Hello everyone.
First, I would like to thank you all! I am so appreciative of your efforts which have made a noble idea become a reality. It is because of your support that we are able to provide a future for these kids. It is a pleasure to be working together in this great vision.
To date, we can all be proud to have managed to change the lives of more than twenty boys, as well as a few girls whom we have referred to other organizations. If it were not from the love which came within us, nothing could have happened and we could all be working at other positions, enjoying the days of our lives. However, with every minute spared and sacrificed for the sake of young people in Kenya, people who are innocent, and born into the difficulties they are in, let us all know that we mean a lot to those young minds. Therefore let’s keep up the spirit of giving, thinking about it all and God will always see it in our hearts.
The whole team: Elijah, Peter, Michael and all the volunteers have been also very appreciative to you for all you do. The boys may not know Scott and Mary but you are always in their prayers. The boys have closed school and will stay with their relatives for one week. This is the first step to renewing and building relationships with their families.
Meanwhile, we have managed to start a meeting at the center which will enable us gather the parents. We have approached a micro credit scheme here in Nairobi which will offer soft loans to the group in which individuals can start small businesses which will finally help them to improve their living standards and be able to support children in their homes. Yes it’s a grand plan but we hope it will change a few of them. On our side we shall take the opportunity to help them understand the importance of children in our society, the rights of children as well as how they can change their live to the best. In most African societies we have different cultures and diversities and one major item regards women as the weaker sex. Women cannot have full control in her thinking and the final word must always come from the man. This has been a major contributor to many things that impact the children of Kenya and therefore it’s our obligation to help change this way of thinking. We are the future of our people and our beuatiful country. We all have to know that we are in a competitive world, we need to interact with the global village where people are equal and there exists no oppression to one sex.
Dagoretti4kids project has also improved greatly and everyday presents with new challenges and needs. To date we have a flow of 500usd (35,000ksh). Our budget as per November last year was going at an average of 40,000ksh. Now we so much depend on handouts which people donate. Naturally, as we grow, so do our expenses, and we are finding that we need more than the normal monthly budget due to intensified operations in home visits, and administration costs in general. The welfare of the people working with us also has been a major concern to me. Kate Fletcher, a woman from the U.S. has been supporting us with 20,000ksh from her Social Security funds. She is now in the states preparing to start her own project for girls in Kenya. I find it hard to let her continue draining her funds since she has decided to be live in Kenya. Our monthly income of 20,000ksh ($264.00) is split between 7 people is so little (about 37 USD) that we have started to alternate monthly salaries. . .and that means that we do not have income every month. This is very difficult In my mind I have been thinking of ways to support ourselves financially, as we all know that money is a toll in everything in this world.
Last year Scott and Mary helped us start a farming project in Naroki, it has been two seasons of learning how to go about it. As a result, last year was not very productive but this year it did well. It has come to our realization that if we made it to be a unit in our organization it could be a good income generating activity. So far we have grown wheat on two hectares of land and the returns were great, we managed to support the staff members for one month, with leftover money for other issues affecting us all. We are also in a process of purchasing a second hand motorbike with the profits from our farm. This will help us in many ways especially in farming where one has to cover about 15kms to the gardens through the Maasai land. Right now we have more land where we can continue with this.
I had discussed with Becki about irrigation in the area where we can grow onions and tomatoes, investing 90,000 in onions in five months we are in a position to have returns at a minimum of 250,000ksh. This can be a phenomenal source of income for the people working in the organization as well as providing for the children.
One thing I have learned is that without financial strength one will always be hitting hard rocks on your way to success. A good example with me I always need a minimum of 300ksh everyday to be able to communicate only, on phone transport, and emails. When I don’t have this, most things end up unaccomplished, so lack of financing makes us not achieve in a timely manner. So far many people are coming in with pledges which greatly support us. We have a school which donated 14,000ksh and we started doing a pit latrine which will cost almost 60,000ksh. We need to improve the whole facility with a good fencing add up furniture in the house and othernecessities needed in a children’s institution. I hope so much to correspond with Becki so that we can have a list of things being done now and then with any money available and not allocated to anything from its source. We are thinking of getting Roman to a boarding school where he will have a better learning environment. This will take him far away from his mom, as they continue to be on bad terms. This may enable us to help foster a relationship between him and his mother when he comes back from school.
I hope all the best for you Hope to hear from you soon.
With Love,
James