, 2007: Robert reported - We are taking Grace for the operation Friday next week, since we needed to make an appointment with the doctor.

Mar. 15, 2007: Praise the Lord! All the funding necessary was meet!

Feb. 26, 2007: Robert reported - Grace's eyes....we will take her for a check up Monday next week. Since I was in ministry the whole of last week, we didn't manage to take her this week. I will update you as soon as we have taken her.

Feb. 25, 2007: Len inquired about any update on Grace's eyes.

Feb. 15, 2007: Rusty and Len returned to the USA, and Guy returned to Douala, Cameroon and then to Ivanovo, Russia. Len proceeded to ask those interested in assisting financially to fund the $800 necessary for Grace's care.

Feb. 8, 2007: We meet the children and noticed that little 4 year-old Grace was special. We inquired about the shy, little girl that looked as if she was only 2. This is what we were told: The day she was born her mother wrapped her in a plastic bag and threw her into a latrine pit 10 feet down. The bag split open which enabled her to breathe, but it also enabled worms to enter her ears, nose, eyes, etc. Several hours later a woman came to use the latrine and heard her crying. Town folk disassembled the latrine and they were able to pick her out. She was taken to the hospital and given a shot to kill the worms that had entered her body. But for 4 days they did not help her any further with milk, water, etc. as she was labeled a "dung child." Ester heard about her through someone who was working at the hospital and took her in and oversaw her correct care. Some time later Robert and Ester appeared before a local magistrate and adopted the baby girl. They named her Grace as it was the Grace of God that she survived. Grace is smaller in size than other children her age and she cannot see well as her cornea is clouded due to the wormsRusty, Guy, and Len inquired as to what possible corrective care could be given to Grace to correct her loss of vision. Robert told us that he had asked doctors in Kampala concerning Grace's situation previously and was told that it would cost 1,4000,000 shillings. After a quick calculation was discovered that was approximately $800 USD. We made a commitment to pay for an operation for her.

Feb. 7, 2007: Pastor Guy Landry, Rusty Bennett and Len Showalter arrived in Mityana, Uganda. We stayed with Pastor Robert and Ester Mponye. They have a wonderful church of 75 children and 75 adults. They also have an orphanage and school of 125 children that they maintain with one lady in one house. Additionally, Robert and Ester have 9 children that live with them, 7 are adopted. While they are building a new brick home, they live in a rented block home which has n hot water, no running water, and no kitchen other than an open floor garage where they prepare food and boil water over an "hibachi" style fire. They have electricity most of the time. Theirs is one of the nicer homes in the village of 50,000.