Meet a Student Nasaka

Nasaka Gorette is a 15 year old female student in her second year of secondary school at St Denis. Her close family consists of Mum, Dad and her baby sister and she lives in Kyamukama village, a 30 minute walk from St Denis, when she’s not boarding at school during term time. She is originally from the Eastern Region of Uganda and therefore speaks Lugishu as well as English and the local language in Makondo, Luganda. Nasaka’s mum is a store owner selling everyday items, and her Dad is a farmer with 9 acres of land, growing bananas, cabbages, sweet potatoes and beans. Despite her enterprising parents, her family would struggle to pay the termly fees of 120,000 UGX (about £30) and she currently receives sponsorship from Into Your Hands. Her favorite subject is Maths but she finds Biology too difficult!

       

(Nasaka (left) with her best friend Lillian, and Nasaka with her certificate of thanks for her commitment to the school canteen.)

Nasaka has been extremely dedicated to working at the St Denis school canteen this year, part of the St Denis self sufficiency project. Her previous experience has been a great asset to the canteen and the other students who have received training from her. She initially worked one day per week during break times and after school, but her quick learning and trustworthiness meant that she was quickly given more responsibility and asked to work alongside less experienced students.

Through her work at the canteen, Nasaka says she has picked up skills such as fast mental arithmetic, has increased her confidence and gained respect from fellow students and teaching staff. As with many students at St Denis, Nasaka’s ambition is to be a doctor or nurse, but she also has the back up plan of one day having her own large store. When asked what other businesses she would like to gain experience in, Nasaka mentioned that she was also extremely interested in fish farming but would not consider working on the dairy because she is terrified of cows! Nasaka received a certificate of achievement for her work on the canteen as well as a small gift of exercise books from the headmaster.