From Field Manager to Bridge Builder: Daudi’s Sozo Story

Episode description:
Daudi returns to share how he left his job in 2011 to join Sozo Children full time, helped rescue a second group of 17 children, and grew into a people-focused role serving mission teams. He unpacks early challenges, the miraculous provision of land in the Longolo community, and his vision for raising Christ-centered leaders who transform their communities.

Guest:
Daudi — Global Relations Director, Sozo Children

Highlights:

• Leaving a trusted role to follow God’s call to Sozo in July 2011
• What “administrative manager” meant in the early days and why the team shifted roles
• Cross-cultural challenges around discipline, receipts, food, and schedules
• Rescuing a second group of 17 children within the first week on staff
• Finding the Ngongolo community, praying over land, and purchasing 28 acres in 2015
• Using on-site eucalyptus trees to build God’s House
• How serving Sozo’s kids prepared Daudi to lead his own family
• The vision today: children thriving and communities transformed, modeled with integrity recognized by government partners

Suggested chapters:
00:00 Welcome back and recap
02:10 Quitting the old job and starting at Sozo
07:20 Early operations and government compliance
14:30 Culture & communication hurdles
20:10 Mission teams and shifting into a people role
27:30 Discovering Ngongolo and the land story
35:50 Building God’s House with eucalyptus
39:40 Personal miracle and family
43:10 Where Sozo is heading next
49:00 Invitation and closing

Key takeaways:

• Obedience can mean changing roles before you have all the answers
• Humility is essential in cross-cultural partnership
• God’s provision can unfold over years and still be right on time
• Sozo aims to equip Ugandan leaders for Uganda

Scripture: Proverbs 3:5–6

Call to action:
Learn more, meet Daudi while he’s stateside, or get involved: visit Sozo Children online or contact the team to host a church visit, sponsor a child, or join a future trip.

Credits:
Host: Haley
Guest: Daudi
Production: Sozo Podcast Team

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This week we’re “telling the rest of the story” with DAUDI, Sozo Children’s Global Communications Director. With Sozo since 2011, Daudi (full name: David “Daudi” S.) shares his journey growing up in Mpigi, one of 14 siblings, and how “Daudi” is the Luganda translation of David. He explains the beautiful meaning behind his surname—“father of many”—and how God’s hand has woven that calling through his life and work.

Daudi recounts coming to faith at 18 through his aunt and Gaba Community Church, finding purpose in missions, and the early days that led to opening Sozo’s first home—including a heartbreaking moment that galvanized action. He also reflects on his father’s redemption story before passing in 2019, the verse that anchors him (Matthew 6:33), and why peace and obedience have guided every step.

In this episode

• Growing up in Mpigi & being the middle child of a big family
• Why “Daudi” = David in Luganda—and the name meaning “father of many”
• Coming to Christ at 18 and plugging into Gaba Community Church
• From translator/tour operator to a life in missions
• The pivotal moment that sparked Sozo’s first home
• A father’s late-in-life faith and lasting legacy
• Living by Matthew 6:33 and walking in peace

Sozo Podcast – Episode 9: The Rest of the Story with Amanda Campbell

In this episode, Haley sits down with Amanda Campbell, the Marketing Director for Sozo Children, to share the incredible story behind her journey from corporate life in Birmingham to full-time mission work in Uganda.

Amanda opens up about what it was like to leave a comfortable job in marketing and take a leap of faith. First as a volunteer, then as a missionary living and working alongside the Sozo community. She talks about the joys, the challenges, and the life-changing relationships she built along the way.

Here are some highlights from their conversation:

• How Amanda felt called to something more and what it took to make the leap from corporate life to the mission field.
• Preparing, emotionally and practically for her first three-month trip to Uganda.
• What it was like to get to know the Sozo kids, learn their names, and become part of daily life at the homes.
• Her journey from intern to missionary, to leading women’s ministry and helping start Sozo’s Kids Club.
• Stories of impact, like the growth of women’s Bible studies and how Kids Club came to life.
• What it was like to travel with the first Sozo Choir on tour in the U.S., and all the behind-the-scenes moments that came with it.
• Reflections on long-term relationships, child sponsorship, and why the work of Sozo Children continues to matter so deeply.

Amanda’s story is full of heart, courage, and faith and it’s a beautiful reminder of what can happen when you say “yes” to something bigger than yourself. If you’re curious about mission work, passionate about nonprofit leadership, or just love a good story of transformation, this one’s for you.

Want to get involved? Visit sozochildren.org
 to learn more about child sponsorship, mission opportunities, and how you can support the work in Uganda.

Be sure to follow us on Instagram for updates and a peek behind the scenes.

www.instagram.com/sozochildren

Thanks for tuning in to The Rest of the Story. See you next time!

In this episode, we welcome back Ron and Suzanne Owens, the Village Project Director and CEO of Sozo Children, to continue sharing the inspiring journey of the organization. Picking up from last week’s story about building wells, we dive into the next chapter: constructing “God’s House” and the incredible ways the land itself provided for the project.

Highlights:

• The story behind the “Water, Walls, and Worship” fundraising dinner that made the well project possible.
• How eucalyptus trees on the property became the key building material for God’s House, and the symbolic meaning behind it.
• The hands-on process of building, including community involvement and sharing faith with local workers.
• The vision and design of God’s House, and its significance as a place of worship and community gathering.
• The parallel development of Sozo Trading, the organization’s thrift store in Birmingham, and its role in supporting both local and international ministry.
• Stories of generosity, community support, and the impact of donations—highlighting record-breaking fundraising days and the ongoing needs met through the thrift store.
• The growth of Kids Club and Women’s Ministry, serving hundreds of children and families with meals, education, and spiritual support.
• Reflections on the broader mission: strengthening families, empowering communities, and the hope that one day Sozo’s work will no longer be needed because families are thriving.

Links & Resources:

• Photos and drawings of God’s House www.instagram.com/sozochildren
• Sozo Trading information and donation details: www.instagram.com/sozotradingco
• More about Kids Club: www.sozochildren.org

Thank you for listening and being part of the Sozo story! For more information, visit our website and check out the links in the show notes.

www.sozochildren.org

In this episode of the Sozo Podcast, we welcome back Ron Owens, Village Project Director and Sozo CEO Suzanne Owens, to continue telling the story of how Sozo Children began. Picking up after the land purchase in 2014, Ron shares how Engineering Ministries International (EMI) partnered with Sozo to design a master plan for the future Sozo Village. We hear the incredible backstory of drilling the first three wells on the property — from small yields to a miraculous 22,000 liters per hour — and how God turned a “mistake” placement into the community’s primary water source. Along the way, Ron and Suzanne reflect on God’s provision, the importance of different gifts working together, and how water became both a practical and spiritual lifeline for Sozo Village and its neighbors.

From Thrift Store to Choir Tour: The Vision Expands

In this episode of The Sozo Podcast, Haley Jones sits down once again with Sozo Children founder and CEO Suzanne Owens to unpack a pivotal season in the ministry's journey. From the move into their Avondale headquarters in early 2015 to the grand opening of Sozo Trading Co. that summer, Suzanne shares the behind-the-scenes story of how a passing comment at a donor dinner sparked the launch of a thrift store that now serves thousands.

But that’s not all—this episode also dives into the heartwarming origins of the very first Sozo Choir. Hear how a vision planted in 2007 came to life in 2016, as 21 children from Uganda traveled to the U.S. for a six-month tour that would forever shape their lives and the hearts of everyone they met.

Highlights:

• How a business partnership with RJ Mechanical made Sozo’s headquarters and thrift store possible
• The logistical mountain of bringing 21 Ugandan children to the U.S. for the first choir tour
• The unexpected spiritual, emotional, and academic growth the choir kids experienced
• Why reverse mission trips matter—and how they’re changing lives

Tune in and be reminded: when you follow God’s lead, even a simple idea can change the world.

Ask ChatGPT

In this episode, Haley Jones and Sozo Children founder Suzanne Owens pick up the story where Ron left off—when Sozo was out of money and relying fully on faith. Suzanne shares how they opened a third home for boys in the slums of Kabalagala (yes, it means “pancake”) without knowing how they’d fund it—and how God provided again and again.1

From makeshift offices and volunteer staff to organizing 20+ interns and running epic mud run fundraisers, Suzanne reflects on the chaos, exhaustion, and beauty of Sozo’s early days. Most importantly, this episode reveals how, just four years in, Sozo took a massive leap of faith—buying 28 acres of land in Uganda. Spoiler alert: it involves surprise checks, divine timing, and a bankroom miracle.

If you’ve ever doubted whether big dreams born in small living rooms can become reality—this episode is proof they can.

In this episode of the Sozo Podcast, the conversation with founders Ron and Suzanne Owens continues as they reflect on the defining moments that shaped Sozo Children in its earliest days. From financial uncertainty to cultural challenges, and even a terrorist bombing during the 2010 World Cup in Uganda, the Owens share raw stories of hardship, hope, and divine provision. Listeners will hear about the first children’s homes in both Montana and Uganda, the leap of faith that led to a second rented house in 2011, and the unwavering mission that kept them moving forward. Through every obstacle, God’s presence was evident—and these powerful stories remind us why Sozo exists: to see every child thriving.

In this episode, we continue the story of Sozo Children’s beginnings—when the dream became a reality. You’ll hear how two young men on a mission trip found themselves face-to-face with a group of children in desperate need, and how a simple “yes” led to welcoming the very first 17 children into care. From the chaos of last-minute housing to the early days of building trust and family, this is the heartfelt, behind-the-scenes story of Sozo’s first home in Uganda—and the children who forever changed everything.

Episode 2: The Moment Everything Changed
What happens when your plans to "just serve" turn into something far greater? In this episode, co-founders Ron and Suzanne share the powerful events that led up to the launch of Sozo Children in 2010. From a broken-down choir bus in a church parking lot to a gut-wrenching phone call about a 3-year-old girl in Uganda, you’ll hear how God used unexpected moments, surrendered hearts, and a deep desire to live out real faith to birth a ministry that now impacts hundreds of children. This is the episode where everything starts to come into focus—and the mission of Sozo truly begins.