Irrigation pump

Martin was able to buy a pump to irrigate the fields near the river thanks to the Rotary Club of Vienna VA. Last year there was a severe drought in Kenya and the harvest was poor. This year at least those fields will be protected. Many thanks to the Rotary!

A few sponsors

Eleven people have become sponsors so far. Thank you to them! It's a start but there's a long way to go. You might think that most of the orphans were AIDS orphans. However, there are more than twice as many orphans from election violence/tribal clashes as there are from AIDS. In the 2008 election violence what frequently happened was that people who lived in an area of conflict brought their children and animals to a safer area. When they went back to safeguard their property they were killed.

Sponsor Program

Please help by sponsoring an orphan for $20/month or a teacher for $25. It would be a wonderful thing to do for grandchildren or children--a great gift to open a window on a world where the children have never seen a t.v. or a computer game, sit four to a crude wooden desk for their lessons, and sleep 40 to a room on dirt floors. Please remember that Martin has no source of money other than what I'm able to raise with the help of friends and that 100% of donations go to Kisima.
If you are unable to sponsor a child perhaps you would consider a one-time donation. Tax deductible donations may be sent to:
Christ Our Savior Lutheran Church
260 Wade Rd. W.
Loudon TN 37774
Please indicate on the check that it is for Kisima.

(click on the photo)

Spring project

While I was at Kisima, Martin and I met with the village elder and some of the members of the community. The community spring on the village elder's property and near Martin's house is the only water source for people living within a 1-mile radius. Martin presented a plan to the community to improve the spring by lining it with bricks. He asked people to collect bricks, gravel, and sand and said that he would be responsible for providing the cement.

Kisima visit April 2010

Here's an online photo album of the visit...
(click on the photo)

Back home from visit to Kisima

Barb, our long-time friend and former back door neighbor, and I are home from our visit to Kenya, We had a great time and a very rewarding and productive visit to Kisima. Here the children are performing a wonderful welcome dance for us and for Bill Kring, Pat Boe, John Andirah, and Lilian who had come to visit Kisima for a day.
We toured the area, including the maize fields and the tilapia ponds which are near Martin's house. This was taken near his house looking across the river to Kisima which you can just see in the background.

We visited the classrooms where the children stood up and greeted us in unison...

and witnessed the kids' joy in having new textbooks. Here it's the Class 1 children. Class 4 also got some new textbooks.

It's amazing how much fun kids can

have with just a beach ball or a

jump rope.

Here we're saying good-bye. It was sad to say good-bye to such happy, lively children. They're such a contrast to the downcast, listless children we saw while driving along the roads. Seeing them reinforced the conviction that Martin and his wife, Margaret, are such a blessing to these 140 children. Because of them they have a chance at a future.