St Andrew’s Turi, Kenya |

Tembea Turi. Tembea Pamoja

We are delighted to share a blog written by Maria Etiang, a student at St Andrew’s Turi who is part of a team delivering a Global Goals project for the 2018-19 Global Goals Competition.

Their project is among over 620 social action projects currently running as part of the GSL movement and we are excited to be supporting them to design and lead positive social change in their community. 

Potential: the possibility of something bigger and better happening in and to each of us.

Project Overview

As we are constantly told, we, the youth, are the future. No pressure, right?

The number of African countries. Unfortunately, poverty is a common problem in our continent which negatively impacts the education of children who are victims to it.

Our goal is to provide some children in Mau Summit, Kenya with shoes, clothing and food in order to supplement their physical well-being so that they can participate better in school. In doing so, we hope to lift up the next generation of African leaders in all manner of endeavors.

Our Journey

The people we met at the Mau summit had been displaced from their homes by the 2007 post-election violence in Kenya. Exuding a spirit of resilience, they truly embody the name of their area (after the Mau Mau independence fighters). When we reached, they were all as warm and welcoming as the blazing sun. Despite not having much, they were in high spirits. Playing games enabled us to get to know the children better.

We were all in a huge circle and when a person’s name was called out, they’d step forward from their place in the circle and start singing. When they forgot the words, they’d sheepishly cover their faces and smile in embarrassment. But the people around them would remind them of the words and they’d keep on singing until the time came for them to pass the burden on to another person.

This is another noticeable feature of this community: community.

We obtained a report of the specific needs of the children from the child welfare society of Kenya . It is our goal to address the following needs : stationary, shoes, warm clothing. All necessary for a holistic education. Not only did we play games with them during our first visit but we also gave them some stationary.

The Next Chapter

The look of appreciation on their faces when we gave them stationary will forever be imprinted on our minds. Next, we hope to support the parents as well by giving them food. In the long term, we plan to support them by giving them shoes and warm clothing to last them several months.

The effect of you giving can create winds of change. Like doing an 1000 piece jigsaw puzzle, each of us needs to do our best to help put together our part. Your support of a member/ members of your community by giving them something of value e.g. a pencil or a book can go a long way.

It is our hope and prayer that this is the beginning of an unforgettable story that we shall write together- including you 🙂

https://www.instagram.com/p/BsF887kBgOD/

The 2018-19 GSL Global Goals Competition is now open and runs until June 2019. If you belong to one of the 700+ teams of students currently delivering a social action project as part of the competition we would love to hear from you and feature your blog and project photos on our website to inspire others.