Support to 80 street connected Kenyan youth

During this month of March 2023 Dalmas and the team are carrying out assessments to decide who will be the participants on our next intake for WOW 5. Referrals are coming from former participants as well as those who may have been referred by other service providers. 

Since our last report we have employed a professional counsellor who works with us two days a week. We were also lucky to have the services of a professional counsellor trainer, Sr Frances, who was able to work in terms of professional development with Doreen.

During WOW 4 we had a number of expectant and young mothers and again during WOW 5 we will also have some young mothers. This brings a new dynamic to our work and what needs are there. During this period we have put up a shade which can be used as a creche as well as for other meetings and purposes.

A volunteer from Ireland, Eilis, has also been assisting with teaching the WOW girls how to sew resuable pads and childrens nappies.  

During the period most of the WOW 4 have gone to join training opportunities. 

During this period the World Of Work (WOW) 3 team, who had been with us since Feb 2022, graduated and a new WOW 4 group commenced. WOW 3 was our first group to have girls as participants. One of the girls, Joyce, was very happy to graduate in early October. In addition to receiving their certificate the particpants also received a photo album which documented, in pictures, their story through the WOW 3 programme. They also each received a mobile phone. The photos of graduation below show the colour, flavour and happiness of that day. During the period WOW 3 also participated in a number of events at Kitale Museum. These included World Tourism Day when the young people sang, danced and played drums. There was also the Sanaa ya Jamii festival when they participated and joined with a number of other young people and creatives. These days give our young people opportunities to interact and enjoy events which they would not normally be exposed to. On some of these occasions our WOW youth have provided the catering services for which they have received much praise.

By the end of the period of training all WOW 3 members have been housed and all but one are on attachments / placements or running their own small business. 3 are training as mechanics, one as a welder, two have been given street food trollies (following appropriate training), one boy has been taken back home to return to finish primary school, one youth is training in a restaurant and one youth has a luggage trolley. We hope to facilitate the remaining youth to return home to his grandmothers and to assist her in running a honey business.

With the WOW 4 we have taken in a bigger number of participants at 15. This includes working with 4 young women. We also have formally begun our Personal Development & Lifeskills programme with two sessions being facilitated each week by Godfrey. The other usual activities such as catering, horticulture, crafts etc also continue. A fun activity for WOW 4 members has been the two day Story Train event currently taking place facilitated by a team visiting from Nairobi. This gives an opportunity for the young people to share their stories in a relaxed, informal and supportive way. Drumming, movement and dance are also a feature of this exercise.

During this period we continue to partner with Kitale Museum and spend each Friday at the museum assisting with landscaping and cleanliness among other activities. A new activity during this period is our engagement with the Kitale Women's prison. Here we have made an initial donation of 2 desktop computers (photo below) and have began computer training sessions with the women there. This group in the prison includes one of our WOW 3 girls while one of the WOW 4 girls was recently released from prison. 

AMV would like to take this opportunity to firstly thank our team of staff and volunteers who day in and day out work to assist these young people to have a better life. None of this work could be carried out without the generous support of our well wishers and friends. We are so grateful to those who have donated, on the GlobalGiving platform, to our work with the street connected youth of Kitale. We know, because they tell us, we are making a difference in these young peoples lives. 

Since we last reported a lot has been happening at the World of Work (WOW) project. Over the past couple of months we have welcomed, for the first time, some girls into our programme. in addition to the usual daily activities on Monday and Wednesday we now have Hair and Beauty sessions with the girls. 

Last month one of our  WOW group 2 members Emmanuel died tragically. This was a sad time for the team and our members. On Saturday 11th June Emmanuel was laid to rest in an emotional and fitting ceremony attended by most of the street connected youth of Kitale. Following the burial we facilitated about 240 street connected children and youth to celebrate Emmanuel's life by going for an afternoon outing of lunch and swimming. 

We continue our weekly sessions at the museum for music and cultural activities as well as clean ups and painting of signs and murals.

Three of our current group have recently been housed and three have moved on to the next stage in putting into practice World of Work skills. One youth is running a small business selling second hand clothes and two others have begun learning the practicalities of the catering world.

At our compound we now have a German Shepherd pup, a kitten, 2 rabbits and 3 chickens which the youth now look after as well as the garden. 

On behalf of the WOW team we would like to take this opportunity to thank all those who have donated towards this work.

GLOBAL GIVING REPORT: SEPTEMBER-DECEMBER 2021

WORLD OF WORK (WOW) PROJECT - Group 2

Since receiving your donations through GlobalGiving, our WOW project has been able to support street connected & homeless youth in the following ways;

• Encouraging their economic sustainability through access to vocational and livelihood skills training so as to be better able to avail of employment or livelihood opportunities.

All the  WOW 2 youth participated in business training classes where Jane instructed them on basic but fundamental lessons on how to manage the smallest and simplest of businesses. After completing the classes, they are awarded certificates of participation and completion. As most of the youth have never had any certificate from school or otherwise they are proud to receive these. Following the theory we began looking at the practical side for those with various interests. One youth was specifically interested in being a barber and he is now undergoing an apprenticeship in this work. Others were interested in  the area of catering /food vending and we are engaging with them to be able to do such. During September four youth were enrolled for a month’s  residential course on organic agriculture run by Thrive For Good / Organics for Orphans. They successfully completed the course and were awarded certificates. Two are looking to engage practically in basic food production. Another youth wished to receive a trolly/cart, which the project has been able to acquire for him, to perform daily tasks like ferrying luggage and fetching water for hotels and other businesses and he is now earning a basic living from this. Support is ongoing as the youth start out in their businesses.    

• Promoting their personal wellbeing through supported access to medical services, food, clothing and meeting their need for shelter through access to affordable accommodation.

The project is currently paying rent for over 10 street related youths and still has plans to settle more. In November we were able to facilitate one of our youth enrolling in an alcohol rehabilitation centre for a 3 month residential programme. During the period we have also looked to facilitate home visits to reconnect the youth with their families/relatives/guardians. As a result of one of these visits one of our youth has been able to go back home and, with support from the project, was able to resettle and build his own simple structure on his piece of land. On Sunday nights about 50 youth receive a mug of porridge before they settle down for the night. These in the main are youth who are still on the streets, many who are younger and who may join WOW groups in the future.   

• Facilitating learning and development of life management skills within their community and society.

The project welcomes the youth from Monday to Friday to indulge in different activities such as gardening, crafts, basic computer training and social activities such as sports activities, swimming, museum visits etc. Weekly on Wednesdays we had sessions on sexual health. From this we facilitated a number of the youth, who were ready and wished to get tested for HIV to have the testing and counselling carried out at our premises. In addressing day to day issues which arise and through formal sessions life skills such as communication, stress management, collaboration, conflict resolution, creativity, time management, respect etc. are discussed. This has in turn helped the youth to learn to express their emotions in most cases without resorting to violence. Responsibilities and tasks are shared which brings out the leadership and other group roles in the members. Hygiene and sanitation is also emphasized by providing water and soap for bathing and doing laundry.  

• Encouraging their active citizenship.

Since the project works with youths above the age of 18, we support them in the process of applying for the National Identification Cards. To date, more than 20 youths have applies, 12 have successfully been processed and 3 have received their IDs.   

• Graduation.

On the 17^th December, 2021, WOW Group 2 officially graduated from the project after completing the various trainings offered by the programme as mentioned above. As 2022 begins we will continue journeying with these youth as they venture practically into the world of work and a life less connected to the streets. 

The funds raised from yourselves through GlobalGiving since September has allowed us to be part of the lives of the youth and to shape them in a positive way. In this way, it is envisioned the young people will become ‘included’ as opposed to ‘excluded’ and better positioned to lead self-determined lives.

Thank you for your support to our work. At this time we would also like to acknowledge the support of our small team but also to those who chose to volunteer with us during the period. As we start 2022 they will be missed - Firstly huge thanks to Tony who lead the work from the end of 2019 as we established WOW 1 and then WOW 2. Thanks also to our short term volunteers Nick and Angus for all they gave to the WOW 2 programme during the 3 months they each spent with us working towards the AMV mission - "To share who we are and not just what we have".