Aussie Buddies,Adelaide,South Australia

Much love and thanks to a dear friend,Annie from far away from Adelaide, South Australia who has just spent another 5 weeks with me. Annie and I first met in 2006 when she first came to Kenya to Volunteer with AMKA HIV/AIDS Project through Global Volunteer Network,Newzealand. She loved Kenya and the field work so much,she returned within 3 months that same year and has been coming ever since. She has formed her own foundation with the help of friends back home, called Caring for the Children of Africa and comes to work alongside me every year. This past 5 weeks we have been extremely busy and have had lots of fun spending the fundraising money from Adelaide. We have built 14 huts in Pipeline Camps, started another big chicken project,also there,buit an outdoor kitchen for the porridge program at Kikkopey Camp,finished building a classroom at Jikaze, as well as buying food supplies including maize and beans seedlings, and fertilizers for more crops at Jikaze. We are also yet to purchase some goats for Kikkopey. We thank Annie and other donors so much who continue to spend a lot of their time with fund-raising back in their home towns. It means a lot to us!!! God Bless!!!

We Are Getting There!

Hi guys, i am updating you on school construction progress at GIWA Farm, Nakuru. It was a funny day with the kids trying to 'manage my mind by telling me lies'.Gosh! how they looked innocent as they continued 'drawing' when i asked them why they did not go to school on that particular day. They were 5 of them and they came and sat next to me and we started chatting. I asked each one of them why they never attended school and they all gave me 'very good reasonable answers' but i knew they were managing my mind. Another one came running from nowhere and i asked him the reason why he did not also attend the school and the answer was'i am sick'. Anyway i just laughed as this was the only thing remaining at the time. Just looking at the innocence on their faces when they kept 'drawing and drawing' but it was fun for me. They reminded me on how i used to 'manage my mum's mind' as she was easier to 'manage' than my dad( we know alot of us have been there). They made my day. These kids walk more than 1 and half hours to their nearest school including the nursery children. Can you imagine your child walking such a long distance every morning and evening and some of them don't even have meals waiting for them when they get back homes? This is why they have to learn how to 'survive' including of not even going to school. Ok, lets get back to work,we are now on the 5th and 6th classes and they are almost done. We will only be remaining 2 more classes,administration block and toilet blocks for both boys and girls and we will be done. By the end of this year we hope to have a complete primary school done and kids ready to occupy it by early january,2011. I think i will be more happier than the children as i know what it is to walk for a long distance to go to school while you are child and go without a meal for the day. Thank you to the World teacher Aid. You have no idea what you have done to these children and they will have the education like any other child. They have already gone through so much looking back from where they come from since 2008 while the violence turned their lives upside down. When you have a meal,water to drink,a cloth to wear,a shelter to lay your head on,your children have access to education, never forget to thank you ,your creator as anything may happen anytime,anywhere and anyhow. And when we have a chance to help those who are in need,lets do it as the chance may fly out of our hands unexpectedly.

No one can Hold the Joy of These Maasai Women in Amboseli

The maasai women decided to spend their day at the borehole site to watch it getting tested and for them to carry some back home. You can see the joy on their faces and this is a big breakthrough for them in the area they live. One day when i went to visit the water driling site, a group of maasai women were passing by where we were and i decided to walk with them as they were going to fetch the water and i wanted to see the distance they walk from home to water station. After walking a few kilometers with them, i felt i didn't have any more energy to walk in the sun for more kilometers and i decided to go back to the site. These women walk with their babies infront and water at the back. They have been leaving home at 9am in the morning to walk to the water station and get home at 2pm. Each one of us can imagine the joy they have after having this borehole drilled next to their homes. The water has been approved clean and hygienic for consumption. We are getting there and everything has been going very well so far.

Maasai women and their families Have the Joy of their Life!

The day started like any other day for the maasai community in Oloolorai Village in Namanga Division on the border of Kenya-Tanzania. We started water drilling on the proposed borehole and within 3 days we had plenty of water coming out more than expected. The joy which struck each one of us is to see the water coming out in plenty and from there each one of us knew the life for this community has completely changed. I opted to spend a night in the bush with the maasai men and boys and don't forget this area is next to Amboseli National Park and the wildlife animals are in the area. I definitely didn't mind at all spending the night on an open fire with maasai men and checking around whether there were elephants around us. Nowadays i fear monkeys than elephants after three female monkeys chased me as they wanted to beat me and one of them scratched my leg but the guard saved me as he came running with a big stick and this was the second time it happened to me. I felt very safe and my only interest was to make sure everything was done in the right way. More than feeling cold and scared of wild animals, we had so much fun the whole night in the bush. When we completed water drilling at around 5am in the morning,the driller started casing the borehole but i was longing to go home as i was very tired and sleepy and i knew i had a long drive awaiting ahead of me from Amboseli to Namanaga to Nairobi. The drive took me 4 hours as i was driving myself passing through the bushes and i felt very safe although the maasai guys who i was with at the water drilling site were so worried about me but i think i am just used to do things by myself focusing on the positive sides without thinking about anything negative. At this time i just wanted things done although i was very tired and since it was a weekend i didn't want to bother anyone at all or anyone to inconveniece me with my plans. I knew i was going to spend the night in the bush and so i had to keep my mouth chat.
The casing ended at 6pm and the guys had to leave the site and after 2 days they went back with another truck to do the water pump testing which went very well and everything was positive. We have now been working for the pump house,generator,water pump and plumbing. I wish each one of us was there to see the joy this maasai community have. I cannot explain it. Thank you to the Australian Embassy in Kenya for funding this GREAT project as you have no any idea what you have done to the community within Oloolorai. Will keep you updated with the events which will follow as the Australian Embassy in kenya launch this project.

Women Beads project

Thanks to GVN Foundation,Newzealand for funding beads project for women at pipeline IDPs camp in Nakuru. The women are very hardworking and the project have been very successful as some of them have been able to provide basic needs to their families and educating their kids in primary and high school through the support of this project. The project has gained a wide market in USA and we do appreciate everyone who has participated through marketing and distributing the bead products. It is a new dawn for these women as they don't have to keep on relaying on hand-outs. We will get there as more and more hands are joining together to give out required support.

Discussion+about+entry:+Improving+maternal+care

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Underway Primary School Construction

Approximately 2,700 former internally displaced persons were ressettled by the government on September last year on 1,187 acres of land and each family benefited with two and half acres. The families were supplied with building materials by the Kenya government and they have started putting up their houses although some are still incomplete due to lack of some of the construction materials. The area they have settled in have no any social amenities within and VICDA found that the social amenties are needed to meet the necessary needs of the Giwa Farm community. VICDA has started constructing a primary school from Nursery school to grade 8 with the help of one of our donors(World Teacher Aid) who is funding for the whole school construction.
A number of children have not been attending school due to lack of uniforms,stationries and money for the tuition and other actitivies in the school. The children have been also been avoiding school due to challenges with hunger as these families are starting to rebuild their lives to have a way of income and building capacity to feed their families in future. The education in school will start in the month of january 2011 with the help of the kenya government where they are going to provide teachers,chalks,and text books. The number of children to attend this school is approximately 600 children and they will be enjoying their education like any other child in the Kenyan society. Many thanks to the World Teachers Aid for all their effort towards this school.

Updates for 2010

Hi everyone, it has been long since i updated you with the prograss of what is going on, on the ground. Alot has been happening within our community and we have made much progress to improve the lives of vulnerable children and families in our Kenyan community. Despite having a few challenges which will always be there, we accommplished a number of projects with a big positive impacts. VICDA in Kenya and GVN Foundation,Newzealand have been able to construct a number of houses for the people who were dispalced by violence and we are still going on with the construction and anyone interested to join us, you can contact us.
Here is a smaple of some of the houses we have constructed for the families in nakuru District in Rift Valley province.