By George Bukenya
Archbishop Paul Ssemogerere hailed the leadership of St. Mary’s Boarding Secondary School Kitende (SMASK) during their Silver Jubilee celebrations.
The Most Rev. Ssemogerere, Archbishop of Kampala Archdiocese, made the remarks during a special thanksgiving Mass to officially open the celebrations of the school’s silver jubilee.
The Archbishop commended the school for 25 years of academic excellence, sports success and youth development.
“ The school has built a culture where education, discipline, leadership and talent development go hand in hand while producing responsible citizens, professional and athletes,’’ Archbishop said.
During the Silver Jubilee celebrations on July 4, 2026, Dr. Lawrence Mulindwa the founder and Executive Director of St. Mary’s SS Kitende was praised heavily, and his own message centered on the school’s founding vision and legacy.
In his speak, Dr. Mulindwa reminded everyone that when SMASK started in 2001, the target was to provide all round quality education that combined sports and education.
“ We made research in the year 2000 about private schools in Uganda and discovered that a huge percentage of the proprietor aimed at only making money but not developing and promoting the service and this informed our vision which has led to our success story,’’ Dr. Mulindwa revealed.
“Our philosophy was that education and sport complement rather than compete with each other and help us to succeed in both fields,’’ he said.
He explained that “deliberate plans in investment, employing the right qualified personnel in both areas was a major reason for Kitende’s success.’’
He noted, the school’s achievement is “building an enduring institution that has shaped about 10,000 alumni both nationals and internationals into responsible citizens, professionals, entrepreneurs as well as international sports stars”.
He famously said during another Kitende event: “You cannot separate me from sports because it is my hobby, sport is my alcohol my beer. There are those who go to the bar to enjoy beer and have fun, when I tried it I could become drunk so I abandoned it’’.
Former students quoted Dr. Mulindwa during the jubilee saying his greatest legacy was, “a culture where discipline, sacrifice and excellence became a means of life’’.
“It was never just about winning trophies. It was about dedication, the early morning training sessions, discipline both in and outside the school, and the belief that if you put in the work, you could compete with anyone at any level,” said Mike Mutyaba the former Uganda Cranes and SC Vipers’ midfielder.
The celebrations were under the theme: “A Legacy for the Future”. Mutyaba descibed Dr. Mulindwa as “the visionary architect behind a 25-Year Legacy of Excellence”, who turned modest beginnings in 2001 into one of Uganda’s most admired centers for academics and sports supremacy.