Editors Note: People often ask “what happens to the children Empower African Children supports when they finish high school?” The answer? We hope we’ll have impacted their lives enough that they qualify for higher education, trade schools, or are prepared to get a job. In most case's we continue to support the children through post-secondary scholarships. However, every child is different and so are their stories. We’d like to introduce you to one of them. His name is Francis. This is his story.
Francis was one of the dancers and musicians from the 2008 Spirit of Uganda Tour. He’s a bright and responsible young man, in addition to being musically gifted. Francis graduated from secondary school last year with grades that earned him a spot at Makerere University, one of Africa’s largest and oldest universities. This gave him an opportunity to pursue his long-time dream of performing and making music.
“When I was 9, I was introduced to the world of music and was inspired by the beautiful melodies and plays that were done by the school choir,” he tells us. “I have grown with a passion of wanting to compose and make music. Studying it has been a long time dream for me.“
Earlier this year, during a casual conversation with Francis while bumping along in the back of a van, he opened up and began to share with me about his experience in the music program. I was blown away. He’d just returned from a week of traveling through Uganda with a group of students. Their task was to educate people in villages while improving their performing abilities. Each morning, the group would be given a new assignment to perform live that same evening. It could be anything—a musical piece, a drama, even a speech. Within hours, they would be setting up a stage in a trading center and performing as soon as a crowd had assembled. These performances were geared around educating the audience on important topics, including HIV/AIDS prevention. Not only was this amazing training for the students, but they were doing important work in their communities.
Upon telling me about this experience, Francis tossed in this gem of a statement: “…and I’m coming to Stanford soon.” Wait—what? Stanford?!? He went on to explain that a group of performing arts students from Stanford were travelling to Uganda for an exchange with the Makerere University students. The program included joint performances at the National Theater in Kampala. Afterwards, they would reciprocate. The Ugandan students would travel to Stanford and perform there. Last week, Francis and others completed the Stanford leg of the exchange. You read about it here.
We’re thrilled with the opportunities available to someone like Francis. In Uganda, music and the arts are major part of the culture and daily life. As Francis keeps working toward his graduation, he hopes to continue composing, performing, and producing music. It gives him the chance to pursue his passion while also helping to maintain his country’s vibrant cultural heritage, as well as producing new and upcoming artists. That’s been his dream for years, and Francis is on his way to making it reality.
