Kenny Carr and other members of Wolf Creek Baptist Church recently traveled to Uganda with the goal of alleviating food shortages, supporting orphanages, and sharing the gospel.
The annual mission trip is part of Wolf Creek Baptist Church’s long-term commitment to ministry, supported by local church members and community donors.
Carr first visited Uganda in 2017. Since then, he has returned annually for nine years, excluding the year of COVID-19. The original invitation came from Gary Hartline, a mission partner from Rainsville Community Church in Alabama, who was assisting with Vacation Bible School.
“I told him I didn’t think that was for me, and I didn’t go that year,” said Carr. “Our young people raised money to send with him to do projects. So, he came back, did a video presentation, and invited me again. And after praying about it, I felt the Lord leading me to go.”
The location of Uganda was chosen because Hartline’s pastor had been going for 20 years already, so Carr and other members of the church partnered with them and went alongside them.
The trip lasted nearly three weeks, from Nov. 16 to Dec. 5. According to Carr, it takes nearly 19 hours in the air to reach Uganda.
Including the drive from Williamsburg to Chattanooga, a shuttle to the Atlanta airport, airport waiting time, flight to Amsterdam, an over 3-hour layover, waiting for entry approval, luggage retrieval, and the final drive from Entebbe to meet host/friends to Kampala for hotel arrival, that entire trip took approximately 35 hours.
Emannuel and Elijah Kasisi served as the hosts for the group, also referred to as drivers, interpreters, and friends.
The primary purpose of the trip to Uganda was ministry.
Carr and his group preached at four different churches and held two nights of outdoor crusades, which are outdoor revival services.
The church worked for three days at the Holy Spirit Orphanage in Lugazi, a village about four hours away from the capital, Kampala. The orphanage has 85 children living there full-time, and around 325 children attending school there.
“We partner with them on a monthly basis, so we always go and visit them and minister to them,” said Carr.
Carr also acknowledged the children in the orphanage as loving and giving.
“The children just want to be around you. They want to play,” said Carr. “They want you to play soccer with them, or whatever game they’re playing. They just gather and swarm around you. That’s such a blessing.”
While at the orphanage, they dedicated a new boys’ dormitory they helped build, delivered enough food, firewood, and hygiene supplies for a month, served a meal to over 700 people, prepared a special breakfast for 125 children featuring a local dish called “Rolex” (eggs and chapati bread), and brought clothing, shoes, soccer balls, and other gifts for the children.
“That was a real treat for the kids,” said Carr, acknowledging how nice it was to be hands-on and serve them directly. “That’s something they don’t get a lot.”
The church also travelled nearly 14 hours to the Karamoja Region in Northeast Uganda. Due to a bridge out on the main road, they had to take a three-hour detour.
“Karamoja is really dry. They don’t get much rain. It’s very poor,” said Carr. “People are literally starving to death in that region. We were blessed to be able to buy food and distribute food out into the very remote villages and provide food rations to families, and also share the gospel with them.”
With the help of mission supporters and sponsors, the group distributed food to over 1,000 families. Local families are often large, typically consisting of five to ten people, according to Carr. The church also provided a hot meal through a local church, feeding over 300 people.
The group also supported a smaller orphanage in Kampala run by Pastor Bishop Solomon and his wife Mary, who take children off the streets and raise them in their home. During the visit, the group purchased bunk beds and mattresses to help meet their needs.
Another highlight of the trip was putting in a new well at a church in Kiryokya Village, which is about three to four hours West of Kampala. The group partnered with Rainsville Community Church, Run for Uganda, and Rainsville Freedom Run to put on a couple of 5K races. The new well provided clean water for thousands of people.
“The whole village came out,” said Carr. “It was just an exciting time to get to do that.”
Even after nine years of going on the mission trip, Carr says it continues to impact him.
“Every trip certainly impacts you again and again,” said Carr. “By U.S. standards, how little materially they have, but are still just so loving and gracious.”
Looking ahead, the church plans to continue its annual trips to Uganda. While the group feels called to serve there, they remain open to wherever the Lord may lead them in the future.
“After the trip, I fell in love with the country, and with the people,” said Carr. “I just have to keep going back till the Lord tells me not to.”
Carr reminds readers that meaningful service can take place both at home and abroad, and is not limited to international travel.
“Whether it’s your next-door neighbor, a family member, or a coworker, there are ministry opportunities all around us,” said Carr. “Above all, we need to be open and alert to where God is leading us. I never would have dreamed of leaving the United States to go on a mission trip, especially to Africa, but I’m so glad that I said yes to that because it really has changed my life.”
Carr extends an invitation to readers who may feel called to travel to Uganda and expresses his thanks to mission partners and supporters.
Carr and the Wolf Creek Baptist Church look forward to the next trip, and to see the people of Uganda.
“Those children are just so special,” said Carr. “We’ve been going so long, we’ve kind of watched them grow up. They know when we’re coming and they come running to us. They are family to us.”
