Story of Grace

As shared by Mary Ann McCoy,
Founder and Executive Director of Children of Grace

I met Grace Talitwala when I arrived in Jinja, Uganda in 2002. She was a lovely, young widow that sincerely welcomed me into her country and into her heart. She was a single mother of three small children struggling to provide for her family. Grace was also the arts and crafts coordinator for AOET - Uganda, and it was her job to teach arts and crafts skills to women who were widowed by AIDS. By learning these skills, the women would then be able to find jobs and provide for their families.

During my stay in Uganda, Grace and I shared laughter, family stories and dreams for our future and the future of our children. On the day I was leaving, she called me from a pay phone in Kampala. This emotional conversation is burned in my memory.

"Mary Ann, I just want you to know that I love you, and that I will probably never see you in this life again," Grace tearfully told me.

"Oh Grace," I said.

"I love you too, and I pray that we do meet again soon."

Then Grace said, "Mary Ann, I am really scared of dying."

I responded with surprise, "Grace, after all our sharing, I am surprised to hear you say that because you have told me about your strong faith in God and His promise for eternal life."

Then I heard something that will stay with me forever:

"Oh no, Mary Ann, this is not about me. This is about my children. What is going to happen to them? How will they attend school? Who will provide food and clothing? Who is going to provide love?"

I had no real answer to give her. I could only offer empty words, but I did promise her that I would do everything in my power to tell others about her and about all mothers dying of AIDS.

Sadly, two weeks after I returned home, I received an email saying that Grace had died. I received a picture of her funeral and saw the many mourners gathered at yet another funeral of a young mother that died because of AIDS.

Grace’s Story doesn’t end there. In honor of Grace and all mothers dying of AIDS, her story continues to reach many. Grace’s children have been sponsored by an American family and Children of Grace has now secured sponsors for nearly 500 orphans in Uganda. Sponsorship of an orphan provides tuition for their minds, food and clothing for their bodies and salvation for their souls.

Mary Ann McCoy founded Children of Grace in 2001 in response to the 2 million children orphaned by the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Uganda. A mother herself, McCoy was deeply affected by a young Ugandan widow of AIDS, Grace Talitwala, who worried about who would care for her young children after her own death from AIDS. With Grace’s inspiration, the goal of COG became to raise awareness and financial support for children affected by the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Uganda.

McCoy works exhaustively to provide educational support to children that would not otherwise be able to attend school. All schools in Uganda require tuition, uniforms and pencils. Because so many have died of AIDS, no one has the resources to take on the additional burden of the orphaned child’s education.