COVID-19 led to astronomical spikes in teen pregnancy among Ugandan youth.
With devastation at hand, intervention was necessary. Many would no longer be allowed to go to school and would now have to face being a teen mother with little education.
Cil Training Centre was birthed as an answer! We hold the hands of COVID-affected
youth through discipleship and fashion design training.
We help to restore hope and futures!
Cil (pronounced “cheel”):
Discipling Youth.
Fashion Design Training.
Restoration of Hope.
Donate today and help to subsidize student fees and cover our running costs.
As a no-fee option, send via Zelle to sharon@gocpn.com OR
Select the “Uganda Fund CIL” option on the drop-box
* Giving is done via our partner Forgotten Places and gifts are tax-deductible.
Cil, in the local language of Lira, Uganda, means beautiful, holy, clean and pure.
We desire to create BEAUTIFUL clothing made by HOLY and PURE vessels.
Mission
A center of inward transformation, fashion innovation and lifelong sustainability.
Vision
To teach Ugandan youth about their identity in Jesus, how to be intimate with Him and how to utilize Holy Spirit-led creativity in the areas of fashion and design to secure a sustainable future.
Passion
Responding to shattered lives. Resurrecting hope. Restoring futures. Reinventing fashion.
Our
Scripture
SPEAK UP FOR THOSE WHO CANNOT SPEAK FOR THEMSELVES; ENSURE JUSTICE FOR THOSE BEING CRUSHED. YES, SPEAK UP FOR THE POOR AND HELPLESS, AND SEE THAT THEY GET JUSTICE.
PROVERBS 31:8-9
About our Director
Lisa Okello is a teacher and fashion designer. She is currently serving in missions as a director at Elwa Sunrise School, but desires to also use her gifts of creativity to serve the Kingdom of God. She had a fashion design business in the U.S. for three years before moving to Uganda in 2017 and thought she had permanently abandoned it. But God, the ultimate author, gave her the ministry of Cil as an extension to the call of God on her life in and out of Uganda.
An unbearable burden was on her heart for quite some time-especially after learning in 2020 that some girls were being traded for beans. She desired to alleviate the unprecedented increase of teen pregnancy and marriage caused by COVID-19. The Lord had impressed upon her to rally some youth and introduce them the one true Hope and Future who is Jesus. But with a crying mouth to feed, the Lord also challenged her to offer them a skill that is already quite common in Uganda-yet with an edge. Being a lover of fashion who had laid down this passion as a missionary, she hoped to pick it up again when she had free time in the future. It was then that the Lord reminded her that all of her gifts are without repentance and she needed to utilize her skills in this context.
The Lord gave her this business-as-missions as well as a hunger to resurrect her passion and others’ lives simultaneously. Cil is a business and training school where young girls and youth will learn about their identity in Jesus, how to live life intimately acquainted with Him, and how to use creativity from the Holy Spirit to create fashionable clothing and jewelry that will provide them with sustainable skills for the future.
When you support Cil, you are restoring life and hope to a young boy or girl and their offspring. You are partnering with the Kingdom to resurrect hope and purpose again.
– Lisa Okello
Cil helps to restore dignity & value
Our students are chosen with specific criteria and/or selected by community members. We desire youth who have been impacted by teen pregnancy and/or loss of schooling, but who also have a desire for tailoring. Families that have some financial means will be offered subsidized program fees. We have learned that people in need often appreciate what they have paid for rather than being given something for free.
Our students study for six months, with the option of an extension program. They are trained by local, professional tailors and discipled by seasoned Bible teachers. They receive weekly marks for assignments (i.e. production of clothing), and participation in small groups, one-on-ones, Bible study and outreach where they create clothing to give away to needy youth in the community.
Upon completion of the program, these marks and sales will determine whether a student earns a machine and/or start-up material at the final graduation & fashion show. They will also be awarded a certificate and may receive internship or employment by the school or future boutique and factory.
With this system, students feel dignified in their study and do not receive hand-outs. They are taught how to fish instead of being given a fish.
Donations will help to subsidize student fees and cover our running costs.
As a no-fee option, send via Zelle to sharon@gocpn.com OR
Select the “Uganda Fund CIL” option on the drop-box
*Giving is done via our partner Forgotten Places and gifts are tax-deductible.
Here’s a sneak peek of some of our Bible lessons!
Clothing related topic:
Animal skin (Adam & Eve)
Spiritual concept:
Inherent sin nature
Sanctification application:
The need for salvation
Biblical references:
Genesis 3, Romans 5
Clothing-related topic:
Sackcloth & Ashes
Spiritual concept:
Repentance
Sanctification application:
Repentance as a lifestyle & gift
Biblical references:
Psalm 51, 2 Corinthians 7:5-11
Clothing-related topic:
The Armor of God
Spiritual concept:
Spiritual warfare
Sanctification application:
Fighting spiritual battles
Biblical reference:
Ephesians 6
Clothing-related topic:
Tailors in the Temple
Spiritual concept:
God’s call & empowerment
Sanctification application:
Holy Spirit empowerment for fashion
Biblical reference:
Exodus 31
Join us today by giving
Cil Training & Development Centre is a non profit-making company registered in the Republic of Uganda. All gifts go toward running its program and funding the participation of its students.
Donations will help to subsidize student fees and cover our running costs.
As a no-fee option, send via Zelle to sharon@gocpn.com OR
Select the “Uganda Fund CIL” option on the drop-box
*Giving is done via our partner Forgotten Places and gifts are tax-deductible.
