THE COVER PICTURE

The story behind the cover picture:

In this picture you see Rosa and other 22STARS children enjoying their Sunday lunch in Kampala during our Weekly meals financed by our Nutrition Program.

Sponsored child: Rosa

Rosa was born on in October 2012. Rosa has 1 sister and would like to become a teacher when she grows up. Her mother is Doreen and sells food in the market and her father is John and works as a cook for the organization Reach Out, where they both get their ARV medicine, because they are both Hiv positive. Rosa lives in Acholi Quater - Kampala with the parents and the siblings. Her favorite subject is English and she likes playing hullalhupe, she is bright and her favorite color is pink and she likes meat and rice. Rosa is sponsored by 22STARS Since 2018 and has as long-term sponsor Kaur Komal. Thank you to going to school she has a bright future ahead.

Nutritrion Program: SHOUTOUT

A heartfelt thank you to Jan Krapp for the generous monthly donation of 500 euros, along with all our other sponsors, whether it's 5 euros a month or more. Every contribution truly makes a difference! Additionally, a huge shout out to Jascha Lang for helping cover the rent of our maize field, allowing us to acquire much larger quantities of maize for our funds than if we were purchasing it from the market. As we provide meals for 525 children each week, we are spending approximately 2,000 euros monthly on food. These meals are vital for the children, many of whom have limited access to food at home and rely on school meals during the week. Moreover, it fosters a significant social connection to see all the sponsored kids at least once a week. A massive thank you to everyone involved! We are incredibly grateful.

Nutritrion Program: CHALLENGE

Among the communities we work with, there are many issues which heavily impact the quality of everyday life, one of the most devastating challenges is climate change and its effects on farmers and food security. Over the last 10 years, there has been an increase in the frequency of droughts which has led to a rise in food prices, making it even more difficult for families to feed themselves. As our projects are in poverty-stricken parts of a city, there is no nearby ground available for farming, which makes food expensive. Due to the high food prices, 29 % of Ugandan children under five years old suffer from chronic malnutrition. Families often struggle to have enough food on the table. Investing in better nutrition, especially for children, adolescents, and women are proven to be one of the best means we have to transform a child’s health, education and livelihood.

Nutritrion Program: SOLUTION

Our solution is sending the sponsored children to good schools, where they also get a meal during school days. And organize every weekend a nutritious meal for them, especially during their holidays. We started to serve weekly meals from october 2016 onwards. Our warm meals consist of vegetables, meat and or fish to make sure the children receive a healthy varied diet. The weekly meals also are a great social occasional for the children, giving them an opportunity to play and connect. By buying our supplies locally we make sure that the donations are being reinvested into supporting the community as a whole. To become more cost efficient, we started to rent and harvest a field for Maize production since 2020. The Maize field allows us to deliver twice a year 1000 kilos of maize to our projects in Kampala and Jinja, which then will be stored and used during the weekly meals and additional program activities. We also provide “emergency meals” for families who have barely anything to eat, especially during the pandemic we started extra fundraisers to keep the families fed during lockdown.

Nutritrion Program: GOAL

As our number of children keeps growing each quarter, so does our demand for nutritious weekly meals. Our current goal is to keep going with the weekly meals for all our 525 sponsored children. For this we need to raise €13.650 euro a year, which comes down to €1137,50 per month. With extra donations we would love to expand our Maize field. 1 Meal for a child is about € 0,50, with the current exchange rate and higher food prices this means we give a child rice and beans with fruits or vegetables and once a month they also get a meal with meat or fish.

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Hey there, Awesome Reader!

Get ready to embark on a colourful adventure with our 22STARS charity calendar for 2025! We’re bursting with excitement to share the amazing work we’re doing in Uganda, and we can’t wait for you to join us on this journey.

Each month features stunning photographs taken by the talented Serena Martineau, who joined us on our Social Impact Trip in 2023. Her camera captured the heart and soul of the projects we support at 22STARS, showcasing the passion of our fantastic local team and the kindness of our wonderful sponsors and donors.

Designed with love by our very own Stella Airoldi, the Founder and Program Manager of 22STARS, this calendar is more than just pretty pictures. Each image tells a story that invites you into our world. And guess what? As you flip through the months, you can scan the QR code to hop onto our Linktree, where you’ll uncover a special blog post each month that dives deeper into the behind-the-scenes of each featured photo!

Together, let’s paint 2025 with hope and transform even more lives.

With big smiles and heartfelt thanks,

The 22STARS Team

Stella, Aidah and Susan