Okuyamba

In the spirit of Okuyamba, Roberta Spencer serves as a liaison in the partnership between Center for Hospice Care/Hospice Foundation and the Palliative Care Association of Uganda (PCAU). She is currently in Uganda and is sharing updates of her time there.

The award-winning documentary, Okuyamba, was created through a collaboration of the Center for Hospice Care in South Bend, IN, the Palliative Care Association of Uganda, and the University of Notre Dame Film School and tells the story of a group of nurses working to ease the pain and suffering of people facing the end of life in Uganda, where there is little to no access to adequate pain control, and the majority go a lifetime without seeing a doctor.

Okuyamba director Mike Wargo recently visited with the Martini in the Morning radio team to talk about the movie and help generate support for the mission. Martini in the Morning is an internet radio station that plays "the Greatest Songs Ever Written performed by fabulous artists, online around the clock and around the world..." Check out what they had to say about Okuyamba.

As a documentary filmmaker, a faculty member in College of Arts and Letters' Department of Film, Televisiion, and Theatre (FTT), and a producer for Fighting Irish Digital Media, Ted Mandell '86 quite literally sheds light on the University of Notre Dam's traditions of social justice and student athletics.

The Accolade Film, Television, New Media & Videography Awards recently announced their winners. Okuyamba was named as an Award of Merit Winner. The Accolade recognizes producers, established and emerging, who demonstrate exceptional achievement in craft and creativity. Undiscovered and first-time producers are often recognized.

The Prestige Film Festival recently announced their winners for 2012. Okuyamba has been named a Silver Award Winner. Their mission is to provide a spotlight for filmmakers and production companies who are looking for public recognition of their creative efforts. The Prestige Award represents acknowledgment of the artistic merit of exceptional video productions. Award recipients include producers, directors, actors and all members of the creative team.

The reach of Okuyamba has continued to grow. The documentary was recently screened in Serbia in conjunction with the "Social Transition" program presented by BELhospice June 4-7. As part of the program, BELhospice organized the first education for 15 interested volunteers. They had lecturers about volunteer's roles within palliative care and presented examples of the volunteer work in hopices in France and Uganda, including screening Okuyamba as a part of their closing session. 

Award winning film Okuyamba, is slated to screen at Desert Rocks Film and Music Festival in Victorville, California.

‘Okuyamba,’ the Lugandan word meaning ‘to help,’ focuses on the common mission shared by a small band of palliative care nurses working tirelessly to ease the pain and suffering of AIDS and cancer patients, dying deep in the rural villages of Uganda.