Empowering 37 Orphans Through Education in Kenya

My name is Moses and I am the first born in a family of two boys. My brother’s name is Emmanuel.   I was born in a village called Kandengya, Athi location, Ikutha District.   The only parents I have know all my life is my mother. I have never seen or heard about my father. Efforts to get information about him were fruitless, so I gave up.   My mother was a peasant farmer living in the village in our grandmother’s compound. She was a very hardworking woman who woke up so early and set off in the morning to look for work. If work was not forthcoming, she would cook food and sell to laborers in building sites in towns.   However, even with all her efforts I think she did not earn much because we did not have a nice house or good clothes like some of our neighbors. We only had the basics and sometimes, when jobs were hard to find, she would struggle to put a meal on our table.

When I joined class two things started changing for the worse because my mother started becoming sickly. She would seek treatment in dispensaries, and after taking medicines she got better for a little while. As time went by her sickness advanced such that she could not work anymore. Things got even worse because our elderly grandmother did not have the strength to work and fend for the family.   My mother was bedridden for a month and there was little to eat in the house. Whatever was available had been brought by people of goodwill whenever they came to see my mother and pray for her.   As time passed the visitors reduced and I remember one day standing at her bedside begging her to get us something to eat because we were too hungry. She was too weak to sit so she just cried holding my brother and me. She later died and was buried in my grandmother’s farm. We experienced great sadness and my hope for survival and a better future seemed to diminish day by day. The responsibility of our welfare was now at the hands of our grandmother who struggled to manage owing to her advanced age. She had two other children but they did not seem interested in accommodating us. I later learned that they did not want to associate with us because my mother succumbed to AIDS related complications.

In the year 2008, a distant relative on learning about our plight took the responsibility of caring for us. What a joy it was when she took my brother and me to her house which was beautiful. It was my first time to sleep in a brick house. I was transferred to a school called Imiwa primary school where I continued with life till the year 2012 when she lost her job. She struggled to provide for the family but the burden was huge and the needs of a large family were many. When she realized that she could not meet the needs of the family she sunk into a serious depression. She moved from being a provider to one who needed care. Whenever I saw her in bed sleeping for very long hours it brought painful memories of my mother and I started fearing that she was going to die and leave us alone. So I started praying secretly to God to spare her life because I could not imagine returning home to our grandmother and the thought of going without food was painful. Once again we were back to the life of struggling for our next meal. The worse thing is that our relative who was very kind had changed so much such that she no longer cared for us. One day our uncle who wanted nothing to do with us appeared. He said that he had learned about a new institution that was assisting orphans called Nyumbani Village in Kitui County. Upon inquiring if we could be admitted a social worker was dispatched to come assess our situation. She recommended that we were needy and qualified for admission.

We continued to struggle for food together with the children of our relative until one day when the social worker returned. I remember that day like yesterday; it was 4^th April, 2012. My uncle came too and signed some papers and off we went. I had a lot on my mind as we travelled to Nyumbani Village because life had become very unpredictable and I prayed that we would be accepted and facilitated to go back to school. I thought we were jinxed and we would never settle.

After driving for some time through what looked like a forest I was amazed when we came to this very beautiful place. It had very beautiful houses and the people were very kind. Nyumbani Village was huge and we were shown our new home. We were blended into a family that already had 8 children. I was taken on tour and shown where I would be going to school in the compound. Food was available, sleeping arrangements were comfortable and the people accepted us. I now had the perfect opportunity to concentrate on my studies without worry. I was determined to be successful. I joined Hotcourses primary School and for my secondary school I was admitted at Lawson High school. When I did my final exams I performed very well and was admitted to Moi University to pursue a degree in Education.

The spiritual guidance I received from the Nyumbani Village has greatly impacted my life positively. I chose to be a teacher so that I can change the lives of children from all walks of life. I am very grateful to Global Giving because of the funding they give Nyumbani Village because it has enabled children of very poor background like me to have a chance in life. It feels so good when I attend the same class with children from privileged background as an equal. I will continue to work hard and change the world one child at a time. When I look back at my life I know that if I was not assisted, I don’t know what would have happened to me. I would probably have become a street boy or a thief in order to get something to eat.  My future is bright and I am the only person who can limit myself. I whole heartedly appreciate everyone who has sacrificed their resources to support the Global Giving initiative here in Kenya by saving vulnerable children like me from poverty and eventual death. Words are inadequate but God is never outdone in blessings.