 Complete information on our organization, and our ongoing work providing internet access, web training and international VoIP Telephone service in the former Internally Displaced Persons Camps in Gulu, Northern Uganda. 6/16/09 - Updates: Our local staff and directors for BOSCO in Uganda are now featured here. They are doing tremendous work, updating and expanding the system, as well as promoting our solution abroad and help with fundraising and partnerships. Mike Morin is still with us, but we have news! Mike recently returned from Uganda, where he has adopted two young Ethiopian children into his family, Geta and Tamene! Please take a moment and view their touching story, along with pictures, at Morin Family and wish them all the luck and happiness they deserve! View the latest updates from BOSCO in Uganda as a Slide Show - updated regularly! BOSCO board of directors - USA
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Father Richard Okumu Education
- Philosophy and Theology: National Seminary Katigondo Uganda. Theology - Gregorian University Rome Italy "As I reflect from peace of East Iowa, where I serve as priest in the Diocese of Davenport, the suffering and death in Acholi land(Uganda) haunt me. During the last 21 years war in Acholi land I have been traveling to Uganda. I saw dead bodies by road 's side and villages. What kind of peace exists?? What do we expect from Acholi refugees who has been deprived of all their belongings and thrown out of their houses to live in refugee camps? What about the kids taken from their homes and put guns in their hands to go and kill? How many kids died in this war? Contact Information
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Board responsibilities are to make and facilitate new contacts and (longer term) to develop interfaces for the flow of information out of Gulu, in the hope that a broader range of people can participate, leading ultimately to the establishment of rich and enduring community ties between places outside of Africa and Northern Uganda. Dr. Loughran is currently the I2U2 Education Program leader in the Department of Physics at the University of Notre Dame. His daily responsibilities involve facilitating ties between scientific/engineering research communities and high school science students using grid computing technology. He taught Engineering Ethics as Assistant Professor in the Philosophy Department at the University of Portland for seven years, and served for ten years as a member of the faculty at Trinity School at Greenlawn in South Bend. He is a past board member of Covenant Christian School in Mishawaka, a member of Christ the King Parish and continues as a science research teacher at Saint Joseph’s High School in South Bend, Indiana. He has been a member since 1977 of People of Praise, a covenant ecumenical Christian community. Contact Information.
As Treasurer, Tom's board responsibilities focus on the accounting functions and financial reporting aspects of the BOSCO project. Tom is a graduate of Indiana University, holding a Bachelor of Science degree with a major in accounting. He began his professional career in Chicago, Illinois, in the corporate offices of two major corporations from 1971 through 1979 in various accounting roles. He moved to Bloomington, Indiana in 1979 and worked in Indianapolis and Bloomington with positions as Manager and Controller. He returned to his hometown of South Bend, Indiana in 1985 and held positions as Controller, Vice President, Treasurer, and Chief Financial Officer until 2003. In 2004, he worked as a financial and accounting consultant with a number of businesses both large and small until his retirement in 2008. Tom also serves as a board member with another non for profit organization and volunteers as a mentor with elementary school children. Contact Information
Kirby has had 35 year career with YMCA, the last 15 years as the Executive Director & CEO of the YMCA of Michiana. He is a Member of Christians in Commerce, and founded the “CIC in Uganda Education”. Kirby serves on the National Service Council and is the past President of its South Bend & Elkhart Chapter. He is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay with a Bachelor’s in Environmental Studies, concentration: “The Modernization Process of Developing Countries”. A US Navy Veteran who served in Vietnam, Kirby has traveled to many countries, among them 2 visits to Uganda; the 2nd time spent in Gulu visited the people in the IDP (displacement) camps. Contact Information
Currently, Kerry is Vice President of Information Technologies for Welch Packaging Group. Welch is an innovative leader in the corrugated packaging industry. www.welchpkg.com In the past he has served roles as IT Manager for Wolverine Mutual Insurance, Technical Manager, and Senior Technical Trainer/Consultant for Signal Learning. His network consulting experience includes projects on many technologies including; Network Infrastructure services, Remote Access, Enterprise Project Management, Citrix systems, Wireless networking, Security, and business process integration.
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Kevin graduated with a degree in Theology from the University of Notre Dame in 2008. He has previously taught English and Computer literacy to secondary school students in Jinja, Uganda, through a program at Notre Dame's Center for Social Concerns. During this time, he became an active advocate for a peaceful resolution to the conflict in northern Uganda. Kevin will be returning to northern Uganda after raising $25,000 to support his involvement with the work of BOSCO and the Archdiocese of Gulu. His responsibilities will include overseeing the BOSCO project in Gulu on behalf of the board members. This will involve working closely with leaders of the Church in Gulu and key leaders in the IDP camps to facilitate effective communication over the BOSCO network, allowing the Acholi people to become their own advocates for peace. Contact Information BOSCO in Uganda - local staff and directors
1. Born: 1954/3/4 Languages spoken and written Contact Information
Sister Betty Atim currently serves as BOSCO's Gulu Finance Administrator and Accountant. Sr. Betty holds a Bachelors degree in Human Development from the Catholic University of Eastern Africa in Nairobi, Kenya. She also holds a Post-graduate diploma from Gulu University in Conflict Management and Peace building. She also has a Post Graduate Certificate rom Makerere University-Gulu in Public Administration. Sister Betty is originally from Pader District of northern Uganda. She professed vows to the Little Sisters of Mary Immaculate Gulu order of nuns in 1998. She enjoys reading and computing in her spare time. Contact Information
Alfred Kilama graduated with a degree in Information Technology from Kampala International University in 2005. He first worked for the Caritas Gulu Archdiocese doing database management, and continued in this capacity until 2007. Contact Information
Aliker comes from Koch Goma in Amuru District in Northern Uganda. he is blessed with a son (Jeremy Miguel) and a fiance, Brenda. He attended Bishop Angelo Negri Primary, Bishop Angelo Negri College and St. Lawrence Citizens High School. He holds a Bachelors degree in Education from Makerere University, a post graduate diploma in Human Resource Management, and another in Project Planning and Management, from Uganda Management Institute and Gulu University, respectively.
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Mike has stepped down from his day-to-day activities as treasurer, and for good reason! Mike's new adoptive family from Uganda is taking up all of his time! Welcome to Geta and Tamene! Please take a moment and view their touching story, along with pictures, at Morin Family and wish them all the luck and happiness they deserve!
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"We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give" - Winston S. Churchill
Origins of BOSCO - Sometimes the visit of a friend is greater than any gift - Gus Zuehlke is is a mild mannered family man working as the Director of Faith Formation for St. Bavo Catholic Parish in Mishawaka, Indiana. He has done so for the past 20 years, steadily offering friendship or guidance to all who meet him. Through the course of his life he has been able to befriend many people. In the dynamics of a Catholic parish located near Notre Dame University, St. Bavo has hosted many temporary visitors who come and study at the university. Many of the visitors are foreign. One such person, a Father Robert Binta of Uganda, came to visit recently. Gus and Father Binta struck up what was to be a far-reaching friendship. As many visitors to St. Bavo are want to do, Binta spoke often of his home country. Uganda lays in the heart of Central Africa, directly south of Sudan: Kampala, it's capital; equatorial Lake Victoria, the source of the Nile; the urban destination Entebbe; wild life preserves. But Binta spoke of a war and of tragedies that were not known and not reported to most of the world. Northern Uganda has been stricken by civil war for over 23 years. Centered on the town of Gulu, in the land of the Acholi people, over 2 million people have been forced off their land and into displacement camps. Generations have not known a home in the country of their birth, nor its proud history. The rebel war atrocities focus on the 8-12 year olds that are kidnapped and forced to fight in the rebel army. Gulu and surrounding areas are a very rich agricultural region. These have been a proud people and would able to provide for themselves on their own land if not for the war and the lack of security. They were farmers growing 2-3 crops a year, but the war has stripped them of the ability to support themselves. Not long before Father Binta finished his studies, an event happened that would plant the seed that would become the BOSCO project. Gus found him in his office, weeping. Binta had been searching the internet for news of home. He had found a recent report about a woman and her baby who had been at a displacement camp. She had been caught outside the camp by rebels and she and her baby were hacked to death by machete wielding rebels. It drove him to tears for that woman, for that child, for his country. Gus and Father Binta prayed for the dead, all the grieving, and suffering. That tiny bit of information, communicated across the world, was the start. A short time passed and Father Bob Binta finished his studies and returned to Uganda. But before leaving, he told Gus, “You must visit my country”. They remained friends and stayed in touch, via letters and email. Then, one year later, to Gus’ great surprise, Father Binta extended an invitation for Gus to lead a seminar and retreat for several Ugandan parliamentarians. Gus seized this opportunity and the visit soon evolved into a pilgrimage. With permission, but against the strenuous advice of many concerned for his safety, he traveled to Gulu and visited the Pagak displacement camp, in the heart of the war zone. He saw firsthand what was, and was not, being done for the Acholi people. The elders of that camp wanted most that the world become aware of what was going on in their homeland. This trip lead Gus to an awakening. He felt that he had been given a gift by meeting the residents of Northern Uganda. Their courage and enthusiasm were inspiring. Despite their predicament they most wanted to let the world know that they were in waiting—their children were waiting—for a chance for the war to end. After that visit, Gus then gave the retreat for the Parliamentarians. He did not lecture these leaders. Rather his simple action of having visited the war zone impacted them most. These Parliamentarians reflected upon the fact that Gus had traveled thousand of miles to visit an area of their own country that they had avoided at all costs. This quiet, mild mannered man made a change with just one visit. Many organizations are involved in Uganda, among them the United Nations, Catholic relief, and other worthy charitable groups. The basic needs of food and shelter were being met, for now, but the displaced people were looking for a voice to the world. Upon returning to the United States, Gus started telling his story. His inspiration stirred the hearts of many people who wanted to help. So having seen what the Ugandans needed and knowing people who were willing to help, Gus developed an idea of how to give the people a voice. After talking with Ted Pethick, Gus’ IT consultant, they devised BOSCO, Battery Operated Systems for Community Outreach (BOSCO, after St. John of Bosco, a legendary humanitarian saint of 19th century Italy who ministered to the impoverished and devoted himself to displaced children): Small portable computer clients, together with Voice over IP phones and digital camcorders, linked together with long-range wireless routers/bridges, then up linked to the rest of the world via satellite. Combined together using Solar powered battery arrays, as there is no existing power grid in Northern Uganda, these computers and communication hubs would be a multi facetted tool, serving as a source of education, an emergency communication link, and a means for these oppressed people to have their voice heard, to get their story out to a world which has not, until now, heard their cry! This network would provide flexibility and expandability, and is extremely low cost due to the use of 12V DC equipment, which vastly lowers the amount of power usage, and therefore the amount of Solar power needed. It has the ability to reach all current displacement camps as well as grow to reach the villages that the Acholi's will go back once the war is ended, as well as being applicable to similar impoverished areas of the world. Since its inception, the BOSCO project is progressing. With a board’s oversight, a professional plan has been engineered. The first phase of which will reach several hundred thousand people in from 7 initially and up to 20 displacement camps in the near future. This phase is set to be installed in January 2007. With donations, the remaining installation will be rolled out in 2 additional phases. The full installation will cover 1 million displaced people, over an area covering 1/3 of Uganda. This area extends well beyond the current camps, so as peace comes to Northern Uganda, the people there will be able to continue to benefit from the communications and information exchange. Gus has also been very busy since his first trip. Additional trips to Uganda and daily contacts with Father Binta and other leaders in the Gulu region have lead to lectures and radio, TV and written appeals via PBS and NPR, among others, such as college campi. Giving several speeches and presentations and personal contact has created a lot of interest in helping the suffering in Uganda. The BOSCO project is made up of many people working towards a worth while goal. Not the least of whom are the Ugandan people themselves, who want peace and prosperity in their own land. Gus Zuehlke continues to be Director of Faith Formation for St. Bavo Parish. A friendly unassuming man who’s idea and outpouring of love has extended a hand of friendship across the world.
- Other BOSCO Partners Not pictured here: Stefan Bock - Local Network Administrator & Communications Consultant Philipp Glaser - Local Network Administrator Emeritus To view these partners activities, please see our visual presentation here: BOSCO Today-Progress
- Please consider joining us! For $816 you can empower and help one hospital, convent, or school. For $4000, one rural trading center outpost. For $10,000 you can help make a community resource center or training lab available to a rural community. Your donation will forever alter the lives of the Acholi people with education, communication, and collaboration after years of isolation and war. Your tax-deductible contribution may be either public or private. Thank you from the BOSCO team! Please consider joining BOSCO and click here to visit our Make a Donation page!
- Want more information? Want to see more? Download one of our presentations free at SlideShare or contact us at tpethick@bosco-uganda.org if you would like to be connected to an FTP site where you may download a self contained CD of one of our PowerPoint Shows, which will display all the audio and visual components without the need for an active internet connection! View the newest BOSCO Overview PPS and download it here: View the original complete BOSCO Power Point Show and download it here:
"For magnificence, for variety of form and color, for profusion of brilliant life -- bird, insect, reptile, beast -- for vast scale -- Uganda is truly the pearl of Africa"
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