Zenny Ugandan Peace Promise Orphanage ZUPPO
This name was chosen with 3 of the 22 children’s names included in the title
honoring the children and to remind all that the focus of the organization is the children who were left, without parents, to care for their needs.
Zuppo is a Nonprofit Corporation for the Public Benefit with the State of California registered as a 501(c)3 through the IRS.
Global Orphan Statistics – A Call for Help
Every day, the number of orphans around the world continues to rise. Current estimates show that 140 to 153 million children have lost one or both parents due to war, disease, poverty, and natural disasters. Without adequate care, many of these children face hunger, exploitation, homelessness, and neglect.
To understand the scale: there are nearly as many orphans globally as half the population of the United States—a heartbreaking comparison that brings this crisis closer to home.
Imagine your own life—or your child’s—without parents. For millions of children, this is not a distant tragedy; it’s their everyday reality.
At ZUPPO, we believe every child deserves love, safety, and opportunity. This is an urgent global crisis, but together we can help. Your support can make a direct difference in the life of an orphaned child today.
Our children, before September 2025, had never been in a vehicle, and as of our launch (November 2025), the children have never been to school, and before the day of this photo, had never been in a pool.
When our director went to meet our children in Uganda, Africa, the hotel she was staying at had a pool and for a few dollars per child, she was able to pay to transport them in a vehicle, for the first time and allow them to enjoy swimming, for the first time. It was also their first meal out of their care center. It was a wonderful day.
The name of our organization was chosen based on the names of the three children pictured here.
One of the children was named specially by our Director, Deb. That is our oldest child on the right, Zenny. All of the other beautiful names were given by the children’s parents at their birth, before the parents were taken from the children’s lives.
Each of the children have a personalized hand symbol that relates to their name and distinguishes them, so that you can see a bit of their personalities.
Zenny is doing the hand symbol for Namaste.
In the middle we have Peace, and on the left, Promise. Peace is doing the peace sign and Promise is doing the symbol for the name, Promise.
To reiterate, on this day, the children left their small village for the first time in their lives. None of them had ever been in a vehicle of any kind, or left the area of the care center.
Our Team
SUSAN - The Caregiver for our Children as well as a Cook for 22 children- 2x per day
Susan takes care of the children’s daily needs.
She cooks for 25 people (the children, herself and her brother who take care of the children), she cooks outside on coals, not a stove, because they don’t have one yet.
Susan is extremely loving, kind, nurturing and has a beautiful soul. These children cherish her, just as if they were her own family, as you cherish your children/parents/family.
It is hard for the average person to even imagine what life would be like with no parents to care for you.
Susan is 24 and she and her brother Kaweesi were tragically orphaned at the ages of 6 and 10, when their beloved parents got into a terrible car accident coming back from a wedding party for their friends. They were then raised in poverty by their grandmother. They attended Namalimba Primary School where they learned the basics of reading and writing. Susan is extremely smart, hardworking and resourceful. She has communication skills that are of the best caliber.
Because of this tragedy as children, as young adults, they decided to take in orphans. They were doing odd jobs at first. Kaweesi heard about Deb’s work with orphanages in Africa, and he contacted her in 2021. After four years of supporting the children with some help from family and friends, Deb started ZUPPO in 2025.
June Gillam - Our Board Secretary
June Gillam, PhD, lives in Fairfield, California. She is the secretary for ZUPPO. She became acquainted with our organization, through a friendship with our Director’s Mom, which was inspired by a writer’s group. June has a loving heart for our children and has dedicated her time and money to our children’s betterment and life.
June is a published author. Her books are both captivating and insightful to our current political atmosphere. Her poetry and stories have appeared in Wild Edges from Manzanita Press, Metal Scratches, and America's Intercultural Magazine (AIM).
She led a Cooperative Inquiry doctoral writing group and tells the story in Creating Juicy Tales, one of the twelve books she has published, available for purchase on Amazon. Please visit her website at www.junegillam.com for details.
Mike Cheshareck - Our Founding Father
Mike has, with the help of his wife Deb, our Director, financially adopted/kept the children fed and housed, since 2021.
He is an Engineer, who designs the electricity for new businesses, homes and government projects, in Northern California.
He attended West Point after attending Salesian High School, in Richmond, California, before attending UC Davis.
His nickname, from some of his friends is, “Iron Mike.” He is an incredibly strong person- physically, emotionally, and especially in his heart and mind. He is the husband of our director and they recently celebrated 10 years of marriage.
For the last 4 years since 2021, Mike (through his engineering career) and Deb through odd jobs, some friends, and family have given around $600-1000 USD a month for the children. That amount covers for the children to have shelter, clothes, food - just basic necessities.
It is very important to note, we are all they have. There is no one else supporting these children. Uganda is listed as 131 out of 145 countries, for GDP. This means it is a very poor country. The roads are not paved in their village, there is no signage on the roads, education is costly and transportation is also a high cost. It is common for people to have to go to the borehole with bins just to get water each day. They cannot turn a pipe and fresh water comes out. Life is very different in the developing world, than it is here.
There is no other organization or government help for these children. Deb, Mike and a few others are all they have had as financial support since 2021.
This is where you can help and be a force of change for these children, who have no parents, or safety net. You can be the change they need!
Our first, major goal, in creating this non-profit is to have the children get the privilege of education.
So far, we have struggled just to get them fed and keep them housed. Their roof leaks, so they get wet when it rains which is less than ideal and happens very often there, as they live in the tropics.
With your help, we hope to be able to keep them fed and housed for about $1000 a month for 22 children, totaling $12,000 for basics. We will need approximately $7000 to get all of the children educated in 2026.
Please help us to get our kids an education. It will change their lives for the better. Once we accomplish that goal, we can look towards maybe even a better building for the children.
(Above) is a video from when our Director, Deb, first arrived to see our children. (The person filming/the vehicle was Deb’s transport from the airport).
(Below) This is a picture of our children, at the borehole, where they get water. They use some of the bins pictured and transport them for water usage each day.
Kaweesi Michael - Our Board Treasurer
Kaweesi, is the treasurer for our Board. He is in charge of our very small budget, which we hope, with your help, will increase.
Kaweesi takes the children, often on the bicycle we purchased, to the borehole for water multiple times daily. He is also in charge of communicating, with our Director daily, and he is an excellent communicator.
Kaweesi Micheal is 28 years old. His ancestors hail from the clan of Ente - which means cow.
Before he and Susan, his sister, established funding to support orphans, he was washing cars while Susan was digging for farming or construction.
“Due to poor life we lived in, I got an idea of helping other kids who are orphans like us, because I know what it means to be an orphan or without parents .”
Deborah Broxton - Our Director
This picture was taken on the Nile River, in Uganda, at Murchison Falls. The falls are not the tallest, nor the biggest, but they are the most powerful, in the world. Deb resonates strongly with waterfalls, and the concept of FLOW. This experience was a highlight of her life, getting to be there. She hopes to allow the children to experience this site on her next visit, if we receive enough funding someday to do so. She has many acronyms, and some, will show up on this website, that are made up by her - over many years of meditation.
FLOW is
F ree
L oving
O pen
W ow
It is a way of living, that she strives for and sometimes happens effortlessly. It involves being purely in the present moment.
Deb’s personal life motto is, “Don’t breed, there are already too many in need. Let’s take care of those that are here, and exist already.”
She feels that not having biological children was one of the best life decisions, she has ever made. This decision has allowed her to have & give/and receive love to/from many children, throughout her life, who are/were in need. Seeing these children who are so resilient despite their circumstances is extremely rewarding for the children and for those, such as Deb, who is a part of their journey.
At 10 years old, Deb saw a commercial for an organization that supported, children in Africa that were severely malnourished. She immediately decided, she would not bring someone to this earth, to suffer such an existence through procreation.
Deb has experience in working as a Social Worker/Counselor and served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Jamaica from 2001-2005, she worked with children in abject poverty at an organization in Kingston, Jamaica called, “Hope for Children.” She also volunteered after Peace Corps, but before she took on ZUPPO, at a different orphanage that was church sponsored, in the country of Ghana, Africa in 2008.
Both in the Peace Corps and at the other orphanage, she saw some terrible things - corporal punishment is not illegal in many places in the world. At the other orphanage in Ghana, she saw children under the age of three being beaten with sticks. She realized something better needed to be done.
So when in 2021, Kaweesi contacted Deb, she was open to being a part of helping the children.
The ZUPPO caregivers, do NOT beat the children. Deb, Susan, and Kaweesi all love the children, the same way you love your children.
Since 2021, when Kaweesi and Deb connected, 100% of Deb’s income from the jobs she had, went to the children at the orphanage, for their survival.
She has worked on a panel for the city she lives, through the Non-Profit, “Healthy Democracy.” She also worked as a Behavior Technician for children in need of guidance, with ABA, Applied Behavior Analysis. She has also had a job driving children that are on the Autism spectrum to school and back. She does pet sitting and volunteers with elderly or others that are in need as well.
Deb and her husband Mike are currently housing a homeless youth. This is not the first time they have taken in a homeless person in need. The last person stayed for free with them for over a year.
They pay for all of the young peoples needs, that have lived with them here in the US (food, they don’t pay rent, transportation etc), as well as they support the orphanage in Uganda.
When they see great need, they give where there is crisis and no one else is stepping up to give.
Until now, hopefully you will hear the call, when reading this, and help and give.
She has many children throughout the world that are a part of her flock, and it is rewarding to help those, that are truly in need.
There are many in need everywhere and she sees these needs, and with the support of her husband, they do all that they can to help those in need in their circle, and the world. If ever the ZUPPO children have all of their needs met, we would love to get support for helping even more children.
Deb’s Bachelors degree is in Social Work and her Masters degree is in International Studies, from Florida International University, with a focus on Africa and Human Rights.
Our Current Building Tour
Since 2021, Deborah, her family, and a few friends have been making sure that the children are fed and housed. Our next goal is to get them educated. None of them have ever been to school of any kind. After we get them enrolled in school, (which costs $300 USD per child, per year), we hope to someday, secure our own building. This is a tour of the current shelter, which does not have a proper roof, no kitchen, and no running water. Please watch so you can understand what the living conditions are like for our children. We hope that when you see this, you will be inspired to give.
Our Children
With Their Personalized Hand Symbols
Zenny is our oldest child and his hand symbol is Namaste.
Peace: Her name is part of ZUPPO, her symbol is the Peace sign.
P atience
E ffortlessness
A cceptance
C alm/Compassion
E ase
Promise is our youngest. They are 3 years old. Their symbol is a promise, as in hands clasped similar to a hand shake.
Muzee likes to use his t-shirt as comfort, he nuzzles on it in the night, and it gets torn up, so we have a hard time keeping him in a shirt that isn’t ripped. His hand symbol is the M from YMCA.
Brian is very sporty, so we chose touchdown for his hand symbol.
Daniel is our second oldest and since Zenny, the oldest, is the symbol for Namaste, Daniel got to be Number One.
Reagan is doing the hand symbol for Rastafari.
Precious her symbol is using her arms as if to hold a baby, all of the kids are precious, and she happens to be named Precious. Here she is writing her name for the first time, in her life.
Latifah - Her hand symbol is an L. Her shirt is from the Director’s step daughter, Amber, and it says, “I solemnly swear, that I’m up to no good.”
Namuswe - Her name at the end rhymes with Yay, so she is the Y from YMCA.
Parvin is our gentle warrior, this is Warrior Arms from yoga.
Angel is doing a halo. She is one of our littlest angels at our center.
Bashir - He is doing the B from American Sign Language and holding a handball from our Director’s Dad, the handball is from long before any of our children were born.
Daniella - She is actually a neighbor child who is in need. Her mom is a teenage Mom, so we often feed and take care of her day to day.
Pretty - She is our teen helper, her Mom owns the building we rent. Her Mom travels, to do farming for long periods of time. She helps with cooking, laundry, and other tasks with the younger children. She is very helpful.
Owen - We thought it was cute how he made an O in front of his face.
Huppa - One of our dear little ones, she ended up with a similar hand symbol of another child named Favor - double the sweetness.
Prossy - Her hand symbol is to pause for a moment and take a breath, accompanied by a gentle sigh.
Favor - She is doing the F from American Sign Language.
Bashira - She is doing the hand symbol for hang loose.
Kabidi - Here with a great smile!
Acram - He is doing the A from YMCA.
Jeremiah - He is doing the letter J.
Noweria - her hand symbol is to point to her wrist, as if a watch is there for NOW. A great reminder to us all, to be present.
Advisory Board
Dr. Angela Zivo Gapa is a professor and filmmaker whose work bridges global politics and storytelling. Her research and creative practice center on African governance, identity, and development. Her directorial debut, RU$AMBO, is a Zimbabwe-set whodunnit feature film that explores tradition, gender, and power. She brings deep cross-cultural insight, and a commitment to empowering youth through education and creative expression. Angela is passionate about sustainable development and social impact across the African continent, making her a valued advisor to initiatives that foster community resilience and empowerment.
Tamerlin Godley is a litigation partner, based in California. She excels at handling complex business litigation disputes and sensitive company investigations. Major studios, networks and Fortune 500 companies across industries regularly turn to her to help them protect their most significant assets and lead investigations in times of crisis.
Tammy has done extensive work with many non-profits. She is the acting attorney for ZUPPO, pro-bono.
Christopher Irumba is a Ugandan botanist and scientist. Chris is the person in the country of Uganda, charged with the important task of naming the chimpanzees in the wild. He has spent many 14 hour days studying the chimpanzees, as well as other primates. He graciously has given our orphanage the honor of naming one of the endangered, wild chimpanzees after one of our children, Peace.
Chris has worked with the University of Illinois on an extensive study of chimpanzee social behavior. Uganda is one of the rare places in the world where you can see chimpanzees in the wild.
Deb was calling him the Jane Goodall of Uganda while they were traveling together. A few days after Deb’s return to the United States from Uganda, Jane Goodall passed away. Chris now carries on the important work Goodall gave to the world.
Tammy Becker is the CEO for Green Current Solutions, a company focused on creating products out of recycled plastics. Prior to Green Current Solutions, Tammy spent her entire career in the non-profit sector. She has over 20 years experience writing and tracking grants, planning fundraising and stewardship events, developing education programs and curricula, and more.
Tammy has given to the orphanage and cares about the children deeply. She and our Director, Deb, served in the Peace Corps together.
Lasha Chatman has a BA in Psychology from Chicago State, as well as a BA in Nursing. She is a Registered Nurse.
Our Director, Deb, and Lasha worked together as Social Workers/Counselors in the late 1990’s, with a population of youth at risk, and have remained friends since that time. Lasha brings an impressive array of skills to the board such as deep wisdom, compassion, and an understanding of people, that is rare and cherished.
Contact Us
Reach out and we can add you to our contact list.