In the past three weeks, we travelled to six unique cities in three very different parts of the world. To say the least, we were exhausted when we landed in Kenya last week, and the heat is not helping boost our lethargy. Serving refugees in Croatia is certainly a different environment than working in the slums of Kenya, and the contrast between these humanitarian situations is impossible to ignore. But first, the question that comes to mind for most is “what are you doing and why Kenya?” To answer this, let’s go back to 2009. Sumner, WA, is a small town with a small town feel. For a restless spirit like myself [Sarah], the thrill of escaping confinement to travel internationally for the first time was a chance I was dying to take the summer prior to my senior year of high school. I had never left the continental U.S. or set foot in neighboring Canada, a short three hour drive north. My world felt small and I was anxious to see more of it. Opportunity collided with good connections, and three blocks down the road I met a Kenyan for the first time.
New Life Mission is an oasis in the midst of a vibrant, chaotic, and needy community just 20km from the heart of Nairobi. The services they provide are vast, but the main focus is to support the development of children through health and education. The family unit revolves around children, and assistance for families and mothers has been a longstanding part of the New Life ministry. A children’s home, primary school, day care, subsidized health clinic, social welfare programs in the slum community, feeding programs in neighboring schools, and various health programs engage staff energy in the Ongata Rongai location. Just four hours west into the heartland of tribal Kenya is a region called Mashuru, where New Life’s ministries focus on Masai communities. A home for young orphaned boys and rescued girls provides opportunities to gain technical skills and education that otherwise would be impossible to attain. The young women at this location are “runners…” They run from cultural practices like FGM, from older men trying to marry them at 10 years old, and from abuse in their villages. These girls find hope at New Life Mission, where they are given the opportunity and skills to begin again. Mashuru is a desolate place, and it is evident while driving through the bush over a washboard matrix of non-existent roads. Food is often a hardship, and many young children are malnourished with numerous health issues challenging growth. New Life Mission facilitates an extensive feeding program that provides lunch to 17 primary schools throughout the region on a daily basis. This is the only meal that some children eat, and this source of nourishment makes school a priority for families. With a dry, desert-like climate water is also a scarce commodity, and New Life has responded to this need over the years through the construction of over 17 shallow water wells servicing thousands in the region. Women will walk from “neighboring” villages up to ten kilometers per day to these sources of clean water. These are just bullet points of the long list of activities that New Life Mission calls its ministry, and the list keeps growing. My first trip to New Life Mission, and outside of the U.S. for that matter, was overwhelmingly eye opening. I had never seen such vast poverty, where running water is a luxury and completing simple tasks can prove almost impossible. Amidst the scarcity existed another element to the people of Kenya – an unquenchable joy – that I have yet to find elsewhere.
On return stateside, Team Agape New Life Mission became an official 501c3. After a second trip to Kenya in 2010, partnership opportunities for funding of various health and education projects became the primary focus areas for Team Agape. Organizations such as Rotary International became annual partners in the support of New Life Mission’s initiatives and projects. Six years later, Jamie and I are here once again in a place I have come to call “home.” Though the needs change constantly the people are genuine as ever, and the ministry continues to serve thousands daily. While we are here, our focus is working in the health clinic in Ongata Rongai while also looking for opportunities to develop and serve long-term projects in the Mashuru tribal lands. It is quite a luxury to have this time to spend serving in a supportive environment as a team, developing our shared vision in healthcare. Our perspective on life commitments upon returning home to medical and nursing school are all the more solidified through this experience. For more information, check out the Team Agape – New Life Mission website. It will be continually updated while we are serving here, and we will be sure to keep our followers updated on projects that need support!
1 Comment
Mandy Pokorny
4/1/2016 10:53:27 am
Team Rolphing,
Reply
Leave a Reply. |
jamie & sarahWe have air in our lungs, spunk in our souls, a little bit of heaven wherever we go. Archives
July 2016
Categories |