How Mentorship Impacted Angellah

When Akonkunda Angellah first joined the Hope Alive! family at our Masaka site, she was shy, withdrawn, and struggling with low self-esteem. She avoided others her age and felt unsure of her place in the world. But everything began to change when she was paired with a mentor.

"My mentor, Aunt Sweet, helped me so much… she encouraged me," Angellah says. With Aunt Sweet’s encouragement, Angellah ventured into new Hope Alive! activities that stretched her—leading worship, preaching to peers, and attending Bible studies. Slowly, her confidence and character began to grow. She said, “Right now, I am a true, responsible, loving, caring, encouraging, and trustworthy friend to my friends.”

Hope Alive!'s mentorship didn't just boost Angellah’s social life; it transformed her identity. She became a student leader, a music director, and has even worked as a teaching assistant during school breaks. Through mentorship, discipleship, and leadership training, she learned not only how to speak confidently but how to live with integrity. She said, “I grew in speech, I [learned] the right words to say to people… I am able to serve diligently, responsibly, and honestly.”

Her testimony highlights how strategic mentorship can reshape a student’s life. What began as a simple mentor relationship became the foundation for lasting change in Angellah’s character, confidence, and calling.

Mentor relationships like these are a key part of the Hope Alive! difference. Angellah’s story reminds us how mentorship doesn’t just guide students—it empowers them to become leaders who serve others with courage and grace.

Angellah wrote out her testimony to share with her mentor and has invited us to read it too. You can read her story in her own handwriting below.