Kent and Tanya Goodrich just returned from their third trip to Uganda, Africa to set up a free medical clinic.
The Goodrichs, who attend Prince of Peace Lutheran in Des Moines, have started a nonprofit organization called Reaching Out with Hope and plan to use all the proceeds from it to help the people in Uganda.

"We are very small -- our family and our friends, Sam and Samlie Sseba, who live in Tacoma and are from Uganda, make up the nonprofit," said Kent Goodrich.

According to Kent, Sam Sseba has government contacts in Uganda, even up to the president of Uganda, Yoweri Museveni. With Sam's help they have been able to do things locally and he cuts through the bureaucracy and helps things happen.

"We found when we went there last year that the big need for the Ugandan children is medical help, said Kent. "They can't afford the medications for malaria and other diseases."

"The clinic we built has affordable care," said Tanya. "In fact, it's free."

Tanya took a First Responders course here in Seattle that provided her with wilderness training and basic medical knowledge. In addition, for the past year their nonprofit organization has paid to train a nurse.

Last year Reaching Out with Hope was fortunate enough to acquire some property. It was a storefront that needed fixing up. The pastor who owned it was looking for someone to partner with, and donated the property.

"We prayed about this and thought it would be a great opportunity. He had a partially- built place," said Tanya.

The front part of the building, according to Tanya, is the medical clinic and the back part is the nurse's apartment, which is very spacious considering the living standard in Uganda.

Each time the Goodrich's have gone to Uganda they have traveled to a different area.

Their first trip, in December 2008, was to Northern Uganda near the Sudan border called Kitgum.

"This area has many orphaned children who were kidnapped as child soldiers by the Lord's Liberation Army (LRA)," said Tanya.

Over 66,000 abductions occurred in Uganda between 1996 and 2001 by Joseph Kony and the Lord's Liberation Army, a guerilla group that engaged in a violent campaign to establish a government in Uganda.

The International Criminal Court has outstanding warrants for Kony and key members of the LRA for crimes against humanity.

"It's hard to rehabilitate them due to the horrific abuse they suffered and things they were exposed to," said Tanya.

Kony is still on the run in a neighboring country, possibly Sudan. The Ugandans are worried that he may come back into their country. According to Tanya, however, they are trying to move forward.

"On our trip last year [in December 2009] we built a seven-room school and two wells in a town called Namayumba, which is 35 miles northwest of Kampala, the capital of Uganda," said Tanya.

This year the Goodrich's built the clinic in Luwero and the next village over, Bukuma, which is 50 miles north of Kampala, is where they set up a piggery in 2009.

"We bought three pigsties and three pregnant sows. One has already delivered," said Kent who is excited that these pigs will become a herd and contribute to the Ugandan's efforts to provide a living for their families.

"We were quite impacted by our recent trip in seeing the change in attitude of those who have charge of the pigs," said Kent. "This area was involved in the civil war and there wasn't a whole lot of hope. Now there is a change in attitude for them after being given some hope."

According to Kent, they plan on going back again. They have to debrief and will probably go back to the same area. They are not sure what their project will be yet.

"It is always evolving, so we have to adapt ourselves to the conditions and meet their needs over there. We can do all the planning we like but when we have our feet on the ground we have to adapt," said Tanya.

"This particular project will be ongoing as we now have land over there. We try to help with their basic needs being met. It's really hard for a third world country when our standards are so much higher. We have to earn their trust."

Tanya connects with the kids in Uganda, as she was a Korean orphan who was adopted at the age of four through Hope International.

"I couldn't speak English. The ice breaker was when my mother sang Jesus Loves Me and I knew it in Korean," said Tanya. "I would take my dolls and line them up. My heart's desire was to be a missionary to Africa. That was the beginning of my journey. Now some 40 years later, I'm doing it."

According to the Goodrichs, their church, Prince of Peace Lutheran, is a big contributor to Reaching Out With Hope, however they are not an official supporter. Donations come from members of the church. They also get funds from other places.

"One hundred percent of the proceeds go to projects. We always pay our own way. When funds come in we have the task to be mindful to use the money to the best of our ability and a lot of prayer goes into this as to how we can provide the necessary living standards wherever we go," said Tanya. "We couldn't do this without the prayers and support of the people here. It's only by the grace of God that we can go forward."

The Goodrichs mentioned that when volunteers go over to Uganda they become paralyzed because there is so much to do and it's hard to know where to start.

"I'm normally an introvert but I've learned to be a voice for the voiceless. I am so grateful and humbled by God's leading in my life. If you can change one person's life it is worth it. Every life is precious in the sight of God," said Tanya.