Richard’s parents both died by the time he was seven. He, along with his brother and two sisters, were raised by his grandmother. He attended the free government primary school, and like most of the villagers, due to their extreme poverty, had poor prospects for advancement. His grandmother petitioned the head mistress of the newly opened St. Bakhita Vocational and Secondary School built by Father Richard of the Comboni Missionaries in 2004 who fished this bright student out of the mud of poverty.
St Bakhita is able to offer the first four out of six years of high school. Father Richard promised Richard that if he performed well then he would find sponsorship for his last two years at another high school. “I fought tooth and nail and Father fulfilled his promise to me…” Richard did well at the advanced high school and gained entrance into the Uganda Martyr’s University. He is sponsored through Hope of Kabingo and he is currently happily studying business with future plans “…to work hard in order that my family members, relatives, friends and other needy people live a better and a more optimistic life than they are living now.”