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Summertime News at Hekima
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More news on how the girls are doing in school - all improving! - and an extra article on why educating females is so important.
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Dear Friends of Hekima,
It seems like a very long time since I last had the chance to write to you all - on the doings of Hekima Place and its lovely changes.
It's mid-July now and I'll be returning to the Pittsburgh area after stops in Amsterdam and Atlanta.
I'm going to both places to ask former volunteers to help us raise money through the internet. Our internet connection here is sketchy at best and sometimes non existent, so we are recruiting volunteers, from as far away as Tokyo, to find us corporations and foundations to continue raising funds in a twenty first century way i.e. out in cyberspace. We are coming up on our sixth anniversary of founding and still have no endowment to ensure education for the sixty children we have.
So, while you are helping us and we are praying our thanks for you, please add all the other children who are not so blessed as ours. In fact, at the last AAC Meeting (Area Agency on Children) Hekima Place was voted Number ONE in Kajiado County - an area of 600,000 people, not counting the cows of course.
I have never been away from the children this long before so I hope I don't die of homesickness. Again I want to thank all of you for your wonderful, faithful concern for us and the life you give us is so very good, we can only cry out THANK YOU AND BE BLESSED, over and over daily.
Kate, the Girls, & Staff
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Updates
Our children are particularly well cared for thanks to the generosity of all of you whose hearts have been touched by the sufferings of their prior lives.
All our children have really improved in their school marks. Both primary and secondary are working harder and moving up. Today (7/27) was parents day at Good Hope School and the two who went for us, were delighted.
Emma is now working at the bank where she did an internship last summer.
Purity, Jane and Fiona are busy in their first year college careers of: law, engineering and tourism.
Little Wambui has asked to return to class three and is doing WONDROUSLY, EARNED 402/500 - THAT'S GOLDCLUB.
Class Eight and Forms 3 and 4 in high school are giving up two weeks of August vacation for extra tuition at their schools. All the others are giving us a week in early and then late August to help plant the shamba in its new format. The greenhouses coming in mid August when the donor student is here, and tomatoes are on the way. God bless us everyone.
Eighteen others are engaged in study at Boarding Secondary Schools:
St. Martin's - 8
St. Tito's - 4
Excel Girls - 5
Baraka Girls - 1
Then there are the 40 at Good Hope around the corner, and the 3 preschoolers at home.
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As of July 26th, 44 of our children were commmitted by the court to our care, and with Johnny already our son, that's 45 of our 61 children. The eighteen in high school and several in junior high school are too old to commit, so they will continue as planned till they go home after high school and finish their tertiary education.
The sad news from yesterday is that the Gichuhi's from Canada wrote to say that they cannot take him, so he will go home for August vacation dayswith our uncles, as he has become very sissified. My plan to love him for one solid year and then have him adopted, has backfiredafter waiting two more years for them. I am equally sad for the Mom to be and the child. We will find him a Kenyan family as soon as I get back.
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Compound News
Our two cows are settling in and the Mama, Hilda, is due in December; the two goats are good friends and Mzungu Judy will deliver in November; the two donkeys are still eating grass.
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Educating Girls - Updated Statistics
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Illustration by Gerard Dubois for TIME
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Perhaps you've seen the Time magazine article of Feb 14 this year: If You Want to Change the World, Invest in Girls. In summary, for sub Saharan Africa, fewer than 1 in 5 girls make it to secondary school.Nearly half are married by 18. 1 in 7 marries by age15, and the leading cause of death for girls 15-19 is complications from pregnancy.
See some more facts from the article:
- An extra year of primary school, boosts a girls wages by 10 - 20%
- An extra year of secondary adds 15% to 25%
- Girls who stay in school, marry later and have fewer children
- Girls invest 90% of their income in their families, whereas boys invest more like 30 - 40% (this last from the World Bank.)
The facts on keeping girl children in school are socially, spiritually and economically the best we can find.
So while our girls are making great progress, lots of children are still languishing in hunger, poverty and early marriage/pregnancy. Just yesterday the Nation, our daily paper, reported Kenya having 2.5 million orphan children....many of whom still live on the streets of the major cities.
Other Resources: Girl Up
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Many apologies for the lag in writing, many many things going on at Hekima at the moment! Read away as the news is good!
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It has been way too long since I last wrote to all of you. I have been to the US for three weeks and am back home again in the 'world of the long rains' which to us, is also the springtime of the year. We have planted hundreds of trees and flowers since we have moved to this 'promised land' and everything is green and glorious. Each cottage is doing flowers of its color all around the front porches. Our walkways are being covered with cement, and that should cut down on the tonnage of mud we carry into the buildings on our shoes. The entrance from the front gate will be riot of with Jacaranda when it blooms in the fall of the year. I can't wait to see it happen.
I need to ask all those who invite me to LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, or whatever other social programs that are out there, to excuse me from such techno means of conversing. I have all that I can do to keep up with my email. It's such a chore for me (20th century woman that I am) to keep up with all the programs and passwords, that I simply can't spend energy on the fun all you young'uns have in the cyber social scene. If you want to send me a message, kindly do it the old fashioned way at hekimaplace@yahoo.com. Sorry to be a fuddy duddy, but there you are!
So to all of you a GREAT BIG THANK YOU
From all of us: Girls, Staff, & Kate
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Easter News
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So much EASTER NEWS to share of LIFE, and RESURRECTION: Mary Ann has had successful surgery in Johannesburg Children's Hospital, courtesy of two Israeli surgeons who donated their time and talent; one 70 yr old Irish lady, who donated her marrow, and Ben Carson (GIFTED HANDS) who paid for whatever was needed there. The three doctors spent two hours in prayer with Mary Ann and her Mom before the surgery, and then fasted for the day on which it was done. After three days in ICU, Mary Ann is now back in Kenya, and back at school. Her post-op prescription is: lots of exercise, keep warm, and good food/fruits. I saw her at school last week and she is radiant, animated and looking every so healthy. Thanks to all of you who prayed - our Good God continues to be faithful and generous ALL THE TIME.
The dining room in Domenica Hall is transformed once each month into a lovely chapel for Mass on Sunday, this last time on Mother's Day. Father Jim SJ, our trustee, not only says Mass, but teaches and offers absolution to all of us in attendance. He even brought roses for all the Mom's this time. The girls are servers, readers, choir and dancers and so glad to be included. Even the babies are spellbound when he is teaching. Thank you Fr. Jim.
Our computer room-right off the dininghall-is now the proud owner of ten reconditioned Dells. They will be available for staff during lunch hour and for all seventh and eighth graders for typing practice. Maevis Beacon (typing software) will be installed on each, so that they will be ten finger users rather than two or four finger users. We again, have Fr. Jim to thank for connecting us to Computers4Africa, an American NGO.
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Girls & School
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As to the girls and their advancing: Fiona is one full month into Tourism at Z Tech College and loving it. They require the study of French for use in Central and Western Africa. She is off with Gladys at 6:30 AM and returns at the same time PM for supper and study. She is living at Karibu House with Mum Gladys and Gloria, Gladys' daughter. Gloria is in tenth grade and has returned to us, as life at school from her Aunties' crowded house was not faring too well. Our other two big girls begin classes in Law and Electronic Engineering at Mt. Kenya University (Nairobi Campus - downtown) from their family homes - Purity with her grandfather, and Jane with her married sister). Emma our adopted daughter, finished her BS in Commerce last week, and is job hunting as we speak. She will graduate with all the pomp and splendour in October. We are missing them terribly, since they have for four months been 'little Mums' to the girls.
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April Events
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The time I spent in the US was wonderful, from five services at my home church where I was able to thank- dear STM family, thank you again for the life you have given us all, the food, the schooling, the jobs, the beautiful property and houses. And dearest friends in Ontario, thank you for the dinner fund raiser and chance to tell our story. You too, are so close to our hearts as we thank God for the gift of you. To the Sisters of Erie, in all their Benedictine holiness - thank you for the time, the donations, the lunch, and for all the prayers you continue to raise for us. Rotary members of USC, thank you for including us in your Annual Chicken Dinner. The prize giving night at Al's for all your charities was so much fun (with my cousin as emcee) and indicative of your wide reaching charity. Aspinwall Presbyterian, thank you for inclusion in the Mission Fair, and for lending us your wonderful member, Jackie Bell, who is returning this summer with 164 pounds of books for the girls school: Hope Hill Academy. Also in Fox Chapel, thanks to the women of the Half the Sky group who turned out in such huge numbers to hear the story. Good luck and God bless in all your future endeavors. Remember you are ALL invited to come stay at Karibu House when you come to Kenya. My sisters in SOROPTOMIST, how can I thank you enough for the lovely luncheon, the Ruby Award for Pittsburgh, and the East Coast Region. And arent we identical in our missions to raise up girls into confident women who will help change our world into one with justice and mercy in its veins rather than thoughts of war. The third church in April was my former Pastor Fr. Ken and the people of St. Scholastica. Be blessed for the second collection and your kind hospitality. It makes me breathless to read all the generosity and hospitality that occurred during those three short weeks ( I hardly had time to finish "lagging").
Whatever thanks can I give to the US Board of Governors for the exquisite party at the AVIARY GALA in Pittsburgh. My total gratitude to such a grand team of collaborators. It was lovely in every way and so much thanks to all of you who were able to come, and not able, still making a donation to the girls' cause. The African drumming corps was so much fun, the meeting and mixing with so many helpers, whom I only knew through name on email, and for whom I now have a face to connect. THANK YOU THANK YOU AND THANK YOU. Words are so small in the face of such boundless kindness.
On my return trip the very next day, I met up with the Moorestown Presbyterian Church team (11 strong) who were coming to do a work camp for us. What a blessed bunch ! Many a wheelbarrow of stones were carreid to our service road, many a prayer was offered, many a swing and slide were set in cement again, many a marshmellow roasted over the Easter fire on Saturday night, many an egg was hunted after our wonderful honey glazed ham luncheon. Thank you dear friends, all for your efforts, time, energy, gifts. There is no thank you big enough, and the gift of an African book to each girl and Mum (with a t shirt for the men) was priceless.
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The last few months have been exciting, exhausting, times of grace and blessing. We moved into our new home on December 23rd, after 24 days of running back and forth from our rental place in Karen and our new construction in Kiserian (a 30 mile trek!).
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News from Nairobi
Our New Home |
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The last few months have been exciting, exhausting, times of grace and blessing. We moved into our new home on December 23rd, after 24 days of running back and forth from our rental place in Karen and our new construction in Kiserian (a 30 mile trek!). Needless to say, the girls were all with extended family, trustees or friends so that we could paint the old bunk beds before carrying them up.
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| View of Hekima Place. |
We used our bus, our vans, a rented lorry and several pickups borrowed for the occasion. When all the staff had left for vacation, Mum Juli and I and the two babies remained behind to sort and fuss and smile at our newly built homes. We have painted them the color of the Phys Ed shirts Britian uses in schools: yellow, blue, green and red. There are ten girls living in each house with a Mum, much more like the family we hope and strive to be. There are 5 or 6 high school girls who will come home to that house at midterms and holiday months and each will come home to the house where her sisters live, so that's a plus.
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School
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All 38 of the primary girls attend Good Hope Academy right around the corner. It's a lovely school that serves the orphanage on the same property.
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| Virginia in her new school uniform |
It had wonderful scores last year in November, so we have high hopes the girls will respond to the good teaching there. They wear sweet skirts and sweaters and would you believe striped ties. Very smart looking.
We have 18 girls in high school as boarders this year. 4 at St. Tito's, 5 at Excel, 1 at Baraka, and 8 at St. Martin's from which 2 just finished and are awaiting scores that will, we hope, lead to university. Jane and Purity and Fiona are now taking a computer class while helping us in the shamba. They will join university or college in the summer session. Emma will finish university with a BS in business in May. So God continues to be good....all the time.
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New Additions to the Family
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In the last six weeks, we have rescued six little girls. Purity, class 5, was being made to be a house girl...Christine and Ruth (class 5) were house girls while all their brothers were sent to school by the clan; Regina was at an AIDS Orphanage and could not stay - as she is negative (3 yrs old) and Christine and Faith (class 5 and 3)
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| Christine |
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| Regina |
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| Faith |
were rescued by an uncle from FGM (a link for more information about this graphic procedure) at their family home. They are sweet and beautiful girls and we are loving having them in our family.
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| Kate Makena |
This week marks Kate Makena's first birthday; she is now walking and running but no discernible words yet. Five teeth though, and a two-fisted eater. I call her our "chocolate Shrek."
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| Johnny |
Johnny is almost 4 yrs and his Canadian family is coming this summer to be with him.
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Volunteers
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Our volunteers have been so gracious and generous since they started filling the new Steeler decorated gu est house: Karibu Rose. The 5 Motts from California started off the year with the gift of textbooks and book bags- THANK YOU BIG TIME, dear friends. Then came Mimi and Jimmy who stayed an entire month: Jim on the barn construction and shamba, while Mimi supported this old director socially and emotionally: BLESS YOU BOTH. Now, in mid February, we have been blessed with Lauren and Niki (returns from 07) and Niki's Mom and Aunt. GREAT HOMEWORK HELPERS, THANK YOU. And Janet and Jenn and Justin who have whisked me away for a two day safari to BORN FREE land in the Meru National Park. While they are watching animals and birds, I have been sleeping and swimming. GOD IS SO GOOD, AND SO ARE GOD'S GREAT FRIENDS...I AM VERY VERY THANKFUL. Tonight, a teacher from Buffalo is coming and she will take over homework duty I'm sure. BE BLESSED TANYA! |
Josh Malenke
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In loving memory of a dear friend.
The Hekima Place family mourns the loss of a dear friend, Josh Malenke, who
passed away February 23, 2011, following a traffic accident.
Josh, age 22, volunteered at Hekima Place during the summer of 2009. He won the hearts of the girls and they earned a special place in his heart as well. He shared his talents by producing a video of his experience in Kenya. When he returned to Waynesburg University in Pennsylvania, he worked
with fellow students there to raise funds for Hekima Place.
Josh's memory will be treasured by Kate, the girls and all those who knew him through his devotion to Hekima Place. His family and close friends
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Travel & Fundraising
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The Rotary Club of Karen held a dinner dance, too at the country club where we meet. Ten of these volunteers attended with me and the university girls who never yet had a congratulations treat for finishing school. The proceeds will be coming to Hekima Place so we needed a good showing and we had a great time.
Our fund raising continues with me returning home March 24th. We were in the process of getting visas for Grace and Eunice but the US embassy refused them, so we will try again in December. We will give thanks at St. Thomas More on the 27th, Aspinwall Presbyterian on April 3rd including their Mission Day and St. Scholastica's on the 10th of April. The Soroptomist Club has submitted my name for an award and we will be their guests at a dinner/fashion show on April 2nd.
Our US Board is having a fund raiser at the Aviary on the 13th of April. We are delighted to expand our efforts to having this event at the Pittsburgh Aviary. Upon looking at venues it was a perfect match with the Aviary as they are planning their own Eco-tour of Kenya's safari parks in October this year. We will keep you posted on the details as they become available!
We shall be heading home on the Palm Sunday weekend to receive a Work Camp of 11 people from the Moorestown Presbyterian Church in NJ. They are the ones who took down hundreds of blue gum trees and now they will help us level and prepare the soccer and volleyball fields. We sit on lots of volcanic rock and some are a serious challenge to move...
Well, dear and good friends, THANK YOU FOR YOUR CONTINUED GENEROSITY. We would have no life, no schooling, no family of fun and faith, if it were not for you. Know how grateful we are, and how we pray God to multiply your blessings every day. Some of you I will soon see, and that makes me very glad. Know that you are much loved, and missed,
Kate and the gang in Kiserian...on the edge of the Great Rift Valley.
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News of the big move into our brand new home!
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Thank You Christmas Angels
December 2010
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Dear Everyone Who has Blessed Hekima Place,
We wish you a most blessed Christmas time with your families. We wish you joy, good health, togetherness, and every manner of happy times. Here in Kenya, all but the baby Kate and grandma Kate are with their families. Even Johnny is with the family (grandparents and uncle, aunt, cousin) of those Canadian folks who will adopt him. And nine other girls are with trustees, staff and friends of ours. They love to have a place other than here to call home. As small Purity said in August, "don't lets go back before four o'clock; I want someone to welcome me this time- I'm always the one who stays back and says welcome to others."
 
We have made what feels like a thousand trips to our new property in Corner Baridi with every vehicle we own and some we rented. The new desks will come to the office on Friday, and my bedroom will move up next week to the Mom's apartment in that house: Amani House.
The dining room looks like Macy's basement with all the furniture of the houses not yet completed. The kitchen and laundry are slowly shaping up to be stellar places of wondrous happenings in future days. We're hurrying to finish here at our rented place, which many of you have visited, because the staff too, has to take vacation, when the girls are home with families.
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The yellow house: Kazuri Kay has seven bunk beds and two cribs awaiting its little occupants. We shall be adding a 3 yr old from Cottolengo Home who is HIV negative, and a 3 and 4 yr old from the Bangladesh slum (yes, here in Kenya) whose alcoholic Dad is neither feeding nor caring for them.
We will have beds for them as three university girls will be moving out to independent rooms to attend school at the tertiary level. This brings to five, the number of big people we will have in university, including Mum Gladys and Emma who are in their last year.
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Baraka Sue, the blue house has eight blue bunks with blue spreads on them. It was scrubbed and cleaned today. It will have 12 blue chairs around two breakfast and homework tables near the kitchenette (which has a blue fridge). The blue curtains are being hung today across the great room which is waiting for its blue (you guessed it) sofa set.
I hope we can get to clean the green house tomorrow: Maisha Wanda - you can picture the great room with bookcases and sofa set around a green rug. The donor's honoree will be hanging on the dark green wall (the mum's apt. wall) and the rest of the house is done in pale green.
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The red house: Neema Josephine - has a bright red wall on the side and all the rest is done in pale pink. These three houses will all have a mixture of girls from primary school, with upper bunks reserved for the 20 older ones who are in boarding secondary. Forgive me if I've told you all this, it's so exciting and new... I'm still smiling at the walls.
The house for guests is called Karibu Rose and it's done in black and gold to honor the family who built it. It even has a stylized gold football sailing over the goal posts formed by mums door on the black wall. It also has a Terrible Towel to hang. It will sleep 12 guests and has the added benefit of two each: showers, sinks and ahems... in the gold bathroom.
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And now to our darling Mary Ann - she is starting chemotherapy here at Kenyatta Hospital. 
Many of you have written with suggestions for the transplant, which can't come 'til she is in remission I understand, perhaps even with her own, healthy cells, but for now she is going step by step and I count on your prayers for her.
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We, on our part, pray constantly for you. This year has been an astounding one for us. To see the little rainbow village all grown up in the last six months has been nothing short of miraculous. All our waste water will be recycled for use in the huge garden; all our shower water will be graciously heated by the sun, as will the laundry and kitchen water. The girls will go to school only 2km away and they are happy to have volunteers come along. The two donkeys: Tom and Jerry, will soon be joined by two cows whose names I have forgotten. Creation is renewing itself through your most generous response to our every ask. You were splendid on the PITTSBURGH DAY OF GIVING, you take angels from the trees in churches; you help us in our Annual Appeal; you hit the Pay Pal button on our website....What else could you have done for us that you have not done? You are as gracious and generous as our sweet and faithful Lord and we are VERY THANKFUL. You thought of my lovely chocolate children, and saw the Baby Jesus - I am humbled and grateful beyond telling.
Have a most wonderful Christmas holiday; be warm inside and out; be joyful and thankful that YOU have been touched by a child's need, and responded so well. we love and miss you. We shall not see you 'til April...may winter be kind to you.
Kate, the Staff, the sweet and wonderful Girls of Hekima Place.
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News from the new property and more.
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Dear Friends of Hekima,
Hello from the land of the lovely Jacaranda trees. Their blue violet loveliness is fading but we are left with the gorgeous blue violet carpet beneath them. I can hardly wait till our little Jacs are grown up enough to flower as you enter the main gate of our new Hekima Village twenty five miles west of here.
I am so grateful to all of you, as are the staff and girls, for the HUGE SUPPORT that has made this dream of our own home possible. Your generosity is beyond telling and only our God can make a proper thanks to you all; we shall be moving in the second week of December.
So dear friends, forgive the absence of an October letter. Construction has gotten the best of me these days. We will celebrate Christmas this year in our new house BEFORE the girls go home on December 10th or thereabouts. Our big old tree will stand in glory on the little stage in the dining hall and we shall open our packages as the carols ring out. Everyone already has a package, so those still to come in the mail will replace what we have, if they get here in time. God's blessing to all of you and know that you are surely loved and thanked, every day, not just on Thanksgiving Day. Be very very blessed.
Kate
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| Construction |
The main diningroom DOMENICA HALL will be handed over on November 22nd and will allow us to begin to move books, dvds, bookcases, tv's and extra beds up to the property.
This building has four solar panels and three tanks on its roof so that the kitchen and laundry will both have hot water courtesy of the sun (something we have never had before). It's innermost core will be a grassy area open to the sky for drying laundry, and a closed porch area open to the air, but not the rain, for hanging clothes in the rainy seasons. The new kitchen is a gift of our friends in Italy, and the laundry comes from the kindness of our friends in the UK. We are most thankful to all of them.
The office, AMANI ANN, contains four offices across the back (instead of bedrooms) for the director, assistant, accountant and counselor. This latter will be a child friendly room with a play area, rugged space, soft chairs so that comfort adds to the ambience of trust needed.
KAZURI KAY, is the baby house behind the office. It will be the YELLOW HOUSE (as we're using the colors of physical ed clubs). Kazuri means "small and precious" so the four youngest: 8mos, 3rs, and two 5yrs will live their with four older girls who will big sister them. Mum Helen (nurse) will be the Mum.
BARAKA SUE is the blue house next in the circle and will have Mum Elizabeth, with two of each grade, so each has a study buddy: std, 1,4,6,8. Their sofa set, table tops and dishes will be blue, so we know who leaves what outside.
MAISHA WANDA is the green house next door with Mum Evelyn and members of Std 2,5,7,8. Each house will have upper bunks in reserve for boarding high school students who come home only at midterm and school holidays: April, August, and December, so therefore, no house will have more than ten girls for the Mum.
NEEMA JOSEPHINE is Mum Rose's house with members of std: 2,5,7,8 also. This is a red house and with the mixed ages, we can make small football teams who can compete for house trophies.
KARIBU ROSE completes the circle and brings us back to the dining hall. This is our guest house and it will have four bedrooms with a bunk bed and single bed in each. The bathrooms of each house have two toilets, two showers and two sinks which allows for various activities in the short space between school and supper. The visitors will have a sitting and diningroom in the same great room space as the girls, except that visitors will have a tv in their sitting room. The little girl, middle girl, and big girl movies will be seen in the common diningroom and books will surround them in their living rooms instead.
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| Schooling |
Three Seniors have completed 18 exams and are now finished high school. Since the marks won't be out until February, they will be assistant mothers in the houses where they live until we can find some tertiary education for them that begins in May. Until then they will help us in child care, farm work and with the farm animals. (We have two working donkeys and will get two milk cows next month. Fifty broiler chickens and fifty egg layers will come next month as well.
Nine Primary girls have completed eighth grade; their marks will be out on Dec. 27th and the hunt for schools will begin. They are required to apply to some national, provincial and district government schools and the marks they get will determine which schools will invite them. We, on our part, will have to copy and deliver their certificates and marks to as many private schools as we can run to, in case invitations are few. There were 378,000 children who sat for this exam, and surely not all will be invited as there are not enough schools to accommodate them all. So January will be run around and find high schools (including the five where we have girls already...). We were pleased and proud when the Matron of St. Martin's Secondary said "send us some more girls; yours are so good and three of them are Prefects of their classes". February will be run around and find good programs for the high school grads to join. Universities are also on an invitation basis. All twelve of these girls, will spend two hours each day, learning typing on our four computers (the Mavis Beacon Way); I'd like them to be ten finger typists by the time they are assigned 30 page papers in University. They will also have to read English books to increase their vocabularies before they go off to next level learning.
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Healthcare Appeal
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One of our girls who was in the charter group in 2005, was discharged in January 2010 to live with her Mother and brother. She has been diagnosed with leukemia. She is 11 yrs old and very bright and beautiful. Her big sister in the UK is helping with chemo therapy, but I saw the blood count the other day and I think she needs a bone marrow transplant. Her white count is 3.9MILLION per cc, and her red count is 4.9 M per cc. For those who don't know, our white count normal range is 5 - 10 thousand, so you can see how bad her blood is. My question is, does anyone have any connections to a group that would fly this child to the US or UK for a transplant? Is that even possible? The oncologist yesterday treated her heart, which is unduly burdened by the heavy blood. This is layman's talk, but I'm begging who knows anything we can do for this child??? Does any one know a pediatric oncologist who would help? Does anyone have any miles stashed away that she could use? I don't think transplants are done here in Nairobi. At least, not that any of us could afford...we really need help with this.
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