Dear Kids for Kenya Supporters,
We are so pleased and fortunate to be able to write you about our time spent at Humble Hearts School in Nairobi this past June. With your generous contributions we were able to give back to the community which has opened up to us so warmly. We were able to use our time to better understand the history and vision of Humble Hearts, foster important relationships with staff and students, and to engage in the service of the whole Humble Hearts community.
Humble Hearts once again made us feel so welcome. We are truly fortunate to have found such a supportive, open community with which to partner. Traveling this year as an educator-only group, we were able to dedicate more time to understanding the history, philosophy and culture of the school. What began as a small social work outreach program to serve the marginalized and often misunderstood populations of deaf children has grown into a K-12 school and orphanage that fully integrates deaf and hearing students. Humble Hearts emphasizes inclusion and fosters respect. We came away inspired by what we learned. Director and co-founder Beatrice Anunda has created an environment in which staff seeks effective new strategies to engage their students in learning. Across ages and subjects, Beatrice is looking for a variety of ways to introduce concepts and material to a diverse body of learners.
The Humble Hearts community, and all of Kenya, is recovering from the political violence that followed last December’s presidential election. Despite the devastation, many people are now more hopeful for unity between neighboring groups than they have been in a generation due to the power sharing compromise in the national government. The shutdown of schools and businesses during the violence, and the subsequent flight of refugees have made it more difficult to meet daily needs. The disruption has contributed to a six hundred percent increase in the cost of food since our visit twelve months previous.
Despite these challenges, the Humble Hearts community is in many ways thriving. We visited the future home of the new school and orphanage now under construction. The current orphanage can hold 45 children. The new building will be able to accommodate 120 and feature improvements such as concrete floors, running water, electricity, and green space in which the children can play and ultimately raise a garden. We are delighted to see Humble Hearts developing sustainable programs that directly support the nutritional and financial needs of the community.
Beatrice will be visiting Trillium this fall. She is coming to study how American society supports students with disabilities, and to learn what tools and techniques could translate to supporting the deaf population at Humble Hearts. Trillium looks forward to being able to repay the kindness, affection, and generosity of the Humble Hearts community as we play host this October.
One of the most rewarding parts of our trip this June was to be able to see the work we did last year. It was truly a pleasure to witness how each and every thing we supported Humble Hearts in building or developing is being well used and well cared for. All of the plants around the perimeter are thriving. Tables, benches, and shelves are polished from much use. The girls group which we supported in developing last year has been meeting weekly since then. We were able to add to our body of service to Humble Hearts this trip by contributing, among other things:
- Benches, tables, and desks.
- 200 reusable feminine hygiene pads, “glad rags”, as well as other feminine hygiene supplies.
(A special thanks go out to all the volunteers that lovingly sewed all the glad rags.)
- A sewing machine and surger which will allow the Humble Hearts community to sew more glad rags, make their own school uniforms, and train students with a marketable skill.
- One year’s worth of uniforms, boots and shoes for 25 students.
- Massive amounts of school supplies, including paper, pencils, crayons, paint, chalk, scissors, and pencil sharpeners.
- Math training with manipulatives and curriculum.
- Two months worth of food for the entire school (Thank you Coffee Cart!).
- Literacy supplies, including games, charts and tools to help get kids engaged, moving, and excited around literacy.
- Clothing, from infant size to adult, to over 100 Humble Hearts community members.
- More accessible, accurate record systems for administrative staff.
- Plans for sustainable future projects.
- An electric drill, planer, and assorted hand tools for mini-grant recipient, carpenter, and all around great guy Ray Ayaya.
- Supplies with which carpenter Ray can build additional shelves for each of the baby rooms, allowing teachers to keep supplies and materials clean and dry by getting them off the ground.
- Two new stoves, pots, and utensils for the kitchen, effectively saving the kitchen matron Mary an estimated three hours of work per day in preparation time.
- A boys’ group, composed of all of the male teachers, and boys ages 11-17, to support young men in working through issues of mental and physical health.
It is truly an honor and privilege to be engaged in such work. We deeply appreciate the support of our community here in the United States that helps make this work possible. We are enthusiastic about our relationship with Humble Hearts and look forward to cultivating a long, caring, and supportive relationship. Kids for Kenya will be returning to Nairobi this coming March with about a dozen high school students from Trillium. Students hoping to travel to Kenya must first successfully complete six months of study and fundraising in order to be eligible for the trip. We will henceforth be changing our annual trip to March. If you are considering supporting Kids for Kenya again in the future, please contribute your tax deductible donation by then. Attached please find your receipt for your previous donation. Do no hesitate to contact us if you have any questions about our program. Thank you again for the support.
Warm regards,
Polly Christopher and Ken Gadbow
Founders and Directors, Kids for Kenya
