An own school for HOREMI

The largest HOREMI project to date: our very own school! Join us! And read here what has happened so far …

« July 22, 2024: Happy ending in sky blue »

The happy ending to the school construc­tion is now perfect: due to delivery prob­lems with the required windows and doors, the final stage was initially delayed some­what. But now, in July 2024, every­thing is in place — and the building shines all around in a vibrant sky blue. Kenneth and Naume chose a partic­u­larly water-resis­tant paint to ensure that the color can with­stand large amounts of water during the rainy season and does not run off. The flowerbeds in front of the school were also embell­ished and deco­ra­tively edged. Congrat­u­la­tions on the beau­tiful new school building!

You can find out more about the school and how much fun and success the chil­dren have learning here in other arti­cles here on the blog.

« May 1, 2024: The school is almost complete! »

Thanks to further generous donors, HOREMI has now made it: the school is finished, plas­tered, has ordered windows and doors and will soon have a sky-blue façade! From zero to almost finished in just six months — a happy ending to an ambi­tious building project.


Over 80 chil­dren are currently sitting on the school benches. And during HOREMI’s visit in March, we were able to see for ourselves how enthu­si­astic, fun and successful the kids are. More to follow in this or a new blog!

« March 7, 2024: The school is unfinished, but in operation »

Not a bad start for the new HOREMI Junior School! It has already taken in 72 chil­dren, who are now dili­gently learning reading, writing and arith­metic from the six teachers employed. Ten of these chil­dren come from the HOREMI orphanage, all the others from the surrounding villages. Most of the chil­dren, namely 41, attend Nursery – the three-year pre-school. And in the first three grades offered at the primary school, 31 chil­dren are currently sitting on the school benches. So far, poor fami­lies and single mothers in partic­ular are happy to take advan­tage of the new school offer. Espe­cially as HOREMI charges the poorest members of the commu­nity very little or no school fees and just a small contri­bu­tion for lunch. HOREMI is now hoping that word will soon spread about the first-class educa­tion offered by the new school. Because in the long term, it will be depen­dent on a number of full-paying users. And on further dona­tions, for example for the comple­tion of the building: The floor is almost finished. But there are still not enough funds to plaster, paint or install windows in the new school building. So the following still applies: every euro donated helps!

Six teachers and the cook

The baby class: Bumali in his wheel­chair is also included.

Washing up together after School lunches

In primary school, the kids learn reading, writing, arith­metic, English …

… and also social studies and Chris­tian reli­gion are on the curriculum.

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« January 29, 2024: The first day of school »

Here we go! Today, the HOREMI Junior School opened its pre-school and primary school, each comprising three grades, on the offi­cial start date of the new school year. More than 40 chil­dren came on the first and second day and a further 12 are regis­tered. Nine pupils now have a partic­u­larly short journey to school, as they come from the HOREMI orphanage. And the commu­nity surrounding HOREMI also greatly appre­ci­ates the new offer nearby. After all, a good educa­tion for their chil­dren is the be-all and end-all for a good future.

In front of the finished school building …

… a garden with a play­ground was laid out.

The chil­dren take their lunch break on the shady veranda.

Lunch for the primary school chil­dren is provided by HOREMI.

Thank you to all the donors who have made this great project possible so far! The new building is still missing floors, plaster, doors and windows — so that it doesn’t rain in during lessons. We would there­fore be delighted if you could support the “finishing” of the school with a dona­tion.

You can find out more and donate via our campaign at betterplace.org for example!

Or since you are already here: Simply donate directly and without an extra fee via our dona­tion page - 1000 thanks!

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« January 19, 2024: The school is almost ready for use »

It’s almost dizzying how quickly plans take shape at HOREMI when the funds are avail­able. In the mean­time, the small school kitchen has been built, the floors of the first room have been paved, the class­rooms have been furnished and the garden has been laid out. All permits have been obtained and teachers have been employed. School can there­fore start on time in February. Big respect to all the local people involved for this achieve­ment!

The school’s covered veranda

The school­yard and the school kitchen (front right)

View into the class­room

A small kitchen is also part of the school.

The school building on the left, the kitchen on the right — and a toilet in the back­ground

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« January 8, 2024: The furniture builders are here »

The school building is finished, now it’s time for the inte­rior work and furnish­ings. Tables, benches and chairs are being built on site. The first chil­dren will be sitting on them at the begin­ning of February!

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« Before the turn of the year: Roof and veranda are finished »

Every new euro donated to the school is imme­di­ately converted into mate­rials and work, and so work continues at full speed imme­di­ately after the Christmas party (also made possible by your dona­tions!). Before the end of the year, not only the main building but also the veranda will be roofed over. And the new school sign is already there too! This means that, according to current plans, the first lessons can take place at the begin­ning of February, the offi­cial start of the new school year.

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« Just in time for Christmas: The roof is almost covered »

Horemi stepped on the gas again before Christmas. Once the wooden struc­ture was in place, the roof is covered with corru­gated iron sheets. Wow, that goes fast! Thanks to many generous dona­tions!

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« Status as of November 12: The shell is finished »

The walls grew steadily, espe­cially in October and November. On November 12, the shell was completed: 7.5 by 9 meters, enough space for four class­rooms and an office.

Would you like to contribute to the comple­tion and main­te­nance with your dona­tion? Click here to go to the dona­tion page — 1000 thanks!


Why HOREMI needed its own school

A good educa­tion is the key to the future. This is espe­cially true in Uganda. For a long time, Naume and Kenneth have had the idea of building their own school. The school routes for the chil­dren of HOREMI had been very long, and the fees charged by the public private schools are high. A school right on site solves both prob­lems. The permit has been granted and school oper­a­tions have started. Now it’s time to demon­strate a func­tioning, qual­i­fied school oper­a­tion over the next two years — that’s the require­ment.

Long distances to school and high fees for the HOREMI Kids — not with an own school!

The starting signal was given in April 2023 …

Kenneth had the fore­sight to buy bricks cheaply back in April 2023, and the foun­da­tion walls were built in August. However, the funds for bricks, cement, mortar, corru­gated iron, beams, windows and doors were still lacking. Like­wise for plas­tering and painting the building and the floor — it was not to be solidly trodden earth, but a solid floor.

A few exam­ples of what such a building costs in Uganda: The many thou­sands of bricks required come to around 1,500 dollars, the 260 corru­gated sheets for the roof 3,800 dollars, building sand and cement just under 2,000 dollars. Plaster and paint add around 2,600 dollars. Oh yes, and of course there are also some labor costs — esti­mated at around 600 to 1000 euros. Not to mention furnishing the class­rooms, school mate­rials or paying the teachers …

The status of the school construc­tion in September …
And this is how far the construc­tion had progressed by the begin­ning of November 2023 …

Please help now so that HOREMI can ensure the basic care of their protégés. Your dona­tion helps, thank you!

May we inform you about life at HOREMI from time to time? Then please send us a short e‑mail to hello@horemi.org.


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