Oh What A Day Thursday Was!

Everyone who knows me, knows that I am not techno savvy ... but I will do my best! We were up early and greeted with homermade pancakes to give us the strength we needed to face our morning's job - packing 40,000 pounds of food that will be distributed to over 300 families on Friday. Yes you are reading correctly - 40,000 pounds of maize and beans. Although hard work and extremely tiring, the morning was filled with wonderful moments. The girls from our street girls home, NEEMA, came with their teachers to work alongside us, and what fun it was! A young teenager whom I had met two years ago shared some of her story and her growth and success because of the teachers and support she receives at NEEMA, an original Hope2Kenya initiative! A second young lady spoke quietly to me as we filled our bags saying that she remembered when she first saw us two years ago when our team first came to her village, Kolongolo. This girl has now been living at NEEMA for one year. She is healthy, is working at a Grade 6 level, and even though she is learning to sew with our vocational teacher, she is more interested in agriculture and gardening. It was such a delight to see these girls who had been living in such horrible conditions doing so well and looking forward to learning more and to having a future. Other great moments were sitting and sharing lunch together in the back yard of our compound at TI and the rousing game of volleyball at the end!

The afternoon offered a new experience for all of us. We drove outside of Kitale to a baby home called In Step. This is an American NGO that takes in abandoned, not orphaned, babies and children. There are 81 children there and when I say abandoned that is exactly what I mean. The youngest baby there is one month old and was left literally at their doorstep.The home is clean and staffed by wonderful and caring women who diaper, feed, burp, hug, play and teach the children...and how many of us have complained and moaned about the challenges of raising a family of one, two or three!

The ride to this baby home was another example of driving on Kenyan roads. Overall the roads are filled with holes and bumps which make for some interesting moves by the drivers. A fifteen to twenty kilometer trip can take up to one and a half hours at times, but the drives through the countryside are well worth it. For all the poverty and dire conditions that we see on a daily basis, it is nice to be reminded of the incredible beauty of this country! With all of the rains Kenya has been having, the corn is high, the landscape is lush and green, and the flowers are brilliant. Kenya is truly a country of contrasts filled with many warm and caring people!

We are all fine. Our team is incredible and it is such fun sharing this experience this year with our exceptional youth group! The energy is infectious!

I have included some photos from the beginning of our day with our food packing, to our visit to the baby home and ending with a picture of a Kenyan landscape. When you look at the picture of the children at the baby home, I hope you share a smile as you see these cute children holding and treasuring their 'Izzy' dolls made by many of you at home who support again and again our Hope2Kenya dreams of bringing hope to the children of Kenya.

Enjoy!
Cathy