Today we continue our week highlighting our Holy Cross mission in East Africa. Today we take a look at education as a part of that mission, focusing on Holy Cross Lake View, a secondary school founded by Holy Cross in Jinja, Uganda. Bro. Alan Harrod, C.S.C., a missionary to East Africa, shares the amazing story of the school with us.
In 2002-2003, there was a Holy Cross Educational Commission formed by the General Administration of the Congregation of Holy Cross. I was privileged to be a part of that commission. There were many insights that came from the commission, and the one I will never forget is that wherever Holy Cross has been in the world, the congregation has tried to provide the best education for the greatest number of students at the most reasonable cost. We found that in North America, Asia, Latin America and Africa, our members have always tried to educate in the spirit of our founder, Blessed Basil Moreau.
About 10 years before the commission was formed, some Holy Cross members in Jinja, Uganda, at Holy Cross Parish in Bugembe felt that there was need for a secondary school to provide a quality Catholic education for the young people living within the boundaries of the parish. The late Fr. Bob Hesse, CSC, and former Bro. Paul Kasande, CSC, were among those who felt there needed to be a school to provide for the students from our area who needed a good secondary education but couldn’t afford the fees at some other nearby schools.
We strive to encourage all students to do their very best academically, and at the same time to develop into the full persons they are called by God to be. Blessed Father Moreau frequently spoke of forming minds and hearts of young people. To Blessed Moreau, education was much more than just success in academics, important as that is.
