Day Sixteen - Child Sponsorship

July 27, 2012 (Sam)

      We finally started work!

      We sat down with Jane the other day and she outlined a little more specifically what we’re going to be doing while we are here. She has a vision to one day replicate what they have here at the Beacon of Hope Centre in Ongata Rongai in a dozen different locations around Machakos and Kajiado counties. They are also in the process of building a primary and secondary school on Beacon’s current campus. They are hoping to have five times as many children at the academy next year as they do this. Beacon insists on a 50/50 policy: they currently have 140 children in the academy (pre-K and Kindergarten), and they require that 50% of them can afford to pay their own school fees. They insist that the other 50% can not. Beacon does this because if they don’t allow the children who can’t afford school to attend there, then they simply won’t go at all. Many of these children are orphans, and many others are simply far too poor to be able to count on their parents to pay their fees. Child sponsorship would allow donors from anywhere in the world to support a child as they go through school. School fees are very inexpensive here, but because of the number of “vulnerable” children that Beacon accepts into their academy, they are left with far too many school fees to be able to shoulder themselves.

      So having a smoothly functioning child sponsorship program is going to be essential. At this point, there isn’t much of a program in existence. Jane is counting on Christina to develop and implement such a program. Jane is taking this project very seriously. Which is why she has decided to go so far as to appoint Christina a personal assistant: me. That’s right. Construction is out the window. Jane wants me running support for Christina while she tackles the child sponsorship beast. She also asked me to be involved in the Youth Resource Center here at Beacon, playing sort of a mentoring role to the youth, and assisting the staff in any way I can.

      We are excited about these projects. In many ways because of the potential they hold to change lives. But we all know that programs don’t change lives; people change lives. Which is why we are excited about the relationships that will develop in the process of these programs being developed. Which is why we’re also excited to continue to ask for your love and support as we move forward with this task. A child sponsorship program is no good if there are no sponsors ensuring that these kids can stay in school. Please continue to be open to pouring out compassion on the children of Kenya. There are going to be great opportunities opening in the near future for everyone to get more personally involved in these children’s lives. We’ll keep you posted!

Day Twelve - Kenyan Youth

July 23, 2012 (Sam)

      The World Health Organization estimates that Female Genital Mutilation has been carried out on over 92 million girls in Africa alone. “FGM has no health benefits, and it harms girls and women in many ways. It involves removing and damaging healthy and normal female genital tissue, and interferes with the natural functions of girls' and women's bodies. Immediate complications can include severe pain, shock, hemorrhage (bleeding), tetanus or sepsis (bacterial infection), urine retention, open sores in the genital region and injury to nearby genital tissue.”

      Today Christina and I had the opportunity to travel to Sultan Hamud, Kenya, about 150 km from Ongata Rongai, where we are staying. Beacon of Hope operates ten Youth Resource Centers around Kajiado and Machakos County. A local church in Sultan Hamud, Pentecostal Evangelistic Fellowship of Africa, has partnered with Beacon and opened one of their newest centers. Beacon’s purpose in opening these centers is to provide access to information and interaction among peers across all age groups. One of the aims of the centers is to get the youth together to discuss issues affecting their specific age groups. In an area largely dominated by tribal people, Female Genital Mutilation ranks as one of the top issues affecting the youth. Even though FGM is illegal in Kenya, it is still widely practiced among various tribes. It’s not uncommon for young girls to leave for school break and, after a visit to the local “circumciser,” (usually a traditional circumciser but sometimes a health care provider) return limping and wincing in pain.

      Being that Sultan Hamud is also a major hub for trucker drivers heading to Kenya’s east coast, child prostitution has also become a huge concern. Truckers are forced to stop driving at 6pm, and by that time, the street of Hamud are filled with girls soliciting themselves for a few dollars.

      Sultan Hamud’s Youth Resource Center is sparsely equipped. They attempt to provide resources to the youth, including computers, educative visual equipment, literature, sports gear, and games, as well as providing forums in which small groups can get together to discuss health, education, and other issues particularly affecting people their age. They also try to provide opportunities to get them involved in extracurricular activities like sports, drama, acting, painting & drawing, etc. When we stepped inside the cramped room allotted to the center, Elizabeth, the center coordinator showed us around. We saw two working computers, no books, and no other equipment. They are coordinating with the YRC at Beacon in Ongata Rongai to try to better equip the facility. Groups meet here three times a week and ages range from 13 to 35. Mainly young men come to the meetings; they have a hard time attracting girls, one of the reasons being that so many are married off at young ages, and by 14 or 15, these girls aren’t worried about community discussion groups, they’re worried about parenting the 2-3 children they’ve had in the last few years.

      Beacon’s vision is to have all 10 of these centers equipped one day with resources enough to attract hundreds of young men and women, pulling them off the streets and giving them the opportunity to learn, interact, and have fun with their peers. Every child should have the opportunity to better themselves. Every child should have the option to get away from the destructive cycles that so many have found themselves in. Every child should have hope for their future. And if Beacon of Hope has anything to say about it... they will.

Day Nine - Matatu Fever

July 20, 2012 (Sam)

      Getting around here is an interesting venture. It’s not like in the states where everyone has their own car (or their own two or three cars). In the states we take for granted being able to get where we want when we want on our own time and in our own way. Even our public transportation system in the states, for those who use it, seems to be pretty reliable. We have bus schedules and set ticket prices and preset destinations. And we just assume that these things will run, as designed, like clockwork.

      In Kenya, the opposite of dependable has one name: matatu. Matatus are privately owned minibuses, about the size of a small minivan, that are used as the main form of transportation in Nairobi. Even though they only have 14 passenger seats (if you can call the minuscule amount of space that each rider is allotted a seat), "touts" often attempt to maximize profit and efficiency by cramming as many passengers inside as they can fit (in America, we call this “going green”). Today, we rode in a matatu with 18 people. I am not joking when I say passengers were sitting on top of each other. When they run out of seats, people start hanging off the sides of the matatu as as it flies down the highway, ramping over speed bumps and passing other cars while going uphill.

      Matatus, although they have been forced to clean-up their flamboyant paint-jobs considerably in the last years, still each sport their own unique slogan. “Playboy Magnet” “Con Air” “Eschatology” “Fly High” “Pot-machine” “In God We Trust” and “10% Flossin’, 90% Hustlin’” to name just a few. 

      Back to unpredictable: prices for mutatu rides aren’t set. The cost will vary depending on how far you plan on going and what time of day it is, but as with everything else here, when Kenyans see wazungu (“foreigners”) prices go up. They also don’t collect the fare until after you’ve started your ride. So they may tell you one price before you get in, but when touts start collecting fare halfway through the trip, they’ll try to charge you more. We had to chase down a tout after a short ride yesterday because after we paid him, he walked off without giving us our change.

      It’s also not uncommon to see a matatu jacked up on the side of the road spewing brake fluid or with a plume of black smoke shooting up from under the hood. I had the pleasure of sitting in the front seat next to the driver one day on a matatu ride back to Rongai, and between my knees getting cracked by his stickshift every time he changed gears, I noticed that every light on the dashboard was glowing orange and the oil pressure gauge was flailing around like a dirty sock in the wind.

      Matatus are also the prime place to get your pockets picked, your backpack slit open, or your purse emptied. Thieves prey on matatu riders, especially unwitting Westerners. We’ve been warned by countless people, Kenyan and otherwise, to never let another passenger open a newspaper next to you. This is usually just a strategically placed obstruction that will allow someone else to rummage through your belongings that you’re clutching tightly on your lap. Crooks will also intentionally knock or bump into you to throw you off your guard. Next thing you know, your wallet is gone. We’ve also been warned to never get on a matatu unless there are other passengers. Never be the first person to board. This is the easiest way to become a victim of international kidnapping.

      So far we’ve not had too many problems. Nothing that a little wariness, vigilance, and a back-up plan can’t protect against. That, and perhaps some well-founded mechanical knowledge.

Day Six - Brothers & Sisters

July 17, 2012 (Sam)

      We just got internet access for the first time yesterday, so we are just now getting in touch with people in the states again. Since we got here last Wednesday, we’ve been staying at Kijiji guest house in Karen, at the edge of Nairobi. Yesterday, we moved onto Beacon of Hope’s property into the guesthouse that was built inside their compound.

      It has been wonderful to see so many old faces, and meet so many new people. I can’t believe the changes that have taken place in the last six years. Beacon has moved from a cramped brick building on small plot of land on Magadi Road to an 8-acre spread that accommodates a fully functioning medical clinic, social development office, pre-school and kindergarten, catering school and cafeteria, sustainable garden, administrative building, youth resource center, vocational training facilities, and a showroom where artisan’s crafts are displayed and sold. But more than just the facilities, it is amazing to see how God is using these programs to impact the larger community around Ongata Rongai and in individual’s lives.

      Last Friday we had the opportunity to visit one of Beacon’s beneficiaries in the Kware slum on the outskirts of Nairobi. Makena (not her real name) is a mother of four and is HIV positive. Two of her children have died, and her youngest son, David, who is 3 ½, is also HIV positive. As soon as David’s father found out that Makena and their son were HIV positive, he left. Makena is receiving health care treatment at Beacon of Hope’s clinic and both her and her son David, who is enrolled in the pre-school at Beacon, are taking ARVs now and their health is improving drastically.

      The staff at Beacon’s clinic treats more than 1,500 HIV positive patients. 120 of these patients are children, many of whom are enrolled on-site at the Beacon Academy. These men, these women, and these children are our brothers and sisters. According to Ephesians 2, all who are in Christ are of the same household. We are brothers and sisters, no longer separated by nationality, gender, or class. That is why we are here.

      Thank you again to everyone who is keeping in touch, sending encouragement, and praying for God’s will to be done. We love you all.

Day Zero - To Africa

July 10, 2012 (Sam)

     Our names are Sam & Christina Carlson and the most important thing about us is that we are children of Yahweh.

     Christina and I both grew up in Wisconsin and after 21 years of life happening, we met in Northern Japan. We’ve been married now for 922 days.

     A few months ago, I had the opportunity to participate in an internship at the Lewes Church of Christ in southern Delaware. From there, we began looking at options for our next step. All doors seemed to lead to where we are right now: mere hours from flying to Nairobi, Kenya where we will be living for the next six months. While in Kenya, we will be working with an organization called Beacon of Hope. Established just over ten years ago, Beacon of Hope’s primary focus is to bring hope to women who are living with and affected by HIV/AIDS within poor communities by empowering and equipping them to meet their spiritual, physical, emotional, economic and family needs in a sustainable way. You can read more about their mission at www.beaconafrica.org.

     Over the last month, since packing up all our belongings and uprooting from Delaware where we’ve lived for the last three years, we’ve been enjoying spending time with our families back in Wisconsin. Besides landing a parking ticket in downtown Madison, we’ve been having a pretty good time being home. Christina’s sister got married, my brother flew out from California, and we got to spend a lot of time seeing the beauty of Wisconsin from bikes, boats and our feet. Seeing friends and family has been refreshing and encouraging.

     Our flight leaves in a 12 hours. It’s 3 o’clock in the morning and we are making final preparations for our flight that will take us over 10,000 miles from Chicago, IL to Nairobi, Kenya. From what I have heard, much has changed at Beacon and in Nairobi in the last six years since I was able to make my first visit to Kenya. We are excited to see how God’s work is being advanced and even more excited to be able to participate in it once again alongside the natives of East Africa.

     Thank you to everyone who has been encouraging us, praying for us, and supporting us up to this point. Please continue to do so. We will keep you updated on what is happening here on our end! Feel free to e-mail us anytime at sam.christina.carlson@gmail.com.