“Waa……an attendance of 66 pastors and parents! Equipping Pastors Community Program was in full swing and hope was rising concerning the plight of children on the streets. They had seen the need but they didn’t know how to respond to it.  TKW team went to the community to raise awareness following increased number of children from Kisii and its environs coming to the streets of Nairobi. They therefore sought to address the problem from its source. “How was this going to be done?” We asked, “The answer lies with the church, the people of Kisii and through equipping them with the tools for dealing with the problem”.

 

“Before we used to look for a quick solution by giving these children a coin, offer andazi   (doughnut), conducting a one-time feeding program or just pass without showing any emotion.” These were some of the comments from the group gathered at A.C.K Kisii branch. They settled quickly and were all keen to jot down points in their note books. As the training came to an end, questions streamed in.  Some of them had rescued and reintegrated children with their families and were greatly encouraged.  We had come to equip them with tools and emphasize the need for the church to take up the responsibility of being a voice for the children on the streets as well as gate keepers for their children.

With reported 3000 children on the streets of Kisii, we prayed that there will be an out-pouring of God’s anointing as the Pastors strategized to go out and do what Matthew 25:40 says, “….when you did it to one of the least of these…”.  Some of the participants were father-figures and elders in their communities and this training was timely. They planned to go and teach their congregations what they had learned and together participate in the restoration of children from Kisii. TKW team came back to Nairobi exhausted but thankful and anticipating a great harvest of children within Kisii

 

Equipping the church in Kitale

TKW was encouraged as 70 participants gathered for equipping pastors and parents’ community seminar.   This training was planned after prior visits that indicated that Trans-Nzoia County had an increase in the number children on the streets. As one of TKW team talked about the plight of children on the streets, you could hear a pin drop as they listened. The eager group asked questions, sought clarity because they had seen children loitering in their market places, wearing filthy, tattered clothes, picking rotten food and begging from the villagers of Kolongolo area. Some of these participants did not know how to respond to this situation and this training was timely. They expressed the desire to engage in the rescue of a child and to walk alongside them and their families.  They were willing to unite and address this issue. We expect to hear positive reports of the rescued children and being restored back to their families through this group of eager local people.

Equipping parents and pastors community program has been made possible through partnerships.  Together everyone achieves more. If you and your ten (10) friends gave £10/$12/ Kshs.1,500/- each for six (6) months, this would enable us to rescue and restore two children and their families, making them sustainable.

 

Charity Auction: A fun-filled evening – bidding gets under way

‘Educate a child, empower him for life. Knowledge is power.’

‘Going first time, going second time, gone’, said Carl, the auctioneer.  One by one the items on the auction catalogue went under the hammer.  There was excitement and anticipation as the auction progressed starting with the auction lots and then the promises.  The purpose of the auction was to set up an education fund to ‘Educate a child, empower him for life. Knowledge is power.’

The coordinating team arrived at 6:45 pm to set up the auction items.  The staff at Sketty Hall had arranged the tables beautifully for a great occasion and were on hand to assist us.  Items for the silent auction were set out around the room for the guests to make their bids as they arrived or during the break.

The guests streamed into the hall from 7 pm and started looking around.  The auction started by 7:20pm when Robin invited the guests at the same time welcomed Heddwyn to briefly introduce Children of Hope.  A power point presentation and a short video helped prepare the waiting guests.  When the auctioneer took the microphone, the guests gave him their full attention and the bidding started.

What an evening!  Some items like the 2 train tickets were very popular as the guests tried to become the highest bidder.  Can you imagine a ball getting so much attention?  Well, it wasn’t just a ball, it was Swansea City FC’s centenary ball signed by all the players!  It was in great demand which was great for raising more money.   A chocolate fudge cake that wasn’t even in the catalogue lived up to the saying, ‘selling like hot cakes’.   It was brought late but went as fast as it came to the auctioneer’s table.  Other items were slow in going but at the end of the day most of the items on the catalogue went to the highest bidder.  Many of the guests bagged a bargain as they helped Children of Hope set up an education fund.  “Educate a child, empower him for life. Knowledge is power”.

 

Halfway through the evening, Robin announced that the guests could take a break and enjoy the ‘light buffet’ laid out for us by Sketty Hall staff.  There was so much food that everyone present could get first, second or even a third

helping.  There were tasty snacks to tempt even those who had had their evening meal.  At the end of the evening, there were still more snacks for the guests to take a doggy bag together with their bargains.

It was a lovely evening of a new experience for some.  New experiences take us to new levels.  The guests went home with bargains and Children of Hope will have an education fund with over £1,400 raised on the night.  We trust that this is the beginning of new things as this fund to “Educate a child, empower him for life. Knowledge is power” grows.

Thank you to all individuals and organisations who gave generously as well as those who joined us for the auction.  Together empowering more children through education!

 

 

 

 

 

 

‘Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves…’ Boaz talked passionately about his village as we embarked on the journey to his home and he was excited about meeting his family. He knows a lot about indigenous ways of farming around his home area and shared with us non-stop about his community on our way to his home. He also told us, ‘You have given me a voice when I was voiceless’ Boaz was pleased that we were accompanying him to plead his case with his guardian. He left home for the streets after a misunderstanding with his guardian and then he ran away from school without permission.

 

He had often contemplated going home but was fearful of his guardian’s response.
The intelligent and happy 14 year old Boaz was referred to TKW Team by Kitale District Children’s Office after being found loitering on the streets of Kitale town. The District Children Officer promised to follow up Boaz’s case with his guardian. We later proceeded to reintegrate him with his family on 5th April 2013. Boaz apologized for his running away and admitted his mistakes. He also asked his guardian for forgiveness and was received with much joy.
Boaz’s parents left him under the care of his cousin while they live and work in Ruiru in Central Kenya. His guardian said that his parents wanted to give him the best education and therefore put him in a boarding school in Kitale, Kolongolo. Although Boaz has resumed school and he is settling well with his guardian, he is missing his parents’ love and care. The distance from Boaz’s school and where his parents live takes a day to travel on public transport. During our follow-up visits, we will seek to understand why his parents have left him in his cousin’s care instead of living with him as an only child.
Boaz’s family is not dysfunctional but there are issues that led him to the streets and need to be addressed. We are here to speak up for children like Boaz. We would appreciate partnerships for team support and follow-up expenses to restore relationships between Boaz and his family.

“Educate a child, empower him for life.  Knowledge is power”

Ideas are just ideas until we act on them.

Late last year friends of Children of Hope sent us an email offering us the use of Sketty Hall for an event to generate resources for children or just an evening with our partners.  They had booked Sketty Hall and paid £500 for an event that didn’t take place and they wanted to donate it.  We started thinking of ideas how to make use of this opportunity.

The idea for an auction was suggested when we talked with Sketty Hall manager.  We shared the idea with Robin Birch who visited Kenya with a team from Parklands Church in 2007.  Robin had organized another charity Auction for Children of Hope and had the experience.  We suggested a few other people like Mike Sheehan and Helen Day.

That set the ball rolling to organize a Charity Auction that will generate funds to ‘Educate a child, empower him for life.  Knowledge is power.’

Read part of George’s story….. George’s aspirations!

Unlocking  potential through Education

“By going to school one gains knowledge and that knowledge is what one requires for him or her to distinguish himself or herself from others.  By going to school one gets to know what he wants to be in life.  Hs goals, vision and dreams becomes the fuel that drives this person to continue with school.  In all this one needs to give God His place so that He can lead you….For my case, since I am much interested in electronics I am getting assistance by going to places where I am exposed to this field and that is helping me in achieving my goal. I have known how to service computers, open it,  put it back to its original state.

To build more capacity I want to undertake ICT course this will give me an edge as I step into the market.I aspire to be an electronic engineering person, I desire to work in such companies like Sony apple, L.G, Samsung and finally I want to come up with my own electronic valley/company.” says George.

Unlocking potential through education for a better future! There are many Georges out there that need your support to help them realize their dreams!

• 50 children rescued from the streets since the beginning of 2013 and many follow-up visits to children and families to support them.
• Equipping Parents seminars – for the last two years, we have held these seminars at Bethany Halfway house and we’ve had a big challenge of accommodating the parents, community workers and the TKW team for the three days.  We trust that your gift will enable us to begin to build extra accommodation for these seminars and our high school students mentoring camps.
• This year, we are taking these seminars to the communities where we have a big concentration of children coming to the streets. We are mobilizing churches in Kisii County in Western Kenya to address the big issue of dysfunctional families and lack of effective parenting leading more children to the streets.
• One of our partner churches in Cornwall raised over £2,000 last year for building houses for two families.  One of these houses was built last month for Nicholas’ family.

More children are now in safe and secure families

What shall we say about the many children and families who have been visited and encouraged, children who are now pursuing college and university education and many more stories…!   Clinton has just joined University to study finance and commerce.  He needs a sponsor for the next three years. Thank you for making lasting impact to the lives of some of these children who are pursuing their dreams.

The event takes place on Friday May 10^th. 2013 at  Sketty Hall. Doors will be open at 6.45 p.m.  Heddwyn will give a short update of the work of Tumaini kwa watoto at around 7.15 before the auction begins at 7.30.  There will be a break for snacks and we plan to wind up by around 9.30 p.m.

 

 

 

Items being auctioned include:

1. Tickets for family (4) at Scarlets match next season (£65)
2. Meal vouchers for Vanilla Pod, Tycoch (for 2)
3. Meal vouchers for Buck Carvery (for 2)
4. Tour of Millenium stadium for 6 (for 4 and 2)
5. Dan-yr-Ogof caves tickets (2 adults and 2 children)
6. LC2 family pass (2 adults, 2 children)
7. 2 rail tickets for any First Great Western return journey
8. Boiler service from Gas Wales
9. Signed Stereophonics album cover
10. Paintings by local Swansea artists
11. 2 tickets for Royal British Legion charity concert in Carmarthen in October
12. Surf lesson for 1 person
13. 8 piece dinner set
14. Leather easy chair
15. Kenya framed wildlife batiks

 

Further promises are:

1. Meal for 4 at Cheryl & Chris Ditton
2. Breakfast for 6 at Lynne & John English’s
3. Half day sewing lesson by Lynne English
4. Guitar set-up including string change
5. 10 dog walks from Becky Morris
6. Owen Rennie for 3 hours of house cleaning
7. Owen Rennie – 1 black bag of ironing
8. Leadership seminar by a John Maxwell-certified speaker ‘Put your dreams to the test’
9. Spring clean with Lynne English and Cath Sheehan (6 hours)
10. Photo session with iNNOVATION PHOTOGRAPHY (www.inovation-photography.co.uk)
11. Guided tour round Swansea with John English
12. Carrot cake (9 inch diameter) baked when required by Helen Day
13. Decorated birthday cake from Hannah Cox

 

We appreciate everyone who have kindly donated their time, service and resources.

 

 

Brian Wekesa is the kind of boys on the streets who could steal from you.  He looked restless, his clothes were grimy but his rare smile was gripping.  With his kind of smile you could find yourself surrounded by a group of other boys who would strip you of your possessions in the middle of city.  That’s why you need to care and share his story. He said he had been on streets for 2 years.  As he began to trust us, he told us that he had found it very difficult to cope with life on the streets and he looked downtrodden with no hope to cling on.

Tumaini Kwa Watoto team knows how to deal with Brian’s kind of situation.  Your investment in the team is investment in boys like Brian. He desired to go back home to his family but did not have the courage to go home.  His older brother had lured him to run away from home out of disobedience.  Brian also shared that he left home because life unstable due to misunderstanding between his parents. We continued to encourage him that with God there was hope for a new start.

When Brian was ready to go home, Tumaini team was there to walk with him.  He was now ready to ask for forgiveness and to be reconciled with his mother.  On our way to Brian’s home we met his younger brother, Boniface who was coming from school. They recognized each other and hugged in joy. This was a humbling experience and an encouragement to see that Brian was loved by his family. Boniface led us to their new home where we met his mother.  Brian was ready to build with his family again.

Dear partners, to bring children like Brian to a place where they decide to return home to their family takes hard work.  Much more resources are needed to reconcile and restore relationships between these children and their families. Tumaini team members relentlessly pursue children on the streets and in government rehab centres.  Your investment of finance, spiritual and emotional support of the team is investment in boys like Brian.   As we invest resources into the lives of children, let’s also invest in the lives of those who labour day and night to see children, families and communities getting on with their lives.  The team that rescued Brian had to travel overnight for 8 hours to get to Brian’s home. Your investment means that Brian is no longer on the streets begging or stealing from unsuspecting people. Please care to share.

 

This was like a dream, but dreams come true.  10years on Grace caught up with Kilonzo a.k.a Simon Kuria – The boy has become a man.  He is now married and works as a matatu (a 14-seater mini bus used for public transport with a yellow stripe) driver in Nairobi.

As 2013 dawned, Grace was going through her phone directory and noticed Mama Kilonzo’s phone number and decided to call.  An excited lady, Lucy answered.  ‘Sister Grace, where have you been?  The boys, Kilonzo and his brother, Kimeu have been asking about you and mum’.  She shared with Grace how God had shown them his favour.  They now have their own home in Nyahururu to the West of Mt Kenya.  She shared that all her five children were doing well.  Later Grace contacted Kilonzo and invited him to join for her church service on March 17^th and later went to Grace’s house for lunch.

Our investment into this family has borne lasting fruits many years on.  Lucy is now doing business to support her family and putting money aside to send her daughter Angela to high school next when she completes primary school this year.  Peter Kimeu her eldest son is now a farmer and has his own land – he would like to complete high school somehow.

Lucy is widow whose life changed dramatically when her husband died.  No sooner than he was buried that things turned bad.  He was the sole bread winner and this meant that Lucy had to find a job leaving her children under the care of her in-laws.  The only job she could find was as a waiter in a bar/public drinking place and went home every Saturday night to take food to her children.  That’s how Kilonzo ran away from home one day to go look for his mum because there was no food in the house.  We don’t know how he ended up on the streets of Nairobi from Kaewa in Eastern province.

We rescued Kilonzo and he stayed with the Williams for a few weeks.  He is a very bright boy who took us to Machakos, 20 miles from Nairobi and connected us with his mum.  He didn’t want to go back to his grandparents without his mum.  Over a period of time, we convinced Lucy that her place was with her children.  In the meantime, we wrote and email asking for someone to sponsor Lucy to start a business and to be with her children.  One family responded and committed to giving £20 a month which went on for a year.  Lucy’s business was doing well but her relationship with her father-in-law was not good. Her mother-in-law had died suddenly the year before. 

Out of the blue, we got a phone from Lucy saying that she had moved her children back to her maternal family.  Her uncle had welcomed them with open arms and given them a piece of land.  They had started growing their own food and settling well in their new location.  Kilonzo and his brother Kimeu opted to remain in Nairobi and find ways of making a living.  Life was not easy and they often came to Tumaini office to updates us on their progress but their survived to tell their stories.  We reconnected with this family and their story is far from over.

What can we say to these things?  When we invest in people, we make an eternal investment that cannot be quantified.  That’s why we make it our business to see transformation of children, families and communities because everyone matters.  Investing £20 a month into a family, you impact the lives of 2-5 children, get the family back on its feet and in due course allow them to get on with their lives as responsible people in their communities – Changing their lives good with the love of Christ.

 

 

Erick lokampi is a Turkana boy born 13 years ago at a small village in the plains  of  a locality called Lenget , Kampi ya moto.

He is a short, dark coloured chocolate boy who is so much outgoing .He is a friendly, warm hearted young man with a potential to achieve much in life at his age.

The boy would want to go back to school so that he can achieve his dream of becoming a teacher. He left school two years ago at class two to fend for himself .They are six children in their family under the care of the grandmother. Both parents have passed on and in this case, one would not want to imagine what goes on in  the mind of the grandmother when she finds that she cannot meet the needs of her grandchildren. This condition must have made Erick feel like a man who is meant to be a provider ,he has to move out and look for survival ways which could also help him chip in the family kitty and lessen the grandmother’s burden. Just like any other man, he must have heard stories about life in the cities which is painted as glamorous with a lot of opportunities to accommodate everybody. I am imagining how Erick was dying with anticipation to grab those opportunities. I am seeing him trying tooth and nail to look for information which could free him from the sting of poverty. To his amazement, he realizes finances are required to facilitate him from point A to B but he is too young to get an employment which could enable him to earn enough to embark on his journey. He results to use unorthodoxical means to achieve his aspiration. This opens a door for him to look for items which has been left unattended so that he can sell and get money. He finds himself becoming a petty offender not out of choice but circumstances beyond him push him into it.

The circumstances back home are pathetic. The grandmother sleeps on the floor of her house ,on makeshift bed taking the comfort of an improvised mattress which has been made of sacks .Her presumed mud walled room accommodates even chickens some of which are hatching eggs. The presence of other siblings and scramble for food  might have made him feel out of place because they appear to be a tribe. This and other unforeseen issues must have made Erick feel ,there must be another better life than what is being encountered. Through thick and thin ,he decides to embark on a journey to the unknown hoping to strike it rich. Once away from home,  he finds himself immersed in challenges bigger than his mind can handle at that age .He discovers that the only way to survive is to look for food in the garbage pits and sleep on the hard floor of the veranda of buildings inside a sack to keep warm. This he discovers that it is much more than he had bargained for. The urge for comfort under the roof, warmth in a house,  encouragement and sense of be valued in a home setting rang  a bell in his mind. The idea of children playing in a learning  environment at school triggers his wanting to join the pack and be counted among the number.

It dawns on him, East or West home is the best. He also discovers that unrestricted freedom can be very dangerous. He also notes that better the discipline at home with love than what the world gives without mercy He yarns for home and like the prodigal son goes back home down hearted wondering whether he will be accepted back. Once he sets his foot back home,he is received with open hands and lot of jubilation He settles back home with a lot to share with his peers. Rebellion has taught him afew lessons in life he will live to tell .He immediately embarks on his dream which is resumed by joining school.

Care givers include parents and grandparents who take time out to attend our equipping parents’ seminar.  Several issues are addressed including how we are exploring ways of generating income at Bethany Halfway House.  We encourage the caregivers to apply what they’ve seen by using their small pieces of land and work toward food security. Lack of adequate food at home is one of the reasons that push children to the streets.  Every skill they get will make them better parents to give their children a secure future.

 

Augustine (one of our young men) took his position to share his story with the parents during our Equipping Parents Seminar in November 2012.   He appreciated TKW TEAM for the advice he was given over the years that still helps him when things are difficult and urged the parents to give careful attention to the training.  He also said, ‘Dear parents please take care of your children because at times it’s the mistake of the parent that drives a child to the streets’. Who would have known 12 years ago that Augustine would become a voice to the voiceless!  Grace said, ‘Let’s build our children, to build our nation.  As I stood with Augustine, I remembered the 12- hour journey to Western Kenya that we made in November 2000 as we reintegrated Augustine with his family.  Today he stood with me as a testimony of the work of restoration’.

’As parents, we are our children’s role models and they reflect our lifestyle positively or negatively’’. This was said during the session on ‘the value of a child’. The parents were urged to give their children values that will help them make choices and decisions.  More is ‘caught than taught’.

Journey of life was an encouragement as parents received hope for their children and families .The story of how Ruth’s life turned around after she lost her husband and left her people to support Naomi, her mother-in-law was moving. How things changed for Ruth, she got married and had children.  The message was clear, ‘it doesn’t matter what you have gone through in life there is hope’. We are giving these families a voice too.

These grandmothers never give up….

It was great to welcome Elizabeth and Joyce, two grandmothers from Molo. They are looking after their grandchildren: Gabriel Kihiyu and Joseph Karanja. They came for training because they want to know, ‘How can we help our grandchildren succeed in life?’ It has not been easy to carry the responsibility of being a guardian.”At some point early in the morning I had to look for Gabriel on the streets,” says Elizabeth while Joyce shared how challenging it has been to take care of Joseph who needs regular medication. Equipping Parents Program has really encouraged them not to give up on their grandsons who have a great future. They carry the big responsibility for these children’s future – how they reflect strong values to live by. Now both Gabriel and Joseph are settling well at home, reports Wambui.

A new start: hope, pray and go

[one_third] [/one_third] [two_third last=last] Years of wasted life – heavy and dirty jacket, hard life, hopelessness, describes Paul’s life on the streets. He looked like an old man and dejected when we first met him on the streets.  We soon discovered that he had been on streets for two and half years, and his appearance reflected it.

Paul’s story is no different from many other children we’ve meet on the streets:  parents separated, a broken family and a grandmother picks up the pieces.  As much as Paul loved his hard working paternal grandmother who opened her home without parental authority and guidance, he ran away from school to the streets in search for a better life.

As we met with Paul regularly, slowly but sure, his self-esteem began to grow.  We began to see signs of hope, of change and transformation.  Paul now looked his age, 14 years old.  One day Paul expressed a desire to go back home and plead with his grandmother to receive him back.  Paul said he was ready to face his grandmother and apologize for past mistakes. The team assured him that they would plead his case with his grandmother about his past mistakes.[/two_third] Parents’ separation often causes much damage to many children like Paul, driving them to the streets where their lives and dreams are wasted.  Paul has a dream of becoming a teacher, which cannot be realized on the streets.   We are glad that Tumaini Kwa Watoto team is on the streets and in a position to reach such children like Paul.

Paul’s turning point came when we rescued him from the streets on 14^th November 2012 and thus begun a journey of restoration.  We rescued him from the streets and reunited with his grandmother.  When Paul’s mother heard that he had come back, she sent a message requesting Paul to visit her.  Paul went to visit his mother during the school holidays, a few miles from his grandmother’s home.  The visit went well and Paul decided to stay with his mother and go back to school.

When we visited Paul after seven weeks, we could hardly believe the change that has taken place. Paul’s hopelessness had gone and he has begun to blossom. Paul has gone back to school and the evidence of restoration can be seen all over his life.  He is finally home where he belongs with his mother.

 

February 1 2013.