Bernard’s family are nomadic Maasai from Tanzania. Bernard spent his early life with his parents living a very traditional Maasai lifestyle and formal education was not part of it. When Bernard’s older brother decided to leave and move to Nairobi, he brought Bernard with him and the two of them made a small income selling charcoal in Kibera.
An elderly lady took Bernard into her home and was determined to send him to school. For a time, he attended a local primary school but she was unable to continue paying the school fees. That’s when she heard about Turning Point and Bernard joined Transition Class at the Kianda Children’s Centre.
The teachers at Kianda and Bernard’s foster mother struggled at times with his behaviour, he would often run away from class and from home. He suffered from nightmares and would sleepwalk out of the one-room house where they lived.
Bernard came through Transition Class and joined the Fountains of Hope School, he is now in Class Four. At Fountains of Hope, Pastor David who leads discipleship classes with the children, has been able to spend some more time with Bernard and they have prayed together about his nightmares. Since praying together, the nightmares have reduced significantly.
Bernard is now 14 years old and doing really well in class, he performed well in the end-of-year exams and his behaviour is improving greatly. He still visits his family in Tanzania during the school holidays with his brother.
Bernard’s story shows how children benefit from the holistic care that Turning Point provides, caring not only for children’s physical needs but also their social and spiritual needs.
