TEAMS has it’s own church on site at Layibi which is led by a local pastor and UK Board of trustees. The church is new, growing and becoming established as a centre of missions. The heart of the church is to disciple, grow, encourage, love and release God’s children into their callings. If you are ever in Gulu please feel free to visit us and worship our Lord Jesus Christ.

Over the years TEAMS have looked to develop a health work that is both effective and sustainable. The formative stages including the identification of some of the health needs of our orphan children. In recent years we have built strong links with the local hospitals and medical school, the fruit of which is the launch of a hospital visitation ministry team comprised of approximately 33 people from local churches, community health outreach and training initiatives. We have also successfully initiated a government-supported community based training programme that seeks to address the urgent need for accessible health care.

Every year we send out teams from the UK to teach and deliver practical aid to rural communities in Uganda. Recently we sent out some team members who held free consultation and treatment days in Busulumba, Kaliro district, Kirimwa, and Iganga district in Eastern Uganda. The need for primary health care remains a pressing concern, and so these innovative public events provide much needed treatment for communities that struggle to access health care. Voluntary professionals from the UK hold regular dental health checks and carry out basic work such as removing rotten teeth.

The model consists of recruiting local voluntary health professionals, on this occasion 4 doctors, 4 nurses, a dentist and an optician, who give up a day to serve the local community. Once a site has been secured, a basic dispensary is prepared and stocked with drugs, toothbrushes and reading glasses, all of which are funded by donations from supporters in the UK and made available to the public without cost.

The average cost of treating a patient is only a few pounds; a seemingly small direct cost and yet an amount that many simply cannot afford and so it is critically important to develop a long term strategy to provide accessible quality health care for both Iganga, Kaliro and indeed the remaining 78 districts in Uganda.

The idea of whole person health care is central to the ethos of The East African Missionary Society and one that embraces spirit, soul and body. It is this belief that motivates care for the physical condition and ministry for the spiritual wellbeing of an individual. This is outworked in health care, personal outreach and prayer being made accessible for everyone; a total of 139 people responded to the Gospel invitation over the two days. The local government has expressed their gratitude for the invaluable service provided to the community and has offered their support in facilitating future events.

Gulu regional hospital is the main government hospital and is one of three main hospitals that are visited by TEAMS. It is severely lacking in facilities and characterised by malnutrition, minimal ventilation and is poorly resourced, no running water or mosquito nets for the patients, not even the children or babies. On a monthly basis a team from local churches spend several hours ministering to the spiritual, emotional and practical needs of the patients.

We have had a strong focus on ministry to children and one that holds the needs of the orphan very centrally. This area is often neglected, as people tend to focus more on youth and adults. For more than two decades, the inhabitants of Northern Uganda suffered 20 years of unrest, with children as victims of the atrocities. In caring for children affected by conflict, we have sought to address every aspect of a child's life in meeting spiritual as well as practical and social needs.

Stepping Out Programme for Children - The Stepping Out Programme for Children is a discipleship teaching programme that helps to meet those needs. It has been very successful in reaching out in love and care and has been designed especially for children in Uganda who have chosen to give their lives to Jesus Christ. This programme also teaches them about what it means to be a Christian.

Stepping Out Fun day - Children's Fun Days bring together children from a specific locality and gives them the opportunity to share in fun and learning through play, sports and drama. The first Children's Stepping Out Evangelism Fun day was launched on 14th March 2009 and has continued on one day of every month up to the present day. At the first fun day, children from many churches in Gulu, Uganda were invited and encouraged to bring their friends along. A total of 210 children attended that day and 15 became new believers. These children then went on to attend their local church and were introduced to the Stepping Out Programme discipleship teaching by their Sunday school teachers.

Sunday school teachers from different churches come together under the guidance of the Children's Stepping Out Programme's main coordinator Pastor Daniel Onyango, together they lead the days activities of games, singing and teaching.

The men's ministry is a place for men to gather, discuss issues that are common spiritually, emotionally and culturally. Men have been oppressed in Gulu through the war and bringing these men together on a monthly basis helps development and also inspiration of the younger generation too. There is an annual men's conference with guest speakers have an opportunity to share God's heart and impart wisdom in very difficult times.

The women’s ministry is a combination of teaching, training, supporting, counselling and also practical activities. There are designed programmes and activities on a monthly basis which look to help women become educated and supported in all areas of their lives. Our women’s leaders have been working tirelessly for years ensuring that they equip fellow women to prosper.

The women of Northern Uganda have carried the brunt of maintaining family and home life during the time of conflict. Widowhood, abduction, abuse and coping with extended families with orphan needs have stretched these women to the limit. Yet their spiritual and practical resilience has been astounding. Through our projects (see PROJECTS Page) we are seeing women empowered practically.

The purpose for the family ministry is to provide a support for husbands, wives and or their families. Family life can be gruelling, especially in Northern Uganda and there needs to be support in all areas including emotional, physical and spiritual. Couples are appointed across all the churches involved and they meet up every month to discuss and deal with core issues.

Families are the foundation of communities. The war in northern Uganda has torn at the very heart of family structure in the north. Rebuilding strong family units is critical to the rebuilding of the society; economic development can only go so far. The Discipleship phase of the SOP, Each One Teach One begins with Personal Life. Discipleship must begin in the family as we are brought into the family of God. The next phase is to develop regular times of drawing couples, singles and communities of the churches together to discuss, share and minister in this area so that a strong sense of godly family and relationships becomes the links holding the community together.

In many parts of Africa children and young people are the majority of the population as mortality figures are so high. In Northern Uganda there has been genuine fear and disillusionment amongst the young people as a result of the war and the attendant abduction and recruitment as child soldiers. This sense of fear and hopelessness coupled with fragmented education has created a real need amongst the youth for positive input and hope for the future. We have a youth leader who has built a team of leaders across the churches in Gulu and they gather on a monthly basis to see how they can reach and meet the needs of the youth locally.

Intercession is a vital part of daily Christian lifestyle and even more so over large and diverse ministries. A prayer group has been launched to pray and intercede over the needs of the entire GL12 vision.