Paint with a little panic!

Today was another amazing day! I crossed the tracks and into Kibera, same things going on of people selling charcoal, roasted corn, and clothing in these wooden and shack hut type structures. I walked to the paint shack and picked up today’s paint. I have been picking it up daily to ensure we use exactly what we need and have no waste since this is not like Home Depot where returns are accepted.  We carried the paint back to the school and met Mr. Mandela to get started. I wanted to do some touching up from yesterday before moving on to new areas of painting.  I repainted a wall and then realized, the kids were starting to come through here for lunch since the kitchen area was next to me and this wall. I decided to stand there as a buffer and remind the kids the paint is wet and please be careful not to push or shove since the paint will get on your hands and clothing. After about 20 minutes of guarding the wall, I asked Principal Peter if one of the high school boys could stand in for me while I moved to another wall since my paint pan would eventually dry up if I don't use it. He said he would send someone and he showed up! I left to go paint another wall and when I came back, there was a sign “Wet Paint” stuck to the wall of….. wet paint. I saw it as allowing me the opportunity to repaint that area again. Hmmm..... 

We did have a little excitement during the painting today….. I am painting next to an unattended classroom, a teacher is between two rooms. The teacher got one room busy with an activity then went to the other to get them going with something. The kids started to get rowdy of course as kids do when having fun so I eyed them to make sure nothing crazy was happening and they were just hopping around having fun, noise started to really rise high and the next thing I know, I hear a scream and crying, something happened. Needham went in there and came out carrying this little girl that was screaming like she was dying and it scared me half to death he put her down in front of me. Her foot was bloody and she couldn’t walk on it well. I asked what happened and she couldn’t talk she was so upset (that kind of cry where the kid doesn’t talk but scream and cry kinda thing) so i look and its a  HOLE in her foot size of a dime, gashed in her foot- it was deep too… so I went into the classroom paint brush in hand and asked who did it and all the students pointed to one and  other girl so I asked her to come with me and we had a discussion about how to treat others .  I poured water over the little girls wound to clear it out to at least see what we had on our hands…. it was pretty bad, I thought…. and no bandaids…. Peter said they don’t have any at all, nothing and it is one of their ongoing challenges…. Needham went down to the corner in Kibera to get some but they didn’t have any. Instead, he came back with gauze wrap but no tape, the corner hut did not have tape to sell. So, I wrapped it up to at least keep dirt and dust out of it and I decided she needed a tetnus shot. I asked Peter where to take her and he said the corner clinic. I asked his permission to leave with this child to do that and he said okay but the cook/helper  went with me due to language barrier since her English was not all that great. It cost ONE DOLLAR for the tetnus shot and then $2 to clean and dress it properly. WOW! But, that is a lot of money to anyone else. I am so glad it happened while I was there. I am taking her back to the clinic on Friday to the same clinic for a check and re-dress and new cleaning of it for the weekend since I won’t be seeing her over the weekend. 

This little girls name is Cyndi, and she is supposed to be under her Grandmothers care although it is a challenge so sometimes the lady teacher at the school takes her home with her family, along with Cyndi’s sister. 

This little girl is amazing to me because she is in school with a smile, eager to learn despite her circumstances. 

Off to Kenya and to Damside Preparatory School!

I crossed the tracks into Kibera and walked 20 minutes into toward the heart of the community to the small paint shop. It was just a shack with some building supplies. The merchant remembered me from yesterday and knew exactly what I wanted- Safaricom Green and Bermuda Blue! No negotiating needed with this guy anymore since Principal Mandela already paved the way on the paint prices and I can just show up and get the inside deal on my own now.

We carried 4 gallons 20 minutes through Kibera over the uneven terrain and finally made it to Damside Preparatory. The kids were still in their classes, but we could not wait any longer to get started since the rain clouds were due to roll in later. We wanted to try to wait so we can avoid the kids accidentally messing up the wet paint (which happened yesterday). I was busy painting a wall with my back turned to the compound center and the kids had dipped their fingers in the paint and decided to decorate Mr. Mandela’s water tower….. so…. we will be adding clean off to my list this week. I only had my back turned for what seemed like 15 minutes and the bottom area was all decorated with white base paint with some having designs on their faces… in only 15 minutes… goodness… kids are quick! (lesson learned!)

The older high school boys were dismissed from class early for our painting project and they were excited for the green and blue today. We were able to complete the outside wall today with both colors, the front door and begin the inside of the compound. We had some extra help today from my Maasai host brother, Josephat, who also brought/donated various colors of paint for small decorative things on the walls which was really kind of him!

Lots of people are very excited about this painting project with us and it has gained support from so many here in the local community! Those passing by have also stopped to give it a look and admire it!

Tomorrow, we continue the painting and hope to at least finish the bottom floor of the compound. This is where the detail painting begins as we paint the frame of doors and windows blue and the walls green. After the compound is completed, later in the week, we move on to paint the Acacia of Hope International logo and school name on the front wall. I think the lettering will be the most time consuming considering the wavy metal walls that are typical in Kibera. Until then.....

Off to Paint the School!

Today was a terrific day! I went to Damside Preparatory and met with the Principal, Peter. Crossing the tracks into Kibera…. again. I was so happy to take that step over and in!!!! The smells of charcoal burning, people cooking mandazi’s to sell for 10 shillings and the sounds of wheel barrels moving and people negotiating…. I am home! I navigated through the very tight walk ways, mostly mud in a market type aisle where merchants were on either side. After dodging a few loose chickens, of all things, a DUCK waddled over and bit my leg. It brought both myself and the locals some laughter in Kibera at the moment. I continued through the narrow path until I made it to the road way and took a right! There was the school just ahead, you cannot miss the hot pink painted structure. I went upstairs and found Peter sitting in his office looking at paperwork. We exchanged greetings and caught up on the last 12 weeks we have not seen one another. I stepped into one of the classrooms as soon as I spotted one of the sponsored girls. I felt bad since there were 20 names floating in my head and trying to match faces with names again was a challenge at first (still working on it). She immediately smiled and waived at me and I did not want to be a further disturbance to her class or the school which….. I was. The kids came out of the classrooms to say “hi, how are you?” and shake my hand.

Myself and my fellow team mate James walked up the street and closer toward the heart of Kibera with the Peter to get the paint. I decided that it was best to get the daily amount needed rather than a large quantity and be left with unused paint. We placed our order for today and this paint shop had to have it brought in by a picki picki driver from the sister store location on the other side of Kibera. 30 minutes later, we had our paint and we were walking back to the school. We made the 20 minute trek back with paint and smiles, ready to begin.

We started with the outer wall and had to finish scraping the paint or else the new paint would not stick. While we worked on the outer walls with the base coat (white) (we needed a base coat bc the current paint and designs would have bled through the new paint and it would not have worked otherwise), the high school boys were released early from their class and they scraped the entire inside compound. We were able to make use of other buckets to pour the base coat paint into several so each of us could begin painting our section given. The whole school was scraped and base coated today!!!!! TEAM WORK AT ITS BEST!!!  We could not begin the school painting with the new colors just yet because we had to allow this coat to dry.

When it came time to reach the top floor of the school for the base coat, I was wondering how we would do it. We had no ladder. So what did the high school boys do? They pulled out the one they started to make by
hand and went to get the thick tree branches and nailed them in as steps on the ladder and up they went to the second floor. Safe? Um, no. But… I had to remember that THIS IS AFRICA! Everything is used, nothing wasted and nothing is turned into something! So they MADE the ladder to get the job done. Their problem solving skills are amazing to me. They didn’t complain or get twisted about having no ladder to get to the top, they made a way!         

An unexpected stop in Burundi

We made it Washington DC with enough time to spare! The airlines were kind enough to issue extra bags to Acacia of Hope International to carry the supplies and things for the girls at no extra charge. I spent a great deal of time weighing the bags, making sure each weighed no more than 50 pounds since on previous trips, they would weigh them and enforce their 50 pound limit, even when only 51 pounds and it meant leaving something of donations behind. This time...... they did not even weigh them at all. Makes me wish I would have packed even more in them now, beyond the 50 pound limit.... 

We arrived in Brussels, Belgium for the 2 hour lay over and upon getting to the next gate, they announced a stop in Burundi on the way to Kenya. Burundi is a place with serious security issues and unrest, and a place where it is advised you just do not go unless essential local business.This was not a published stop when we got the tickets, nor was it noted anywhere on the ticket print out- it was a shock to all passengers. But..... there we were sitting in Burundi and several trucks drove up the side of the plane and surrounded the front and sides from what I could see out of my window. I wanted to step off the plane and have a look but when I approached the door that was open, allowing inspectors on board, I was told not deplane due to it being a security risk. I was not even permitted to go down the steps and have a quick look or put both feet on the ground in Burundi. I kindly asked the man with the AK 47 if he would at least walk with me inside to get my passport stamped. (I was thinking, of these 300 passengers, why would he want to do this with me). He actually said yes, but with a rule, I stay, only he goes with the passport. I thought two seconds of it and then gave it to him and sure enough, 10 minutes later, he came back with my passport, the crew allowed him to board and he brought it to me with the Republique du Burundi stamp for 7/17/2015!! I got a stamp! He explained that with elections in two weeks, everything is a serious security risk and they are urging non citizens to leave the country at this time, which is why he wouldn't let me deplane. (And why Brussell's air was stopping here is a question that was never answered by the airline- nobody boarded, three deplaned so how did they know about the stop to then book the flight if it was unpublished?) 

We took off to Kenya and landed two hours later. Here came the most nerving part of the trip.... getting through customs with all of these donation bags without being stopped or at least without being taxed if stopped. So, my husband and I do what we always do and split up in customs so that way, if one of us gets nailed, the other might make it through with some of the donations we had... better to have some than none. I made it through and it was as if they did not even see me..... then a few minutes later, out comes Needham, same thing- unbothered! God is good! 

The donations for the girls made it safely with us and they sit, neatly stacked ready to be delivered to them this week. 

It is time for a 5th trip!

 It is time for a 5th trip to Kenya! Again, I will be  working with Acacia of Hope International  in  Kibera and Networks for Voluntary Services.

 Acacia of Hope International has continued their  sponsorship program, "Make a Change," at  Damside Preparatory School. This July, Needham  and I will be helping the school to paint their structure (made of tin and wood) and plan activities with the sponsored children throughout our time there. This will include conducting home visits with some of the sponsored students to continue to build a working relationship with them.

It is not too late, more girls are needing a sponsor. If you are interested in sponsoring a female student between the ages of 8-12, please visit Acacia of Hope International's website at www.acaciaofhope.org to sign up. You will be matched with a young girl from Kibera and it will change her life which changes her community one day! Be part of change and start by clicking the play button on the video!

We are collecting pencils, chalkboard chalk, pencil sharpeners (the kind that screw into the wall or side of the desk and have a turning handle- 3 of them are needed), and a few children's games such as Connect 4, Sorry, Old Maid, Go Fish, and a tic tac toe bean bag toss game. If you have any of these items that you would like to send, please contact me at jennifer.wiley1789@gmail.com

Stay tuned for posts from Kenya!

A stopover in Amsterdam, The Netherlands!

Usually, our flight stops over in Paris, but this time we were able to see another city in Europe- AMSTERDAM in The Netherlands! On the way to Amsterdam, we got some great views of other places.... We were able to see Mt. Kenya from the air on our way out of Kenya (on the left), the deserts in Egypt and then the Greek Islands. 

Amsterdam, The Netherlands..... we finally made it around 4 PM. It was an interesting city, like no other we have been to before. The architecture was amazing, and we quickly realized that it seemed lawless. An unintended walk through what we later learned to be The Red Light District, we actually saw that ladies advertised in the windows and store shops selling drugs and paraphernalia, legally, to then consume in public. Umm... interesting from a criminal justice teacher standpoint.... I guess. I guess I can use some of this in my material as comparison when my class reaches these crime points. Well, what we classify as crime at home in the U.S.A, that is...... aside from that, we enjoyed the city! 


We found an interesting cheese museum that had about every cheese you could imagine. I bought a few of the small single serving variety packs for us to try then a cheese round to try to take home. Not sure if cheese is allowed through customs or not but I figured it was well wrapped in one of those circle enclosures, so... why not?!

The cheese museum had countless shelves of cheese and I actually had no idea what to even try. The cheese museum had a lady there to help give information about the various cheeses and she helped me make my selection. Needham is not as excited about the cheese, I guess he never forgot his experience with cheese in Paris last year when we had breakfast at the Eiffel Tower. He just shook his head no when she offered him some!

As we walked through the city, we found some of those most interesting city streets where bicycles were the preferred method of transportation. Bicycle garages are what we found near train stations or bus points around the city rather than car garages. We even saw a surrey-type bike go by with about 8 guys on it peddling and drinking beer in the late afternoon, singing and laughing as they went down the street. Just about all of the streets had a canal between them where people used paddle boards and  small boats to travel about the city. The boats parked on the side of the canals are actually house boats that people live in which is really interesting. I wish we would have knocked on a door to ask to see.... but we didn't.

Since our stop was overnight, we decided to have dinner in the city. We found an interesting little cafe restaurant somewhere as we were weaving down the canals and decided to give it a try. Although pasta is nothing special, the sauce sure was.... it was some cheese sauce made from their local cheeses and it was amazing! I have never had anything like it before, YUM!

I wish we had more time here in Amsterdam to explore more of the city and its museums and historical points. We walked past the Anne Frank House but it was already closed for the evening by the time we processed out of the airport and customs. Maybe we will get lucky again on another stop over in the future in our travels and have more time here.

In the morning, we had little time to spare as we had to head right back into the airport to catch the early morning flight out of Amsterdam to the United States. And.... my cheese made it back home. Customs Agent: Do you have any fruits or vegetables with you today? Me: No, no fruits or vegetables Customs Agent: Thanks (and takes my customs ticket). But the form says any food items.... well, I answered him truthfully..... so I enjoyed my cheese from The Netherlands for breakfast all week long here at home! 

Kibera Slums... Education will make the difference!

We made our way over the railroad tracks and through some narrow and unstable pathways to get into the heart of Kibera. We have been to Kibera many times and have shared about Kibera in previous posts, but people are still struggling with access to clean water,  a place for human waste (toilet access), electricity, and most of all food. Everyday is struggle in this community that has been here since before Kenya became independent in 1963. What is it like? Most of Kibera slum residents live in extreme poverty, earning less than $1.00 per day. Unemployment rates are high. Persons living with HIV in the slum are many, as are AIDS cases. Cases of assault and rape are common. There are few schools, and most people cannot afford an education for their children so children roam the slum all day rather than go to school. IF you find older children or adults who have been educated, you might be lucky to find someone to say they have been educated past grade 4.


Clean water is scarce and therefore diseases caused by related poor hygiene are prevalent. I have seen what they call "flying toilets" where residents of this community will use a bag as a toilet, tie up the ends of it and throw it as far as they can from their area of living or toss it into the river banks that snake through Kibera (filled with water that is already unsanitary). A great majority of people living in the slum lack access to healthcare. And Trip Advisor, if you look at it, calls Kibera "an attraction" as if this is a place of vacation to come see, (and do nothing other than that) and take pictures of the people in their worst times in life and then go home and post. That struck us as really awful and shame on Trip Advisor!

There are countless NGO's and other governmental organizations from various countries that make efforts in this community every day! While it won't change these circumstances in a day of course, individual lives have been touched and changed from the work of these various organizations in some way. Ask the Kenyan leadership or government what they are doing and you hear about how much they care and are making efforts as well (really?). They will highlight the new buildings they have been working on and building (which I have seen) and explain how they are building these government housing condos to allow people of Kibera to move into them in phases to alleviate the conditions in the streets of Kibera which consist of the ground being composed of dirt, human waste,  and trash. Dwellings are often constructed atop this unstable ground, and therefore many structures collapse whenever the slum experiences flooding, which it does regularly. This means that even well-constructed buildings are often damaged by the collapse of nearby poorly constructed ones.

The third complicating factor is the unyielding topography and cramped sprawl of the area. Just about no houses have vehicle access, and many are at the bottoms of steep inclines (which heightens the flooding risk). This means that any construction efforts are made more difficult and costly by the fact that all materials must be brought in by hand. So, back to what the Kenyan leadership is doing through their cited partnerships with others around the world..... building these high rise condos in phases. A chat with some the locals we know yielded much different information that the Kenyan leadership doesn't tell the rest of the world....... some of the locals that we work with on projects in this community have shared with us that the rent was to be $10 a month (which is a lot for these folks) as they are used to paying about $5-$10 for their dirt space or section of a metal shack. So, $10 was the top amount and quite difficult for them any way. Some have moved into these government condos but it is not only $10 as promised to the people. Locals are now being asked to pay $25-$50 a month to live in them so many of the condos, at least right now, are unoccupied and just sit there. The cycle continues......

So what was our focus while in Kibera this time? This trip to Kenya and into Kibera was for an education project. Thanks to our many friends and family who generously donated school supplies for the various community schools we visited, students (and teachers) now have paper, pencils, erasers and sharpeners for students to use in class! A note about community schools.... these are not government schools since government schools are so few in Kibera and often at distances that are not possible to walk for students. NGO's assist in building community schools where the kids can still get their formal education at fees much less (even though fees are still problematic in Kibera and unaffordable, remember many live on less than $1 a day here).

What else are we doing here in Kibera this time? I connected with a new friend Melissa, who is the founder of Acacia of Hope International. Acacia of Hope International is a registered nonprofit here in the United States that does work in East Africa and is focusing on Kibera at this time. Their goal is to build their own community school in Kibera and provide free education to the children in primary school at their own center. While they continue to raise the funds needed to build such a center, they are still making a difference in the lives of students through their "Make a Change Program" which is a sponsorship program. Through Acacia of Hope International, people can sponsor children in primary school and the school fee, daily meal (which many go without now) and clothing is provided for the child to whom they are matched. Part of my work this time was to find those children in the streets of Kibera, not currently in school due to the inability to pay school fees. So, Melissa told me to find her 20 since she had 20 sponsors already lined up with the funds for fees. So off into Kibera we went! 

It was not easy since some were slow to even think about trusting us enough to talk to us about their child I found or situation. Some thought we worked for the Kenyan government looking to arrest parents for not having their children in school (it is a law there too despite the circumstances that make it impossible for them to enroll their children). Most parents will enroll their children, get the slip, then not pay the fee because they are not able to and the child just doesn't show up. Should anyone come around asking or checking, they have this enrollment form (that never processed anyway). It is just how it works around there..... So, gaining their trust was a challenge. In order to do so, we needed a local to help us with that, someone they trusted who could help build the connection quickly enough to get this done. A friend of ours who used to live in Kibera at one point, knew a Pastor that was well liked in their community. We had a quick visit with him and he went with us and helped with this process.

Acacia of Hope International had an intake packet that had to be completed on each child for their records and completing the packet was also a challenge. Some children had no parents or care takers at all.... orphans in the street that were just surviving. So, gaining family information for the sponsors or having the parent to be involved and sign the form.... wasn't possible. A few of these kids didn't know their family history, when their birthday was, or exactly how old they were although we took our best guess and agreed upon an about age with the Pastor, our friend of Kibera and the child with the factors before us and even came up with a date of birth that could at least begin to be consistently used at this point. We needed to have a date of birth in order to complete the intake packet and also enroll them in the community school. What was more of a challenge? Birth certificates don't even exist for some of these children since many children are born in the home without medical staff and are undocumented (but citizens of Kenya). So, what were we to do other than come up with the best guess and agree on a date that can be consistently used from this point on?  

Looking back over my time with each of the girls, some of the stories were horrific. Natasha’s right arm is nothing but one huge scar- she reports her sister tossed burning liquid over her and her arm burned off, this skin was what grew back. Some girls reported losing parents in the civil unrest and at their age, I am amazed at their strength. It is difficult to imagine being 8-12 years old and having little memory of Mom or Dad because they were killed in the unrest when they were about 2 or 3 years old…….. can we imagine?

Or being home all day by myself with little food, no electricity, no toilet and no water while my caretaker pushes water carts in the street (like mules normally do if you have one) all day long to make a dollar for the day? The one little girl, forget her name now… came on her own anyway and said she wanted help and explained where her uncle was at the moment and she signed a promise to comply rather than the guardian signing a promise of support. She is a strong little lady! A responsible one! I was the most impressed with her! The stories of life from these CHILDREN caused me tears and hurt at the day’s end. Hearing their stories and listening to the stories of some of the guardians was interesting, eye opening and something that is remaining on my mind.

Leaving Kibera that day actually felt sad to me. I really enjoyed my time there and the hospitality of the principal and teachers and…. KIDS! It was an amazing visit and I look forward to stopping to see them again in the future.

I think about all of their faces each day I walk onto my campus for work wondering what they are doing today. Wondering! Knowing I wake up with electricity, running water for a shower, food in this thing called a refrigerator that runs bc of electricity, and a clean stable home- an element of that survivors guilt creeps in. Every time I open my fridge, I worry of those girls. I think about them. Will it ever go away? But, it helps me to rest a little easier knowing that they will have a place to be each day and at least one meal to eat and their daily activities are helping them to build a better future for themselves.

Finding a school to enroll them in..... this was a challenge at first. Acacia of Hope International targeted Olympic Primary School which was a Christian based primary/community school. We made contact with them about enrolling children that would be sponsored and made sure to highlight the fees would be paid via Acacia of Hope International each month, in full and on time. They verified the organization and all seemed to be working out until an Administrator shared that they did not really want street children at their school. The reason they offered was that these street children did not have a consistent education or any at all and they would harm the performance rates at the school and require extra attention in studies. Um, did I just hear them correctly? A Christian school who promotes their helping to bring change to Kibera via education? Am I at the right place? Say again? So, the Administrator actually repeated his concern. I said thank you and walked away!

I had stopped at another community school earlier in the day, just to stop and drop supplies, but my heart went back to the Principal I met there.... Peter! I went back to Peter and he was happy to accept them right away into school- no questions asked! Damside Preparatory School is THE SCHOOL! From the outside, you might see it needs paint, it needs repair to the building, the floor is dirt, the stairwells look unsafe and some might ask how and why this exists... but most schools appear this way in Kibera and some look even worse by Western standards. Olympic looked perfect on the outside by our own Western standards, but their insides.... no thank you! The insides of Damside Preparatory felt amazing- the kids were happy and engaged, teachers were happy and seemed to love the students and I could see that the insides are what counts here and the students would not only receive education, food each day and have clothes to wear, but they would be taken care of emotionally here too. It was..... perfect! I felt this was the right place for me to bring them, they would be accepted here and grow! 

To learn more about Acacia of Hope International, visit http://acaciaofhope.org/