In
Loving
Memory
of

Beatrice Garubanda

1955 - 2005

Her home was a refuge to many and many called her home theirs. Beatrice N. Garubanda was born on December 24th, 1955. Her children would joke that they only had to buy her one gift seeing how her birth date was so near to Christmas. She is survived in death by her loving husband James P. Garubanda; children, Esther, Joshua, Lydia and Ampa.

Beatrice grew up in Buyanja, a village community in Uganda, where she went to primary school. Later she attended Gayaza H.S. and then Makerere Kyambogo were she earned her diploma in teacher education. She began teaching in Uganda and then moved to Kenya and taught there at the secondary school level. In 1987 she moved to Minnesota with her family where she received her masters in theology at Luther Seminary in St. Paul and masters in education at the University of Minnesota.

In Minnesota, she soon became the neighborhood mother taking children from all over into her house. “I never left feeling hungry or unmotivated,” Jerome Stewart remembered. We remember her as a woman who would always take care of others especially those who could not for themselves.

Her love for children lead to the start of the Blue House, Hope Multipurpose Inc. home of children orphaned by AIDS in Uganda. She devoted her life on her (our) campaign to help these children and to provide shelter and a home for what she called "our family". International students from Africa, Asia, India and many other countries would spend time with her talking about faith and new beginnings. “When I came and met your mother it didn’t take me long to tell her my life story; I felt close to her because she reminded me of my mom,” Kenneth remembers. In the Mid 1990's, she started a tutoring program in St. Paul to help students achieve in school, reach graduation, and then go onto college. Education was very important and she found ways to make education available to anyone willing to learn. She wouldn't miss a graduation or graduation parties. She became a strong force of the Minnesota/Uganda/Church/International student community.

Beatrice Garubanda led her life with the utmost humility. A selfless person who believes that Jesus Christ and the Lord will always find ways for people to help others. So much could be said about this woman. She will be dearly missed.