Mbakalo

I came home this evening to find my host mother, Mama Anne in the outdoor kitchen (a traditional round Kenyan mud hut with thatched roof) cooking chapattis. Lately she’s been finding any excuse to use my headlamp, so when she told me there was no gas to be purchased in Webuwye (the closest town of any kind) and she would be cooking the whole meal outside over a fire, I rushed to grab it. Seeing my little round Anne with the headlamp secured around her headscarf, squinting into the smoke over a pan of sizzling chapos was positively heart-warming.

Anne with her granddaughter Lavinda, 7 mos.

I am in SVH-Mbakalo and loving it.

Besides no gas in Webuwye, there has been no rain when it should have been raining all month, so the fields lay plowed but not planted, and there are hardly vegetables or fruits to be had. A strong reminder that living as a Kenyan, I am no longer immune to the difficulties of climate change and global food shortages, as I have been living in the USA. But even this fact is a welcome challenge among the many of living in the rural interior of Kenya.

Everyday I walk about ½ mile to the Dispensary, a very successful example of SOTENI’s work. I feel unbelievably fortunate to spend the entire day among people I like. There is a collective sense of commitment amongst the staff, some of whom are making far below what they are worth in order to support this facility.

ABD Henry Mwami with the daughter of one of his clients - her name is Violet.

Simon is the SOTENI coordinator, an over-worked but optimistic pastor who is trying to learn to ride a motorbike, an endless source of entertainment for the rest of us; Wycliffe Mttaki is chair of the Local Management Committee, and has the most charming and musical accent I’ve ever heard, courtesy of four years spent earning his degree in the UK; Victor is the Dispensary Accounts Clerk, a 29-year-old single father, completely committed to SOTENI’s work and very articulate and friendly; Henry the night watchmen and one of six ABDs (AIDS Barefoot Doctors), a good-natured and eternally positive man who also believes in the life-changing impact SOTENI has had on this community here; Isaac is the laboratory technologist (yes, this is actually his title), one of over 30 children, and is extremely intelligent, actually one of the top scorers on the national exam for his field; Japheth is the Nurse in Charge, and also happens to be trained in dentistry, which is a first for the dispensary and very exciting; Jane is the doer of all things – making tea, cleaning the facilities, doing the laundry, and though limited in her English abilities, she is ready with smiles and blessings whenever there is a need.

Me & Victor with one of my favorite babies in Mbakalo - Japheth.

Everything is Poa :-)

There are Luo Men and then there is THE Luo Man...

This is what I have learned over the last couple of days, culminating with my pilgrimage to the home of Mama Sarah Obama, or “Granny”.

The whole crew with Granny! (Edward, me, Opondo, Calvin, Randie, The Lady Herself, & Bill)

I spent a few days in SVH-Ugenya, which is in Luoland in the western province of Kenya. I was repeatedly frustrated by my meetings with the notoriously chauvinistic and big-headed Luo men; reminding them each time introductions were made that I existed, hearing my ideas acknowledged only when a man repeated them, listening to discussions on the merits of polygamy and wife inheritance…at one point Randie and I had to distribute the refreshments at a meeting because it didn’t occur to any of the men to get up and take a soda, and god forbid a meeting start without the beverages distributed. I bit my tongue on many occasions. One man in particular, Chris Opondo who sits on the SOTENI Kenya board eventually won me over with his charm and we were able to have a good natured discussion on the pros and cons of dowries, but it took about 3 days for me to be able to laugh at his controversial jokes (“Edward, if I were you I would try very hard to win Kelly’s heart – she would be free!”).

Meeting the adopted grandmother of President Obama, however, reminded me that some Luo men are more than tolerable and in fact the USA is lucky to have one as president! During the controversy of the 2007 Kenyan presidential elections, as Barack Obama was beginning his USA presidential campaign, Kenyans would joke “I wonder who will have a Luo president first, the USA or Kenya?”. We should consider ourselves lucky that we beat out Kenya in that regard!

Edward (SOTENI Kenya Programme Manager), me, and Calvin (SVH-Ugenya Coordinator) in front of Granny's house

When we arrived to the Obama compound in Kogelo, it was evident that the family’s fame was generating some new income. A huge gate guarded the compound and a series of police tents were set up for security just inside the entrance. Evidence of construction and new latrines (in expectation of busloads of tourists) were to be seen everywhere. We were shown the graves of Barack Hussein Obama, Sr, and Hussein Onyanga Obama by Sadiq, the half-brother of the President. After a brief wait, Granny came out, looking like a very typical Kenyan woman (old t-shirt, long skirt, and headscarf) and chatted with us. Opondo translated the Kiluo to English while the giddy Americans asked questions (“How has life changed since the election?” “Does the President like ugali?”). She is a strong, healthy woman (87 years old!) who was gracious and jovial with her guests. And she indulged us many rounds of photos, which was generous of her, considering the compound receives an estimated 600 visitors every day.

Me and Granny

Opondo with Granny

It’s clear that her home has become a tourist attraction but I am still very happy to have gone!

The token pikipiki (motorbike) shot - I found out later that this guy was the most reckless driver in our group. Sweet.

Just another day in Kuria

Today started and ended with a bang.

This morning I left to travel to Mabera for my final day of orphan recruitment. It was a typical situation; my friend Robi and I crammed into the back seat of a Nissan station wagon (the favored public transport vehicle for Kuria’s unpaved, windy and pothole-ridden roads) along with two other people, while two passengers shared the front seat, and the driver shared his own seat with his 7th passenger, whose lap he reached across to shift gears.

About one kilometer outside Kehancha, a huge truck came barreling around a blind curve, and to avoid a sideswipe, our driver veered off into a ditch with a violent crash, leaving us tipped dangerously up on one side. I encouraged Robi to get out of the car ASAP. Fortunately, the car was easily pushed out of the ditch and back onto the road, with one flat tire and my punctuality in Mabera being the main casualties.


After the tire was changed we arrived in Mabera where I spent my final day cruising the Kurian countryside on motorbike (aka piki piki in these parts) to visit with 3 more children. This trip concludes orphan recruitment in Kuria and I will now sort through many pages of notes, numerous photos and attempt to select 12 children for recommendation to SOTENI. Twelve is a woefully small number and my hope is that I will be able to recruit additional donors to sponsor more of the children I’ve met, all of whom would be overjoyed with some extra help.



It was a long day and we arrived back in Kehancha for lunch after 5pm. After some ugali, skuma and danga (small fish), I went outside for my daily bucket shower. I am in a new homestay due to some petty theft at my old place, and at this house the bathing area is outside, along with the pit latrines. I love the outdoor shower because you can see over the top of the door to the sky, and today I was able to observe a terrific thunderstorm rolling in as I washed. The lighting was incredible and the sky was black in a matter of minutes.

It’s still pouring outside and I am thankful for the roof over my head. I am also grateful for the meal I will take in about an hour, and the big bowl of bananas, papayas, and pineapples grown right here on the shamba that I’ll have for dessert. If nothing else, today reminded me how lucky I am!

Home!

I wanted to share a bit more about my daily life here, especially what home looks like. I think I've mentioned that I live with a host mother, 2 host sisters and a domestic servant, with the host brother in the next housing unit over. What I haven't mentioned is that all the women live in a tiny 1-bedroom concrete home, and I occupy that bedroom by myself. The other people sleep in the living room (a bed has been brought in which Shirley sleeps on, and Pauline, Bhoke and the Maid sleep on the couches). The tiny kitchen is adjacent to the living room and can comfortably accommodate only two people working. The bathroom is the only other room in the house. There is a courtyard-type space, part of which is covered, for doing laundry and sitting outside, and also houses the chicken coup. The road leading up to our house, like most roads in Kuria District, is dirt and unnamed.

Our House (the blue gate is our entrance), which is one of several units in this building.

The courtyard, early evening with clotheslines.

My bedroom with my blue mosquito net (no window screens in Kenya).

My Work

I just realized that I haven’t said much about the actually volunteer work I am performing here. In fact I am working on two major projects.

The first project is collaboration with the SOTENI Local Management Committee of Kuria (a group of community leaders and elders) to build an orphanage for small children on land given to SOTENI by the Kenyan government. This project will include income-generating agriculture on about 10 of the 33 acres and will help sustain the project in perpetuity. Eventually, our hope is to also build a rescue center for girls fleeing the FGM (Female Genital Mutilation) ceremonies, which happen in Kuria every December. The land is bordered by the River Migori to the north, which makes it ideal for farming a variety of crops (we are talking about watermelon, maize, beans and eucalyptus) and has a great view of Masai Mara, which is an added bonus for our children.

The second project involves meeting with and vetting orphans to participate in our sponsorship program. I am using the public schools as my starting point and have been asking administrators to prepare lists of the total orphans in their schools along with their performance records. The numbers of orphans in the communities here are staggering. AIDS and other poverty-related deaths have destroyed many, many families and the children are the most vulnerable to suffer. I have been all over Kehancha and surrounding towns (yesterday we were traveling by motorbike taxi because the roads were unfit for cars) meeting with children and their guardians, which are usually relatives or an especially generous teacher. We are trying to launch the sponsorship program in Kuria with 12 children, though there are at least that many orphans in every one of Kuria’s dozens and dozens of public schools. The cost to sponsor one child is $600/year and includes private school (boarding is a matter of safety for many young girls living in risky situations), healthcare (many kids have never seen a doctor despite bouts with malaria, respiratory infections, and farming injuries), clothes and school uniforms, and food.

If you are interested in sponsoring one of SOTENI’s 12 children or another child in Kuria, please let me know!!!

The work is going well, and I have enjoyed preparing a number of reports and lists to submit to SOTENI when I return. Between organizing work plans for the orphanage and collecting data on each orphan I am keeping busy even when I am not in the field. I feel that I bring a type-A sensibility to the otherwise lax and disorganized Local Management Committee and I hope that my report will help them see their good ideas and noble intentions come to fruition. Visiting with the children is heart breaking, infuriating and humbling. I remember one visit, to the home of a 9-year-old named Grace. Her baby sisters were sitting naked in the dust, sick with the stomach flu, and Grace’s older male cousins, known to have raped a schoolgirl in town, sat on the periphery of our meeting, staring. It's impossible to have these meetings and confront reality in this way, and not want to recommend every child for sponsorship.

I could go on and on about other children's homes which have been equally tragic, or my own complex experience of white guilt and frustration but I think the most important point to make is that if you have the ability to sponsor a child, I hope you will!

Snapshots

Here are a few more photos....

Here is Pauline, my host mother teaching me to cook Chicken Stew, which by the end of the evening was known simply as Kelly's Dinner. We are using a charcoal fire but she also will use a gas stove depending on what she's doing. Kenyan women are badass as it turns out; a cabbage leave or piece of paper might serve as a potholder.

Bhoke (20), Chacha (22?), and Shirley (7 months) at a primary school football match we went to the the other night. Being surrounded by dozens of small children meant that Chacha occasionally had to grab a stick and swat at all their little behinds so that we could have a few inches of personal space.

Sunset is beautiful here because of the rapidly-changing evening weather. Here are two children at the football match. You can sort of see the volleyball net in the background, which it turns out is very popular among girls here.