Mwebaza Club at NHS raises money for Ugandan boy

Last year, Niwot High School started the Mwebaza Club to turn shipping containers into classrooms for children in Uganda. The classrooms were a booming success and have greatly decreased the overcrowding at the school. After the classrooms were shipped to Uganda, the Mwebaza Club faded away. Now, Niwot High School has initiated the club again, this time to fund a young boy's education.

In Uganda, people are required to pay for school, and many families cannot meet the high prices. So, the Mwebaza foundation has been giving scholarships to worthy students at Mwebaza School for the past five years. One of these students is Kamuhanda Peter.

Sadly, Peter was orphaned recently when his father unexpectedly died. He has been a recipient of the Mwebaza Foundation's scholarship program for a couple years now, but his current guardian wants to send him to live with his grandmother in a remote village where there is no schooling. Peter really wants to continue his education, so the Mwebaza foundation has found an alternative guardian in Mwebaza.

However, this guardian is a mother of two who is living in a 10-foot by 10-foot apartment. In order to provide Peter and the guardian with the best arrangement possible, the Mwebaza Foundation is raising money to rent a new two-bedroom apartment. In order to do this, the foundation is turning to Niwot High School for help.

For the past couple of weeks, students have been donating their time in order to find a way to help Peter. For now, these students have formulated multiple fundraisers, including concession stands at games, Mario Kart tournaments during lunch, and a pie-in-the-face competition. The latter has been the main focus of the Mwebaza Club.

Ten teachers have been selected to enter the fundraiser. Ultimately, students will donate money to the top three teachers they want to see get a pie in the face. After two weeks, the three teachers with the most money enter another pool. This time, students buy tickets with their name on them, which are put in a bowl for the teacher they want to pie. The teacher with the most tickets has a name drawn from it, and that lucky student gets to pie the teacher.

Through this fundraiser and others, the Mwebaza Club is hoping to raise fifteen hundred dollars. This will support Peter and his guardian for a couple months, although the Mwebaza Foundation hopes to continue raising money so that he may finish primary school and move on to secondary school as well.

The Mwebaza Club hopes the community will get involved in Peter's education as well. By going to the following website, https://www.justgiving.com/campaign/PetersFund, anyone can donate money and learn more about Peter. Also, between 5 and 9 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 17, the Chipotle on Ken Pratt Blvd. in Longmont will be donating 33% of the proceeds to the Mwebaza Foundation. One simply needs to tell the cashier that they're supporting the cause, and the money will help Peter obtain the education he deserves.

Through this experience, the Mwebaza Club members have become more grateful for what they have and more aware of the plight that others around the world face. They are excited to make a difference in Peter's life, and they hope that through everyone's efforts he will continue his education in a home that can support him.