During one of Operation International’s medical mission trips, the impact on the community is clear and tangible: patients leave the hospital with cleft lips repaired, tumors removed, or a less-obvious but equally life-saving procedure complete. What can be less apparent is the work that continues in many of those communities when the volunteer team packs up.

At any time of year, projects funded and organized by Operation International can be found at local orphanages and schools in many of these longstanding mission trip destinations, chipping away at systemic problems that contribute to the health care challenges mission volunteers encounter each year. 

Recently, one of those projects wrapped up at Glory of Christ School and Orphanage in Uganda, one of four orphanages in the country that OI helps support. The massive renovation project—which included two washrooms, a new septic tank, water storage tanks, and solar panels—has made a significant difference for both the 700 children who call the orphanage home, and their surrounding community.

“It is really a transformational project,” said OI Chairman Medhat Allam, MD. “In addition to providing the children with clean water, clean bathrooms, and electricity, it provides the surrounding community with access to clean water, since we installed faucets for the community to use.”

From Crisis to Cleanliness

Before the project, Glory Orphanage relied on a single, unhygienic bathroom that posed significant health risks to the children who rely on the orphanage for food, shelter, education, medical care and more.

The $150,000 renovation, which lasted from September to January, built completely new, better-working boys and girls washrooms for the school. Each washroom includes 10 showers, 10 toilets, and 10 sinks, and the boys’ washroom has 10 urinals. 

The upgraded bathrooms, in addition to creating better living conditions, will improve the dire health challenges the unsanitary water and lack of cleanliness created, including hepatitis and gastroenteritis.

“We hope that many of the water-related illnesses that are claiming the lives of young kids there will be decreasing, if not totally eliminated,” Dr. Allam said.

Beyond Bathrooms

While the bathrooms were the main features of the renovation project, OI also funded substantial upgrades to the school’s water storage and electricity needs to sustain the new washrooms. 

This included a new septic tank, four above-ground water storage tanks (holding 5,000 liters each), two underground water storage tanks (holding 20,000 liters each), and solar panels to provide electricity for the washrooms and classrooms. 

As mentioned before, the project also included faucets for the community use to extend the health improvement beyond Glory School’s walls. 

Looking Ahead

As always, OI’s work supporting local orphanages and schools aims to break the cycle of poverty that faces many of its medical mission sites. These sustainability projects would not be possible without the support of our generous donors and will continue as needs arise. 

In 2026, OI will take on a construction project that will improve its capabilities to send medical volunteers to Uganda. The organization plans to build dorms for its teams to stay in when they work in Rakai, one of the most frequently-visited OI bases.