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THIS IS MY STORY

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I was abducted by the LRA in 1995 when I was only 12 years old. I was forced to fight in the rebel army, and at age 14, I was shot in my shoulder while in the battlefield. The commanders forced me to fight and shoot people during raids and ambushes. 

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In the rebel army, there was a front, middle, and back group. When we needed to start shooting, the frontmen would move to the back as the middle group (that was armed) stormed forward to begin fighting. One day, in 2002, I was walking in the middle group with a gun on one arm and my kids on the other. There was a moment when I saw an opportunity to escape, and decided to take a leap of faith. As soon as the front group started moving, I dropped my gun, grabbed my children, and just started running. 

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When I escaped the war in Sudan, I returned to Uganda and stayed in one of the GUSCO camps with my kids. In 2014, someone called one of the caretakers there and asked for 3 women to come learn how to sew and tailor. 

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I love working at WEND because I'm able to support my family and help pay for my own medical bills. It makes me happy that I no longer need to depend on others to take care of myself, and that I can send my 4 children to school while also providing the basic needs for my 2 siblings. 

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