Sister Pauline Silver Acayo, a Peace Building and Justice Project Officer of the Catholic Relief Service, visited Cathedral from Uganda to speak to students about the injustices of Joseph Kony and the Lord’s Resistance Army. She visited Campus Ministry Gold 4 and 5 classes on October 4th.

Sister Pauline herself escaped abduction in 2003. She was one of the 20,000 children abducted to become soldiers or sex-slaves. These abductions have led to two million displaced persons and extreme poverty in Uganda.

A year after she freed herself from abduction, Sister Pauline decided to help those who are in the situation she previously was in.

One way that Sister Pauline is fighting this injustice is by teaching the people of Uganda about peace. “We do a lot of peace education in the community,” she said. She also organizes peace prayers and rallies.

Not only does she teach the power of peace, Sister Pauline also improves the communities of Uganda. She works with the Catholic Relief Service to encourage economic improvement by distributing seeds to farmers, teaching grammar, dancing, and songs to the children of the churches she visits, and training vocational skills.

Sister Pauline really gets to know the people in need that she works with. “They tell me their stories even though they don’t open up a lot,” she said.

The San Diego Association of Conflict Resolution recognized Sister Pauline for all the hard work she does. They awarded her their Outstanding Leadership Award in 2011.

Sister Pauline encourages everyone to help those in need. “Share what you learn, advocate, participate in the Catholic Relief Service, and donate,” she said.