Help 24 Street Children in Kenya Return Home

The town of Kitale, Kenya, is located in the far western part of Kenya, and has a population of just over 100,000. Kitale is situated in an agricultural region, and the availability of work is seasonal, but never exceeds 40%, with unemployment often as high as 80%. Kitale attracts a disporportially large number of people displaced by violence, drought and poverty. They arrive in search of security and work, and find neither. With no state support and living in abject poverty, many children make their way to the streets in the hope of a better life. Estimates vary between 500 and 2,000 children on the street at any one time.

Maurine, 12 years old, is one of the 5,000 individuals that Child Rescue Kenya (CRK) works with in Kitale. She says, "After my mum died, my father started drinking. He sold our land and our cow. We stopped going to school and had to beg for food. Then people started coming to the house. They would get drunk. My brothers ran away and I followed when he started beating us".

Fortunately for Maurine, social workers from Child Rescue Kenya were able to connect with her through CRK's Street Smart program. Street Smart workers identify children who are new to the streets and offer them safe refuge at their Birunda Rescue Center. At the Center children are provided healthcare, remedial education, food, washing facilities, sports, games, justice and love. From there they are returned to a safe and loving family.

Thank you for your past support of CRK which allows us to return children like Maurine to loving homes. I hope you'll continue to support CRK's important work.

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• Street Smart kids wrote and performed a song