Growing up in Washington, Chris Walker said he never had a real grasp on international affairs or foreign policy.

Truthfully, he said, he did not have much of an interest in it, and the opportunities for philanthropy weren’t readily available.

Walker, a 1997 graduate of Washington Community High School, considered himself more academically and sports-oriented — playing football, taking honors classes and getting involved with his church.

This all changed when Walker went to Loyola University in Chicago and became involved with a group called Invisible Conflicts.

Invisible Conflicts is a student organization at Loyola and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign that aims to expose the effects of a 21-year-long war on the children of Northern Uganda by telling their stories and empowering others to act for justice.

“We hope to raise awareness about the conflicts the mainstream media ignores, and Uganda’s is one of the most atrocious and barbaric,” Walker said.

Walker said the Ugandan Army abducts children and forces them to work as soldiers to infiltrate enemy camps.

The plight of Uganda’s children was highlighted in the 2007 movie “Blood Diamond.”

Walker said their group started following the goings-on in Uganda on a daily basis to research the best way to help out.

Soon, Invisible Conflicts established some real contacts in Uganda and started identifying what their greatest needs were in the war-torn area.

“There were so many opportunities for development and education, so we decided to sponsor 20 kids and plan a trip there,” Walker remarked.

Walker said it was important to the organization not to just give money, but to empower the children to get their community back on track through their own efforts.

“We wanted them to learn accountability and structure,” he added.

Soon, the 29-year-old Walker and five of his fellow Loyola students were on a plane to Uganda to see how their money and hard work through Invisible Conflicts was paying off.

Walker said many of the homes were lacking modern conveniences, and orphaned children were living in cramped homes with relatives.

“But we could definitely see through the money we raised we were having a huge impact, and they probably weren’t able to go to school otherwise,” Walker said.

Walker said many of their sponsor children and kids from neighboring communities were also learning about the performing arts, and put on plays for the student group using music, dance and dramatic readings.

“Because of the extreme poverty and disease there, I think they need those type of activities to develop a healthy orientation towards life,” Walker said.

“When they get in touch with their creative side, they are making a better life for themselves,” he added.

Walker said while many of us take basic common necessities, like education, water and sanitation for granted, it is a matter of life and death there.

“The war has distracted them from progression,” Walker remarked.

He added Uganda does have some technology like cell phones and Internet, but not in the abundance or quality of the United States.

Walker said his parents were very worried about his trip to the Uganda wilderness.

His mother, Veronica Walker, is the children’s librarian at Washington District Library, while his father, Champ, is a recently retired history teacher from East Peoria Community High School.

“Both of my parents were opposed because they were concerned about safety, and some of those concerns were justified,” Walker said.

Walker said his mother was probably in denial the first four months after he bought the plane ticket because she was fearful of him getting sick or injured.

“She bought me plenty of mosquito repellent and protective clothing to take along,” Walker said with a laugh.

Walker said despite the country’s situation, most of its citizens bonded together for a common goal of peace.

“The quality of the relationships and the broad sense of humanity was amazing, along with living life so much simpler than the rest of us,” Walker recalled.

Walker said their group is hoping recent peace talks stick and the United States puts pressure on the Ugandan government to bring the conflict to an end.

Regardless, Walker said he is already missing the faces of the sponsor children and plans to see them again.

“I never thought of myself as that bleeding heart type, but I know it won’t be my last trip there,” Walker added.

To find out how to get involved with Invisible Conflicts by donating money or volunteering time, visit www.invisibleconflicts.org.