best practices

Avoid asking people what and how much things cost especially if you are not shopping for yourself. When you ask people these questions, you imply you want to pay for it for them. For example, do not ask a child how much it costs for them to go to school/college unless you want to pay their school fees.

Avoid giving people your contact information (address, email, phone etc). Rather, refer them to your Raise the Roof team leader and if you feel like you want to help them, get their name and we will have this conversation with the Uganda local team. Allow our team on the ground to do due-diligence. Giving individuals Raise the Roof as your contact address, will be one way you honor the Raise the Roof leadership team on the ground and the many people we are trying to serve. Remember, there are many people with great needs who may not be able to speak to you in English or may not be able to approach you with a project proposal. Our goal is for every community member to feel honored and valued regardless of their strengths or limitations.

As you see need and choose to help, engage with our Raise the Roof team which you will bw introduced to you once we arrive. They will point you in the right direction or serve you in the direction you have chosen. Giving people Raise the Roof’s address will also deter people who may be interested in soliciting from you after you are back. Raise the Roof will forward all mail to you and advise you on any questions you may have. This is important because on all of our previous missions, team members who have violated this request have created more problems and heartbreak for the local team, and/or have been presented with requests they were not prepared to deal with. Ultimately, we encourage everyone to follow the leading of the Holy Spirit, and if God is calling you to help a child or family, we hope you will involve our US leadership team and local team on the ground.

Avoid promising anything or offering money! On most trips, there will be instances where someone from the community might approach you with a heart-felt need. If this happens to you, please respond by immediately inviting one of our mission leaders, one of our pastors on the team, or one of our local translators to join you in praying with the individual with the need. We see this as a pastoral care moment. These are always opportunities to encourage others through prayer and love. If you are not comfortable offering prayer, invite a colleague on the team, or your Ugandan translator, to do so. As we pray together for God’s people we will trust together with them that God is present and will guide them to provision. Our goal is to give hope grounded in what Christ has done, is doing, and will do, for all of God’s people. Many families are waiting for their kids to get a sponsor so they can join the program, if anyone asks you about the sponsorship program, please refer them to the local RTRA team. They already have a process and system to interview and make house visits etc.

If anyone gives you a project proposal, please refer them to our local RTRA Team. They will work with them through the leadership small business proposals etc. Remember, Raise the Roof Uganda at this time is not able to fund any project, nor validate or verify every guest who will be coming. Some people will ask you to sponsor them, my advice is let God move you and stir your heart, but also engage with us and the rest of the team members. Talk to us and let’s pray together to see how the greatest good may be done for all.