The summer outreach group were delighted once again to work in a spirit of partnership and collaboration with the teachers and pupils of St Patrick’s Primary School, Kawese.

Some highlights this year were:

1. Teaching and learning in cooperation with the staff and pupils of St Patrick’s Primary School
2. Presenting Women’s Health workshops for the families of the locality to include lessons on consent, general health, self esteem and reproduction.
3. Setting up the new infant/nursery classroom with colourful equipment resources and furniture to promote child centred space and curriculum
4. Meeting and updating the Board of Management of the School and the representatives of the Kenyan Department of Education and science.
5. Planning for the annual school tour to Nairobi National Museum and Jomo Kenyatta International Airport on 30/07/19.
6. Visiting the Mukuru Promotion Centre in Nairobi and observing the work of the staff, teachers and carers of St Catherine’s, Songa and the street children rehabilitation centre. We were welcomed by Sr. Mary Killeen, who has worked with the disadvantaged in the slums of Nairobi for over thirty years.
7. Visiting the children’s homes in the area and the local secondary school, The Holy Ghost School, Sultan Hamud
8. Celebrating with the staff and children at the Festival of Welcomes in the School alongside the Maasai and Kamba tribes, with singing, dancing as well as some rhymes and poems from each standard at the school. We even had a performance of Molly Malone from the Hollypark teachers.

The Kenyan Child Foundation commends our wonderful volunteers for their spirit of hard work  and diligence during the outreach trip. We are grateful for their assistance during our fundraising campaigns throughout the year. We appreciate their energy and good will during our travels this summer.

We wish them every success in their future studies and careers and hope that they may someday return with us to Kenya. We couldn’t have done it without you.

Ní neart go cur le chéile. Go raibh míle maith ag gach éinne.

Asanté sana.

The Kenyan Child Foundation was delighted to invite Dr. Vincent O’Neill, the Irish Ambassador to Kenya and Somalia, to the grand opening of phase 3 of St. Patrick’s Primary school. He has been following the progress at the school since the beginning of the project in 2015. I am sure he envisioned a standard event with flags, ceremony and speeches.. but this was not to be!

The roads around the village of Kawese had been washed away by floods making them impassable so that cars, jeeps, even the local motorbikes or bodaboda could not make it along the paths to the school! There was no alternative – the Ambassador would have to travel by ox cart!

Dr. O’Neill had promised the children and their parents that he would attend their special event and on Sunday the 6^th of May, he didn’t disappoint!!  You can imagine how surprised they all were to see him enter the compound in a trailer pulled by oxen! Not to mention, the many other visitors and dignitaries from the County Education Board who also had to wade through the floods to get to the school that day.

The Kenyan Child Foundation, the children of Kawese, their teachers and parents were honoured to have Dr. O’Neill officially open the 5 new classrooms as part of phase 3 at the school. He is a shining example to all who work overseas as representatives of the Irish Government and on behalf of the Irish people to promote development and education in Kenya.

“As Irish Ambassador to Kenya, I am very proud of the relationship between our two countries. We are friends. We are proud that Ireland has worked in a friendly spirit of partnership to help in the development for many, many years. The fact that this school is called St. Patrick’s will mean that you have a little piece of Ireland with you forever. But let’s not forget that it is really a celebration for the children here today. Because what we are celebrating is their futures and the way they can contribute to their communities, their families, and to Kenya in the future.”

• Extract from speech made by Dr. O’Neill – May 6^th

Dr. O’Neill has become something of a social media celebrity in Africa and here in Ireland on foot of his actions in Kawese this May. Social media went into overdrive when they saw an Irish ambassador prepared to travel by ox cart to meet and prioritise children and the Irish charity who support them in a remote community in Kenya. We thank him for his bravery and courage.

Asante Kwa Kutumia Muda Na Sisi Dr. O’Neill

Thank you for spending some time with us.

Article from Merrion Street about the Ambassador’s visit to Kawese

The Irish Accountancy awards were held in the Ballsbridge Hotel on the 26^th of April 2018.

John McCarrick & Associates and The Kenyan Child Foundation were once again delighted to be named the winners of the Corporate and Social Responsibility Initiative of the Year.

The judges were “won over by the sheer scope of the Kenyan Child foundation initiative. It is ambitious in what it sought to achieve.” They were “impressed with the planning that went into it and the amount of work devoted to it to make it a reality.” They commended everyone at John McCarrick & Associates for the Kenyan Child Foundation initiative.

The Kenyan Child Foundation has set up a nutrition and food programme this year in St. Patrick’s Primary school to combat hunger and malnourishment among the students. We recognised that some of the children were coming to school hungry as there was simply not enough food in their homes during periods of extreme drought and flooding.

The breakfast club and nutrition programme was founded to overcome this hunger and to encourage and promote concentration during lessons.

Every morning the children get a nutritious meal of maize porridge, rice and seasonal fruit that has been freshly prepared at the school.  Fresh drinking water is available for the students at all times of the day. Local suppliers arrange the provision, which provides a small boost to farmers and shopkeepers in the village.

It is heartening to observe that the children in a few short months are beginning to look healthier. Their teachers report that they can already see the impact of an improved diet in the children’s schoolwork. “They are more settled and happier during lessons and better able to concentrate on their classes” said Principal Mary.

The girls and boys of Kawese really look forward to their breakfast of porridge, rice and fruit every morning. Thanks to all our sponsors in Ireland who donate much needed funds for this worthwhile initiative.

Asanteni

The pupils of St. Patrick’s Primary school went on their first school tour this May. You cannot believe how excited the children were to leave the village and travel by bus to the Animal orphanage in Nairobi National Park. Most of the students had never travelled by bus before, not to mention, the adventure of visiting their capital city, Nairobi, which is so far away from their homes.

The children were delighted to see the native Kenyan animals in the zoo. The lion and cheetah were firm favourites, as well as the zebras and giraffes that the children spotted along the highway as they journeyed to Nairobi by bus.

As an extra treat, the tour continued to Uhuru Park and Monument centre in Nairobi. This is a memorial garden where the Kenyan National flag was raised for the first time in 1963.

The senior students, their teachers and helpers send greetings and words of gratitude to everyone in Ireland who made their first school tour possible. Special words of thanks must go to a nearby secondary school: The Holy Ghost in Sultan Hamud – who provided an extra bus for the tour and who support and encourage the project.

The entire day was an amazing success. Field studies, Heritage & History, Conservation & Nature, as well as lots of fun and games were on the curriculum that tour day in May. The children are already planning where they can go next time!!

Asante Sana everyone.