Let's keep girls in school

It is with joy again to share an update of one of our girls in high school that still continues to benefit from our orphanage program through sponsorship opportunities.  Jenny is one of our 5 girls in high school that have an opportunity to continue with her high school education.  She joined our program 10 years ago when she was left with her aging grandmother who took care of them after losing both parents to HIV/AIDs. Before we considered admitting her in the orphanage, her life was tattered that even  getting access to three meals a day was a dream not to mention education, medication and clothing. She and her sister were blessed to join our program after considering their story. Staying with an aging grandmother even made her story worse since she was like a provider to her grandmother, she could join unscrupulous behavior like prostitution, she could even get pregnant at an early age, or worse enter into early marriage to support her remaining family.

It's with joy and pride that she is off of the hook of bad prey and she is no longer vulnerable to such unscrupulous behavior. What we see now is her bright face every single day and we know that her life has improved as she can now comfortably have basic needs, and she is able to attend school and that her dream of becoming a teacher is still valid . We are able to meet her high school fees through sponsorship funds and some proceeds that we have in our garden project that is supported through the American Foundation for Children with AIDS.  It is with much joy that we are able to do this for orphans.

With good guardians offered to her in our ministry, Jenny is growing up to be a well mannered girl with lots of respect to her fellows and adults in the ministry.  We received a good report from her school that she is the best in discipline and character.

Everyone here at the American Foundation for Children with AIDS, and our partners in Africa, thank you for your continued support of this important project.  If you would like to learn even more about this project and others, please contact Tanya Weaver at tweaver@AFCAids.org. 

The children at Gift Academy are so thankful for the UFEEMA Library, where they can borrow school books in order to do their homework and not fall behind in school.  The most recent project by the American Foundation for Children with AIDS!  In a slum of Kenya, these kids have hope.... education changes lives when it is respected, valued, used properly, and shared. On behalf of each of the children who will benefit from this incredible opportunity, Asante Sana (thank you very much)!

All the books at the UFEEMA Library are required by the Kenyan government but are impossible for most children to afford.

Everyone here at the American Foundation for Children with AIDS, and our partners in Africa, thank you for your continued support of this important project.  If you would like to learn even more about this project and others, please contact Tanya Weaver at tweaver@AFCAids.org. 

My name is Gina and I am from Mombasa, Kenya, where I was born and where I currently live. My twins are my fourth pregnancy. My first born was born in 2006, the second child was born in 2016 and my third child was born in 2018. Tragically, my little boy passed away when he was 6 months old.

This pregnancy went well and I was excited to welcome a new baby into our home. I arrived in the hospital at around 11:45am on October 17^th, 2021. I was received by the doctor and nurse on duty, both of whom were very friendly to me and who quickly put me in a wheelchair to take me to the ward.

My situation was difficult and I thank the doctor and the nurse very much as they didn’t give up on me from the start to the finish of everything. I didn’t know I was carrying twins! What a surprise to receive! My first son came out with some difficulty, but the second one seemed to simply appear.  I am very happy with everything in this facility, especially the gift package for my twin babies.

May God bless the Mercy Maternity Ward so much! I am so thankful my babies were born in such a beautiful and clean place and I am happy for all the other mothers who will get this chance.  Thank you, AFCA, for the beautiful packages each of the boys received – blankets and clothes and diapers. You can see how beautiful they look here. I would never be able to buy such beautiful things for them and I am grateful for the care and generous gifts.

Everyone here at the American Foundation for Children with AIDS, and our partners in Africa, thank you for your continued support of this important project.  If you would like to learn even more about this project and others, please contact Tanya Weaver at tweaver@AFCAids.org. 

Marie was raped when she was 16 years old by a family member after thé death of her parents. The trauma of the rape, coupled with desolation, fear, and anger left her bitter. When she found out she was prégnant, she couldn't deal with the burden of a baby and found it very difficult to love the baby.

Somehow, Marie connected with the Boyebi Center in Gemena and there, she and her baby have found understanding, love and a future. At the Center, women like Marie learn a trade, either sewing or hair dressing so that they can take care of their financial needs. Now, Marie lives with her late parents' neighbors and her baby.  She is an eager learner who is grasping the hope she's been offered with two hands while connecting with her baby, learning from other women at the Center.

Practical help is also offered to women at the Center. They are taught that there is a God who sees and loves them. When they are sick, a small fund is available to help with medicine and food. And, this month, all the trainees received feminine pad kits from the American Foundation for Children with AIDS. This gift is huge, as the cost to buy pads is prohibitive for these women, so they use scraps of cloth which don't offer protection, forcing them to miss a few days of classes each month. Thanks to the generosity of volunteers who sew the reusable pads, Marie no longer will miss classes, but even better, she won't miss being part of a community that has shown her love and hope.

Everyone here at the American Foundation for Children with AIDS, and our partners in Africa, thank you for your continued support of this important project.  If you would like to learn even more about this project and others, please contact Tanya Weaver at tweaver@AFCAids.org. 

We arrive at the village in early noon, laden down with boxes with cloth, snaps, underwear, zip lock bags, and patterns. We set up shop at the front of the classroom, surrounded by approximately 250 girls and women, all ready to learn. Even though their leader told them that she had invited us to show them how to make reusable sanitary pads, they are a bit hesitant, not quite sure what to expect.

We set up the sewing machine at the end of the room and talk and laugh with the other teachers present. They are just as curious as the girls, dressed to the nines, as though attending church. While the sun beats down outside, we are all tucked into a white-walled room, with just enough air coming through the open double doors and out the window openings to allow us to breathe. I look out at the crowd and realize that they will neither see nor hear me if I stand where I am, so I climb unto a table and silence falls suddenly over the entire space. 250 pairs of eyes stare at me with some giggling mouths quickly covered with hands that can’t hold the mirth from showing in those dark, dark eyes.

I hold up a pair of underwear and clearly say, “today, we are going to talk about your period”. Gasps and moans of distress shower down on me, with those beautiful hands now hiding eyes as heads are bowed and teenaged angst and embarrassment take over most of the people in the room. I keep talking, showing them how a cloth pad kit can keep them going to school, even during their period. I snap a pad onto the pair of underwear and hold it up for all to see. I then show them how they can carry the dirty pads in a plastic bag with a bit of water and soap so that they are easy to wash when they reach home. I show them how everything comes together in a cloth bag that doesn’t show what is in it, giving the girls privacy to their personal kits.

Each time a piece of the kit is held out for all the see, more and more hands leave eyes and mouths and soon, those hands are clapping. The rich, seemingly never-ending sound of clapping fills the room as I hold a kit up, showing the girls the gift they will each receive today. I feel like a champion holding up that kit, hearing all that clapping and joy. When the sound dies down, I ask for a volunteer to help us distribute the kits and hands all over pop into the air, no longer shy, but bold and confident. They open their kits and looks of wonder cover faces throughout the crowded room. They show each other the underwear they each received, the soap, the bags, the pads. They stand at the end of our gift-giving and do the low double-clap the Shona people do to express thanksgiving. With hands cupped slightly, they do a slight curtsy and clap twice.

I clap back, smiling and smiling and smiling.

Everyone here at the American Foundation for Children with AIDS, and our partners in Africa, thank you for your continued support of this important project.  If you would like to learn even more about this project and others, please contact Tanya Weaver at tweaver@AFCAids.org.