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“When I was abducted, they asked me my name and where I came from. I had to lie to them. I was thirteen years old.”

Beatrice (pictured) suffered unspeakable atrocities as a child soldier in the conflict between the Ugandan government and the LRA. Now her story is motivating U.S. Lutherans to act for peace.

Though Beatrice could not be physically present for the LWR Uganda speaking tour this May, the Ugandan teen’s account of abduction and abuse at the hands of rebel group the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) touched the hearts of all who heard her harrowing tale.

“Even now, I still have scars…”

Looking back, Beatrice pinpoints her father’s death as the defining moment in her life. The tragic event started her on a path that eventually led to her frightening abduction and unwilling service as a child soldier in the brutal war against the Ugandan state.

“My father was killed when I was only one year old. My mother died in 2000 from HIV/AIDS,” Beatrice recounts in a series of essays available online at lwr.org/uganda.

Her mother’s death left the 9-year old to fend for herself and her younger brothers. Like 1.8 million fellow Ugandans, Beatrice and her brothers came to live in a tiny hut in an overcrowded and unsanitary camp for internally displaced persons (IDPs). She recalls going hungry many times when food rations did not come.

It was this hunger, and her responsibility to feed her younger brothers, that drove her out of the camp one day in search of sweet potatoes in an abandoned field. It was on this excursion that Beatrice was seized by the LRA and forced to join the unwilling ranks of nearly 66,000 child soldiers.

Beatrice spent the next few years with the LRA—living in rural camps and witnessing unspeakable acts, such as the use of young girls as forced brides and sex slaves for rebel leaders. Her captors also used violence to force Beatrice to commit horrific acts in the name of the LRA.

“I was beaten on my back two hundred times. Even now, I still have scars on my back. We used to punish other people too. We used to beat people…because they tried to escape.”

Many stories like Beatrice’s are never told.  But a recent LWR speaking tour brought her powerful tale to the Midwest, told in words and photos by Beatrice’s friend and LWR supporter Lara Rosenoff..

For many who attended, it was the first they’d heard of the northern Uganda conflict. For all, Beatrice’s story put a haunting face on the humanitarian crisis and illustrated the need to help.

Eventually, Beatrice escaped her captors and reunited with her brothers in the camp. Still, traumatic scars remain from her past. “I used to not like a lot of noise,” she explains. “Even now, I don’t like to stay in a place that is noisy.”

“The most important thing for me is living a good life…”

Today Beatrice is a wife and mother to young son Vita. She is studying to become a tailor and hopes her new trade will help her support her young family.

For those who heard Rosenoff speak, , Beatrice’s story was a call to action. Many immediately signed post cards calling on Congress to provide funding to help northern Ugandans rebuild their lives and maintain peace. Others were moved to plan an “LWR house party” where they will screen War Dance, a powerful film about war-affected children in Uganda.

There are things each of us can do to raise our voices for the people of northern Uganda. Last month, legislation was introduced in Congress that would fund the wells, schools, and police presence needed for Beatrice, and others like her, to return home.

“We encourage everyone to send a ‘Peace is Possible’ postcard to their elected officials, urging them to support this legislation,” says Mary Duvall, LWR’s Grassroots Advocacy Organizer.

“The most important thing for me is living a good life without poverty,” Beatrice says. “I am worried about my life in the future. I feel I may remain a poor person.”

To read more of Beatrice’s story, in her own words, and learn how you can advocate with LWR on behalf of the Ugandan people, visit lwr.org/Uganda.

WHO IS LWR? Lutheran World Relief, an international nonprofit organization, works to end poverty and injustice by empowering some of the world's most impoverished communities to help themselves. With partners in 35 countries, LWR seeks to promote sustainable development with justice and dignity by helping communities bring about change for healthy, safe and secure lives; engage in Fair Trade; promote peace and reconciliation; and respond to emergencies. LWR is headquartered in Baltimore, Md. and has worked in international development and relief since 1945.

Lutheran World Relief is a ministry of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod (LCMS), individuals and parish groups in international relief, development, advocacy and social responsibility.