Kitumba Secondary School has emerged overall winner of the Try Prayer It Works Contest 2026, on Friday at the Holy Cross Family Ministries head office in Kitumba, Kabarole District. St. Maria Goreti Girls S.S. placed second, while St. Thomas Aquinas came third. In the drama category, St. Thomas Aquinas and Kahinju Secondary School took top honors for their plays on the theme “Prayer: Encountering Jesus, the True Hope.”
HCFM Fort Portal Director, Rev.Fr.Lulu Gabriel, commended the 27 participating schools from the Tooro Sub-Region, describing them as a hopeful generation grounded in faith. He announced that next year’s edition will focus on poetry.
Bro. Cleophas Kyomuhendo CSC, Holy Cross East African Provincial Vicar, challenged students to embrace religious vocations and pray the rosary and seek the intercession of the first Bishop of Fort Portal, Bishop Vincent MacCauley, a Servant of God being considered for sainthood.
The Fort Portal Diocese Pastoral Coordinator, Father Gerald Akugizibwe, commended HCFM for organizing the contest and urged students to deepen their faith through prayer.
Addressing students as the chief guest, Bishop Robert Kasaija Muhiirwa Akiiki, encouraged students to take up leadership roles in church and youth spaces, to be understanding toward parents facing financial hardship, and to embrace so-called “hard” subjects and jobs as valuable career paths. He urged them to learn, unlearn, and relearn to stay competitive in future.