Leitrim man leads aid mission to Uganda for third time

Leitrim man Seán Kelly is seeking donations for his third trip to Uganda, where he and a team will deliver humanitarian aid as part of the ATU St Angela’s Uganda Programme.

The initiative, which the Dromahair native helped to start, will send a thirteen-person team from ATU St Angelas to provide health, education and financial assistance to vulnerable communities in the Entebbe region.

Organisers - including Siobhán O’Shea from the School of Nursing, Health Sciences and Disability Studies, and Michelle McCabe from the School of Home Economics - are asking the public to donate items such as old reading glasses, sunglasses, communion, wedding and bridesmaids dresses, and satin or silk fabrics.

The inspiration for the project began when Seán first volunteered in Uganda in 2017. “I saw real potential for St Angeles to do something out there,” he says.

Following delays due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the team made their first trip in 2023 with just six people. This July they will return with thirteen participants for a two-week visit to support local communities with the help of their NGO partner, Bright Kids Uganda.

During the trip, the group will support children with disabilities at the Noah’s Ark Inclusive School. Student nurses will assess the children and collaborate with staff to identify support mechanisms that can be put in place.

“Disability doesn't get the funding or, I suppose, the recognition … a child with a disability can be locked away in a room somewhere,” says Seán.

The programme also raises funds to support a local nurse who serves both the school and surrounding community. The long-term goal is to make this role self-sufficient through local support.

Seán says sustainable change is the core aim of the programme.

"It's about establishing sustainable projects and working with the Ugandan people rather than trying to fix societal problems and we're really happy with the direction it's taken.”

The team will also host three vision assessment clinics, offering free eye tests and distributing donated glasses.
“We have brought over thousands of pairs of old eyeglasses at this stage, that people simply have lying around the house,” says Seán.

“Many of the recipients would be quite elderly people and they just want to be able to read their Bible at night,” he adds.

To further support the local economy, the group buys locally and will set up cradt enterprise workshops for women in the community. This year, they launched a new initiative: donated dresses will be given to a local businesswoman - a single mother who supports a child with a disability, who will upcycle and rent them out. ATU St Angela's Home Economics students will learn from her process.

“Our students get to learn about the culture of the textiles industry over there, and fashion industry over there, which is very much embedded in home economics studies here at home,” says Seán.

According to him, reciprocity is central to the programme. While students provide meaningful help, they also gain invaluable, hands-on experience in their chosen fields.

“The students coming back find the whole experience life-changing and they have a new appreciation for what we take for granted".

Donations can be dropped off at the Sligo Food and Furniture Bank, Monday to Friday, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
The drop-off point in Dromahair is McGoldrick's Centra or simply contact Seán by email at Sean.P.Kelly@atu.ie
The students are also fundraising towards the various projects with Bright Kids Uganda and the local communities with 100% of all donations going straight to the source where it's needed.

Donations can be made here:
https://www.gofundme.com/f/atu-st-angelas-community-engagement-in-uganda-2025

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