MEMBERS of Altrincham Baptist Church are on the trip of a lifetime to Uganda this month - helping AIDS orphans.

Twenty one members of the church are staying in Jinja, Uganda's second city, for two weeks.

They flew out on February 18 after raising the money to buy a plot of land for a skills centre for the orphans.

The Altrincham team will be involved with the children's work and will carry out crucial repairs to an existing church centre.

Leader Rev Roger Sutton told SAM: "These children desperately need to learn basic skills like sewing or typing, so that they can afford to live in their teens and beyond. Once their free education ends when they are ten years old, many of them are out on their own."

Some of the team will run a conference for 300 Ugandan church pastors and will also organise a one day conference for local women.

Roger says: "It's great that we can contribute to this society because we are materially rich, but compared to the Ugandans we are spiritually poor. During their worship there is a sense of touching heaven and I have no doubt that the trip will be life changing for all."

The group has covered team costs through members' own personal finances and with fund raising. A recent triathlon and auction have helped boost extra funds for the Ugandan community to £8,500, a figure which is still rising.

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