Trip Info

Where is Kenya?

Kenya is on the Eastern side of Africa along the Indian Ocean. It is in between Somalia, Ethiopia, Sudan, Uganda, and Tanzania. Here it is on a map to give you a general idea where it is in Africa.

Where is Kitale?

Kitale is a city within Kenya. It is where I will be primarily working throughout the duration of my trip. It is closest to the western border of Kenya, near Uganda and Lake Victoria. Again, here is a map to give show the general location of Kitale. It also shows where Nairobi (the capital of Kenya) is in relation.

What will we be doing in Kenya?

We will spend most of our time working with Oasis of Hope. It is a drop-in centre (UK/Kenyan spelling) for street kids. These kids either live on the streets (because they have been orphaned, abandoned, or ran away from home) or live in a house with parents that can not provide food or schooling. (Government schooling, though “free” to attend, still requires each child to purchase a full uniform and all of their own books…plus pencils, pens, composition books, etc…the cost becomes quite expensive, especially in families with more than one kid). So, Oasis was started to give those street kids (the untouchables of their society) a place to spend their day. They arrive in the morning for tea and toast, are taught to read and write, Swahili, English, Math, Science, and CRE (Christian Religious Education–a requirement for all Kenyan schools), play some games, have lunch (mostly githeri, a mix of beans and maize) and then go back home or to the streets.

Oasis of Hope Boys with Lydia Monroe (Executive Director of OoH)

Outside of the centre, Oasis also has 4 group homes. These homes (3 boys homes and a girl’s home) consist of about 6 kids and 1 house parent (a local church member). The kids are former street kids who have been placed in these homes, attend a local government school and are learning to live in a healthy family environment.  We will have a Friday night dinner rotation with these houses. (Alice, who lived there for 6 months this last year said “There are no words to describe how much I love these kids…I am actually crying right now thinking about how excited I am to see them, hold them, kiss their faces, laugh with them…oh goodness, I love them“.)

Oasis of Hope Boys

There are also about 20 kids that have been taken out of Oasis and placed in to boarding schools. (These kids have parents, but were not living in a great family environment, so they live 9 months in boarding school and 3 months at home each year)…we will visit each of the three schools they attend, bring treats, sit through the chapel services…

Other places we will work:

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  Sister Freda's Hospital

  Sister Freda’s Medical Centre (a health care facility for those that can not afford to go to the district/government hospital). There are 6 orphans that live on her property, we will take them to the local swimming pool once a week…just to giving them personal, loving time and attention. We will also spend time with various patients in the facility, praying and talking.

   

   

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  Gilgal students

  Gilgal: a secondary school (high school) that just began its second year. They have about 40 students in “Form 1″ or “Form 2″ (similar to our freshman and sophomore). These kids are also from families that can not afford education, so only about 2 of the students pay any sort of school fees. The rest pay in food, or don’t pay at all. We will spend one afternoon each week at this school.  Typically, we will spend one class period letting the students ask us questions (about politics, American culture, marriage). Alice says “It’s a great hour because there are so many similarities and even more differences between US and Kenyan culture. It’s fascinating to hear their thoughts and beliefs“.

 

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  Alice with Discover to Recover students

  Discover to Recover: an orphanage for children who have been orphaned by HIV/AIDS or abandoned because they are HIV positive. It is attached to a school that is very much like Oasis of Hope (for the really poor families in the surrounding slums). Alice says “I can’t say enough about this place. (Aside from Oasis, this is my favorite place in Kitale)”.

   

   

   

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  Kitale Prison

  Kitale Prison: the women’s prison…we’ll visit about once a month…give a short message, pray for them, possibly bring some gifts… Alice said “Though our time here is limited, God showed up BIG here“.

   

   

   

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  Tumaini boys off to school!

  Tumaini: a boys orphanage…we’ll also visit here about once a month…typically we play soccer, dance and “hang” with the boys.