Baking Bread with Gulu Public Primary

Siong teaches P7 students to bake/sell bread.

My good friend and Peace Corps volunteer Siong Ng of Leawood, Kansas has spent the last two months teaching teachers and over a 100 students of Gulu Primary School how to make, bake and sell bread to generate income and provide necessary business skills to students of Gulu Primary School.  He started this innovative business class on his own initiative.

Siong works side by side by his students.

You can see from the happy faces just how much they love this class!

His class is on Thursday, and I spent the afternoon with them.  It was a lot of fun!   On one of Siong's field trips to a bakery store, he saw an unused wood-fire oven and convinced the owner to donate it to the school. Rotarians from the United States and Canada donated $500 for Siong to buy the large bread pans, loaf pans and ingredients to get started.

Each loag sells for 1,500UGX (60 cents).  Big rolls are 3 for 2,000UGX (80 cents) and small rolls are 3 for 1,000UGX (40 cents).  After they sell some of the bread, they use the proceeds to buy more ingredients for next week; then they eat the rest.  Eating the bread is the most anticipated part!

Siong and his fellow bakers carry the rising bread across the school yard to the oven.  Just the heat of the day is enough to make the bread rise very quickly! 

After the basic loaves and rolls are made, the students get to be creative and make their own designs.

Country Bakery donated this wood burning oven to Gulu Public Primary for the baking class. 

Aww!  The finished product! Hot bread right from the oven!  It was delicious! I bought my share (I was the big customer of the day), took it home, put some butter and honey on it, and devoured it!. I relished in memories of my childhood where I grew up baking 7 loaves of bread every Saturday morning with my older sister....Good times!

Siong's baking class was so fun!  I am so proud of all he has accomplished in Gulu during his two years with the US Peace Corp.  His time is finished next week, and he will be leaving.  I will miss my dear friend. Gulu will miss him greatly as well.  Thank you Siong for all your time, energy, love, and dedication that you put into your work here.  Good luck in your travels and next possible assignment.  Wot ma ber!  Lubunga Ber!