While vacationers enjoyed long, leisurely summer days, 13 members of Oak Harbor Lutheran Church spent two and a half weeks in Uganda constructing a brick and mortar building to house the Watoto Orphanage nurses.

“For me, the most important part was how happy they were,” said Billie Tull. “Even the poorest American is richer than they are.”

Bob Wall described the conditions as “poverty in your face.”

“I expected poverty, but I didn’t expect this kind of poverty.”

Despite the Ugandans’ dire conditions, Joan Flowers described them as proud, gracious and grateful people who kept up their appearances in spite of living in a slum.

“The women all wore beautiful dresses,” she said. “Somehow they do it. They’re proud of who they are.”

“But as gracious as they were,” said Wall, “they live in poverty. They’re scratching out a living.”

At the orphanage, Skip Lycksell was struck by the children’s manners and the kindness and respect they showed toward each other and the volunteers.

“They had nothing, but they had everything,” he said.

Willard Krigeaum added that he didn’t see the children fighting or bullying the way American children often do.

Instead, the children cared for each other, added Tull.

“The whole community was involved. Even children 4 or 5-years-old were caring for other younger children,” she said.

Everyone had their special place on the trip. A group of five traveled north to dig wells, while others built the brick and mortar nurse’s house.

The wells are so important because they provide clean, unpolluted water.

“The wells are able to give them better sanitation,” Lycksell said. “A lot of kids get sick and die because of bad water.”

Lenita Forster, an assistant at Oak Harbor Elementary, read to the children living at the Watoto Orphanage. Before she left for Africa she asked Mrs. Jensen’s first-grade class which books she should bring. The Oak Harbor children responded by donating two of their favorite books to the orphanage.

Choir Director Cynthia Fletcher and Music Teacher Sharon Erickson shared their musical talents during the trip, prompting one pastor to call them ‘angels.’

Several of the members are already planning a trip for next summer. As a fundraiser, the church is selling energy-efficient light bulbs for $1 apiece.

The group contributed 100 percent of last year’s fundraising efforts to the cost of building the brick and mortar house and digging the one well in Pader. The Living Water Project of Edmonds Lutheran and Trinity Lutheran of Lynnwood funded the installation of another well in Kitgum. And each member paid their own way, so not as to drain money from their donation.

Sunday, Nov. 9 at 3 p.m. Oak Harbor Lutheran will present a slideshow of the volunteers’ efforts in Africa. Donations are welcome, or you may purchase light bulbs for $1 each. Donations will go to the Watoto Medical Clinic.

“You better hurry, we’ve only got about 40,000 left,” Wall said of the light bulbs.