A Celebration of Life
Jaja Buladina Passes Away

It's funny how sadness hits you smack in the heart when you hear news such as this. One minute life seems to move along as it should, that is until you hear the news of a precious soul leaving this earth.

To know Buladina was to know kindness, love and selfless sacrifice.

We first met Buladina back in 2012 and it was LOVE at first sight. We found her sitting in the dark...in a house void of windows and fresh air..a house she shared with her deaf, mute and lame sister, Regina, as well as her precious pets and food source - her chickens.

She didn't have running water nor electricity. The water well was located down a steep hill. Retrieving water was a challenge for anyone in good health, much less anyone elderly and aged.
We called her the sweet, quiet, listener.  She loved it when we come to visit!  She loved hearing stories about Jesus and reading the Bible along with us.  She worked hard each day cultivating her small crop of coffee which she harvested and sold.  

She also grew matoke, cassava and jackfruit some of Uganda’s favorite foods.  Besides all this, she was a kind and loving caretaker of four small children who she had taken as her own grandchildren, though she was never married. 

She also loved and cared for Regina, who passed away a bit ago. It wasn't an easy task at all and very trying on Buladina's growingly thin framed and weak body.

Imagine trying to lift the dead weight of another at the age of 70. She was selfless and an inspiration to all she met.
Your donations and support helped Buladina in so many ways. You brought much needed relief in the years we spent with her. She always rejoiced when we brought her food, especially for the holidays.

AND that smile of hers. If you could have been there the day we brought light and fresh air into her modest mud house. It's amazing what a small thing like windows can do for the soul (and the lungs)

And water. Who knew that adding a simple gutter and barrel to catch the rain water would lighten Buladina's work load.

She was always so thankful for YOU and the LOVE you sent via help and our SMI team.

She especially loved having visitors to her house. She'd run to get her straw mats and place them just so onto the dirt, so her guests could stay clean as they sat and visited with her, her sister and her adopted grand babies.
Do small things really matter? We sometimes wait until we can do something grand and over the top, but as we reminiscence about Buladina and the joy she carried, we are thankful we didn't wait.

We did what we could and it helped...it mattered.

Maybe our friends in Uganda have learned the art of understanding that one plus one equals a bundle - an African proverb - which is ever so true.

We will dearly miss our Buladina, but we know where she is and that gives us comfort and peace.

Don't wait to do something for someone. You just don't know the number of days left on this earth. So let's make them count.

Let's continue to live on purpose together. Let's continue to help even if it's just the smallest little something.

With a grateful heart,

Lori Salley
Co-Founder
Because of the faithful monthly giving of our Show Mercy family, we were able to help Buladina EVERY SINGLE month for the past 7 years without fail. WOW! What a generous act of love.

Would you consider partnering with us monthly? Help us continue reaching out in love, one person at a time. Any amount will make a difference.