Touching many with so little

In a black pair of trousers, white short sleeved shirt, black shoes, short hair, Ronald Amanya, a Makerere University Information technology graduate, could easily pass for a secondary school student in Senior Three.
He is receptive, soft-spoken and seems ready to help whenever need arises. He responds to questions as asked and does not offer information that is not requested for.

Despite his simple appearance, Amanya is the team leader of a Christian organisation known as Soul Touch International. The organisation aims to touch nations, transform lives and become the bridge for destiny.
It comprises a group of young men and women, 12 of whom are fully committed to the organisation that looks after children and preaches the gospel not only through crusades but also donations, school outreaches, community medical check-ups and counselling.

Formation
Soul Touch came into existence when Amanya was in his third year at Makerere University. He approached fellow students with a vision to reach out to people in the community.

Once his idea was welcomed, contributions were collected and the money was used to preach the gospel to the community especially in hospitals and prisons. With this vision in place, a fellowship was started and out of the fellowship, grew Soul Touch International.

Still in 2011, Amanya and his colleagues further went out of their way to pick out children with no education in Katanga slum and Kiyunga and started to look after them.

Activities
At the moment Soul Touch International takes care of seven children. The oldest of them is eight years old while the youngest is six.

However, every year, the organisation touches several lives with donations of scholastic materials such as books and pens, clothes, mattresses, medical services and they preach the gospel. During school outreach, the organisation members play music, carry out talks on career guidance with question-and- answer sessions plus debates on life skills to challenge and educate the students.

The group also takes along with them successful people to inspire the students and give them tips on how to excel in life.

Motivation
Inspired by the numbers of people they touch annually, Soul Touch International continues to grow with partnerships, individual contributions and fundraising proceedings. “One of our amazing partner is a chapatti seller who gives us Shs5,000 weekly,” says Amanya adding: “We continue to do this work because we believe God touched our lives so we can touch others. I was a student sponsored by Compassion International Uganda. They did not know me but they helped me.”

Most of the people working for Soul Touch International have a past of sponsorship and the passion to see other people’s lives changed pushes them forward.

Challenges
However, it is not all a bed of roses even with the Christian organisation. Apart from financial challenges, Soul Touch International faces a challenge of stereotypes from the community.

“When we go to a place to minister, most times people’s mentality towards Christianity is bad and they think we have come to only preach the gospel, and also the community thinks university students cannot do much,” Amanya explains.

The most recent outreach the organisation had was in Wakiso in partnership with SOS Children’s Villages, a worldwide, independent, non-governmental social development organisation that works to meet the needs and protect the interests and rights of children where it held a gospel crusade, had a medical, counselling as well as four school out reaches.
“We also had a clean the city voluntary programme in Kakiri Town. More than 500 people benefited from this outreach,” he concludes.

How Amanya gets by

Ronald Amanya graduated in 2011 and he has dedicated his life to preaching the gospel. Questioned on how he sustains himself, Amanya replies: “I do projects like designing websites and temporary work. As I preach the gospel, there are people who keep stepping in. Sometimes I receive calls from people asking how I’m and they send me some money.” Amanya does not have a job but confidently says, “The calling pushes me and the caller (God) sustains me.”\