Pickleball and Mission Work! Love in Action. Uganda

Jim and I are returning to Uganda in June 2025 to help the Love in Action team to provide life saving health care, distribute much needed food, and provide basic essentials such as underwear for children.  We have been coming to Uganda for over 10 years now, completing mission work.  The area has so much poverty, and basic needs not always being met.  People live off of about £1 a day.  Water comes from wells, food cooked on outdoor fires, and sanitation comprising of pit latrines.   Health care is too expensive for the majority of people we work with.  Malaria is a big killer, yet it costs less than £5 to diagnose and treat it.   People just don't have that amount of money.

A few years ago we started to work with Pickleball Uganda, taking out nets, paddles and balls kindly donated by Pickleball England.  We are both from Arun Pickleball Club, in Sussex.   We have gone into communities, demonstrating and coaching pickleball and also encouraging young women to play the sport in schools, as girls are often not afforded the same opportunities as boys.  This helps with their confidence.    It has been a privilege to watch the sport thrive in the country.  Our visit this year has purposefully coincided with  the Ugandan Open in which we both will participate, to again support the sport.  I have more paddles and balls dontated by Pickleball England to take out and distiribute.

Our request is to raise much needed funds, so that we can provide several free health days for the communities.  This will then consist of tests for HIV and malaria alongside many other things.  We also aim to provide free mosquito nets.   We have seen first hand how these days literally save lives, as several people have come with malaria and have been seriously ill.  The team have been able to treat them (which included a baby) with medication and IV drips etc and it has saved their lives.  We also would like to go into the communities, providing rice, sugar and soap to those so much less fortunate than us.  I also would like to purchase underwear that we can give to children and young people, as many do not own such a thing.  We have been able to do this many times before, due to the kind generosity of people here.

All the money raised go through a local charity in West Sussex, Links - which helps developing communities across the world.   I provide photos of all the work we do, so there aren't any middle men!    I actually help buy the sugar, rice etc, and decant it into kilo bags.  Jim and I pay all our own costs.   So all the money raised literally goes directly to the cause.  And the more money raised, the more good we can do!

So, I would be so grateful if you could donate some money,  so that we can spread our love to those less fortunate, providing healthcare, food and clothing, whilst also spreading the love of pickleball!