A Child Seen and Loved

When Christine N. Walubo first encountered the little boy who would later be known as Pendeza David, he was about six years old and living in extremely difficult circumstances in Kampala.

He had spent much of his early childhood in and around the streets, without the safety, stability, education, and consistent care every child deserves. His family was facing severe poverty, insecure housing, and other challenges that made everyday life uncertain.

Through Christine’s involvement with families connected to the Child Survival Programme at Deliverance Church Makerere Hill, she came to know the boy and his family. Efforts were made to help the family find safer housing and meet some of their immediate needs. However, their circumstances were complex, and securing lasting stability proved difficult.

As the little boy began visiting Deliverance Church Makerere Hill regularly, Christine and others came to know the child beyond his circumstances. They saw his need for safety and belonging, but they also saw his personality, potential, and God-given value. Rather than allowing his circumstances to define him, they chose to see a child worthy of love, opportunity, and a hopeful future.

Receiving a Name

At the time Christine met him, the boy did not have a name by which those supporting him knew him. As she considered a meaningful name for him, Christine consulted friends who spoke Swahili.

He was given the name Pendeza, a Swahili name connected with the idea of beauty and becoming pleasing, together with David, inspired by the biblical David.

Over time, the name came to represent something even greater to those walking alongside him: the beauty that can emerge when a child is seen, loved, nurtured, and given an opportunity to flourish.

Beauty created through love.

The Journey Towards Restoration

Those supporting Pendeza soon recognised that he needed more than occasional assistance or simply being enrolled in a conventional school. His early experiences had shaped how he communicated, related to others, and responded to everyday situations. He needed specialised care, patient guidance, and a safe environment in which to learn, grow, and experience greater stability.

Staff members and friends from Deliverance Church Makerere Hill began making monthly contributions towards his welfare. In 2012, Pendeza joined Dwelling Places, an organisation experienced in helping children transition from street-connected life into safe and nurturing environments.

Between 2012 and 2013, he made encouraging progress. He learnt essential life skills, improved his communication, and became increasingly able to build healthy relationships with others. The transformation was gradual, but it revealed what becomes possible when a child receives consistent care, structure, encouragement, and love.

After completing the programme at Dwelling Places, Pendeza joined a boarding school, where he adjusted well and began progressing academically.

Finding Care and Belonging

Although Pendeza was flourishing at school, changing circumstances within his family meant that he did not always have a stable home to return to during school holidays.

In 2016, Mrs Jane Nakabugo welcomed him into her home. Although her own resources were limited, she generously shared what she had and gave him affection, care, and a place of belonging.

The community continued praying that God would provide Pendeza with a stable and nurturing family environment. In 2019, a couple from Deliverance Church Makerere Hill who had followed his journey over the years welcomed him into their family.

Their decision marked another significant chapter in his life. Surrounded by consistent care and the support of a wider community, Pendeza continued to grow into a sociable, enthusiastic, and joyful young man.

A New Chapter

In 2024, Pendeza completed Primary Seven and sat for Uganda’s national Primary Leaving Examination. Passing this important examination enabled him to begin secondary school in February 2025.

Today, Pendeza is in Senior Two—the equivalent of eighth grade in the United States—and continues to progress in his education and personal development.

His journey is a testimony to God’s grace and to what can happen when people look beyond a child’s present circumstances and invest patiently in their potential.

The boy who once lived without stability was given a name, a family, an education, and the opportunity to imagine a different future. His life was not transformed through one intervention or one individual. It took the compassion, prayer, generosity, expertise, and perseverance of an entire community.

We remain grateful for every person and organisation God has used throughout his journey, and we look forward with hope to all that lies ahead for this determined young man.

The Story Behind Our Name

When the time came to formalise our work as an independent nonprofit organisation, the name Pendeza carried deep meaning.

Pendeza David’s story embodied the kind of transformation we hoped to see in many more children and families. His journey reminded us that vulnerability should never be mistaken for a lack of potential—and that genuine transformation requires presence, patience, opportunity, faith, and love.

The name does not suggest that David became valuable because people helped him. His dignity and God-given value were already his. Rather, his journey showed what can happen when people recognise that value and help create the conditions in which a child can heal, grow, learn, belong, and flourish.

We therefore adopted the name Pendeza Uganda as a continuing reminder of why we exist: to recognise the God-given dignity and potential within every person and help create the conditions in which families become stronger, children flourish, and communities are transformed.

Pendeza David’s story inspired our name, but it also represents a much wider vision. Across Uganda, many children and families are waiting to be seen, supported, equipped, and given an opportunity to build flourishing futures.