ERNEST Hausmann was ripped away from his family at age three and put up for adoption.
His parents in Uganda were diagnosed with AIDS and not expected to live.
Ernest Hausmann returned to his birthplace Uganda after 16 years away[/caption]
He was put up for adoption at age three with his parents battling AIDS[/caption]
Hausmann was moved to America and now plays linebacker for Michigan[/caption]
Hausmann was the youngest of 23 siblings and adopted by an American family.
The college football linebacker for Michigan moved to Columbus, Nebraska at age five.
He struggled initially with American life and being torn away from his family.
“Why couldn’t I have lived my life with my family,” he said in a feature on ESPN College Gameday.
“I feel I could never communicate my emotions with anybody.
“When I came to America it was the best day of their life (his adopted parents’), but it was the worst day of my life.
“That’s when it hit me that I might never go home.
“I could feel how blessed I was to have these parents in America, but I felt the guilt because I was the only one of my siblings to have this opportunity.”
Hausmann took up sports and became a linebacker for Michigan in 2023.
While he was at high school, the football star received news that his parents were still alive in Uganda.
The linebacker returned to the town of his birth Ivukula earlier this year after 16 years away.
“The hug was a moment in my life I will never forget,” Hausmann said about embracing his mother.
“The more and more time I spent with family, the more things made sense.
“I’ve always envisioned and dreamed about the moment I’ll be able to see my family I’ve played it in my mind a million times.”
Hausmann realized his football dream by winning the national championship with Michigan last year.
He returned home this year and helped build a water well[/caption]
Hausmann said it was a dream of his to be able to provide drinking water for his community[/caption]
But he cherished his visit to his birthplace this March even more.
He wrote on Instagram, “Providing clean drinking water for my family and the community that raised me, has been a dream of mine for as long as I can remember.
“With God’s grace, I stood on the soil of Ivukula not just as a visitor, but as a bearer of hope.
“This is more than just water.
“It’s health, a forever family, and a future for generations to come.”
