Santina was born and raised in southern Sudan. She was the second born to her parents and has four siblings. She studied in school until senior four when her father was poisoned and died, starting a difficult chapter
in her life. There was no longer enough money for her to continue her studies.
She stayed home and worked in the fields growing vegetables. She also made and sold local beers.
Santina met her first husband while she was staying at a
refugee camp in Northern Uganda. She became pregnant. Upon learning she was pregnant, he ran away. Santina gave birth to a son, who she would name “Taban,” meaning bad condition, which was a
statement to her current condition. As her conditioned worsened, she moved to the Acholi Quarter, where her mother was living. Shortly after relocating, the father of her son, came to see her and they were married. They had two more children together before he
left her for another woman. He was later shot and killed in Sudan.
Like many others, Santina began her life in the Acholi Quarter by working in the stone quarry.
She later learned to craft paper beads. When Project Have Hope started working in the Quarter, she joined us and has grown into an invaluable member of our office team.
In 2012, Santina met her second husband. Together, they have a daughter and remain happily married.
Santina has started a business making bricks which are used
in construction. She hopes to expand the business so one day she’ll have enough money to open a small health clinic in the Acholi Quarter. Her daughter is
currently enrolled in a nursing program and her husband is a doctor. She envisions building a clinic in which they can all work together.