December 12, 2022 – WPDI is very sad to announce the passing of our much loved Youth Peacemaker, Cissy Namatovu, from cancer aged 36. Cissy worked with WPDI in the Acholi Sub-Region, Uganda for 10 years and was quite simply one of the most inspiring, engaged people we have had the honor to work with. Cissy was a talented musician, a dedicated activist and a brilliant entrepreneur, having opened a beauty salon to benefit local girls in her district. This sums Cissy up, dedicated to the betterment of her community, passionate about peace and an inspiration to all around her. She will be sorely missed.
Joseph Junior Lukwago worked closely with Cissy for over a decade, and has written this heartfelt tribute to his friend.
“Death is a weird thing. One moment you could be talking & giggling, and the next you’re on your knees, crying, and you can’t breathe. It hits like a train, even though it takes forever to realize that the person who you were so close with, is gone and they’re never coming back.
I meant Cissy from a Performing dance group back in 2009. We both grew through the ranks to become leaders in the dance group. Cissy was always a better leader who sacrificed for others and wanted to learn and share with us. She helped younger girls from her village and always trained many of the girls how to dance. I was impressed with how she did it with kindness and love.
Together, we joined a group of youth from Northern Uganda who would then become Trainer of Trainees on the WPDI program in 2012. Cissy’s leadership and love to better her community continued to grow. With support from WPDI, she started a small Saloon business to benefit young girls in Kitende, Wakiso district. The rest is history.
All I have now are memories of us. Photos, a few videos just to hear your voice, and a remembrance Facebook page. That is all that’s left of you; as a person. You left this earth too soon! No sigh in sight. Nobody could have seen this coming. It’s true what they say; the good die young. For what? Nobody will ever know the answer to that.
I don’t think you understand how much happiness you brought to so many people. You could light up any room you walked in and everybody knew who you were. Nobody was a stranger to you, either. You could walk up to someone and act as if you knew them forever. Everyone was a friend to you.
We will forever miss you.”
Cissy was one of the very first Youth Peacemakers WPDI ever trained. Forest Whitaker and Caroline Descombris, along with the rest of the Uganda team and the WPDI family at large, were deeply saddened to hear of her passing.
“There was a light in Cissy’s smile that I will not forget. She had joined WPDI through our first generation of Youth Peacemakers in Uganda. She was a student from the Hope North campus that my friend Sam Okello had created for underprivileged children, notably former child soldiers. At Hope North, she was also a very talented Acholi dancer in Sam’s company. An artist and a peacemaker, she was one of those great people who dedicate their lives to make those of others shine. She will forever remain a real inspiration to me.” Forest Whitaker, WPDI President and Founder
“I was deeply saddened by the news that Cissy had left us. I’ve known her personally since 2012, when we piloted our first program in Acholi. I always thought of her as a wonderful and inspiring woman. She was always very positive, even in the face of adversity. Being a leader and an entrepreneur, she was also one of the first peacemakers to come to us and request our assistance to create a social business. Her project was to open a hair salon that would double as a hairdressing school, which would provide marketable skills to marginalized youths. This was a brilliant idea – one that deserved not just to be implemented but also to be replicated. Cissy meant a lot to me and she was not only a person that I was very fond of, but also as a role model in the sense that she contributed to define what it means, in my view, to be a peacemaker.” Caroline Descombris, WPDI Executive Director
To learn more about the great work Cissy conducted in her community, watch this video about her business: