Something That Made Sense

Charles Osinde, a health worker from Kampala, and his wife, Mary Jean Akello, traveled to Scotland in 1989, where both completed a course in computer training. While there, Charles and Mary Jean met Latter-day Saint missionaries. As Charles read the Book of Mormon, he found “something he could not find anywhere else” and was soon baptized.

Mary Jean, on the other hand, struggled more with the decision to be baptized. As the missionaries continued to try to meet with her, she began scheduling appointments and finding reasons to be away from home at the arranged time.

One evening, a severe snowstorm began shortly before a scheduled appointment. Certain that the missionaries would not brave the weather, Mary Jean remained at home. As she sat watching the snow fall outside her window, she was surprised to see two figures struggling to make their way in the storm. That evening, she accepted a copy of the Book of Mormon. Both in Scotland and after she and Charles returned to Uganda, Mary Jean diligently read the Bible and Book of Mormon and compared the messages of each.

Before leaving Scotland, Charles requested a list of all Latter-day Saints in Uganda and received the names and addresses of seven people. When Charles and Mary Jean returned to Kampala in June 1990, Charles began searching for the people on the list and holding services in his home. He soon connected with Guy and Peggy Denton, American Latter-day Saints working in Uganda. Charles and Mary Jean invited the Dentons and their six children to their home for weekly meetings.

Meanwhile, Mary Jean continued to read the Book of Mormon. Mary Jean, who had always been religious, had been teaching her children Bible stories since they were very young. She soon began incorporating Book of Mormon stories into these lessons. Her children noticed, and they enjoyed learning in the small Primary classes held each week with the growing number of Saints and interested friends in their home. The children also noticed a distinct change in Charles. Although he had always been kind, after his baptism he became more attentive and began participating in the evening Bible studies and leading the family in prayer.

Deborah, Mary Jean’s daughter, was particularly impressed by the changes she saw. When missionaries arrived in the country, 10-year-old Deborah listened to the missionary lessons and excitedly accepted the invitation to be baptized. “I was reading the Book of Mormon in my Primary class,” Deborah recalled. “Everything made sense to me.” Deborah was baptized on February 2, 1991; Mary Jean was baptized later that month.

On March 3, a branch was organized in Kampala. The branch, which was holding frequent baptismal services, quickly outgrew the space in Charles and Mary Jean’s home, and arrangements were soon made to meet in a local school. By 1993, the Church had grown to multiple branches in Kampala and Jinja, with several hundred members.