I'd like to share with you my time spent volunteering in Kenya...
Back in October 2010 I spent two months with my wife at Good Hope Academy: a school and children's home 40km outside Nairobi. We were there to lend our expertise where at all possible, in the school and in the home. It was a very challenging, but very rewarding time.
The children came from many different areas of the country, spoke different languages and ranged in ages from 6 to 16. Yet, they all had one thing in common: all had suffered the tragedy of losing both parents. Many of whom were killed during the political and civil strife of 2007. For some, this was only the start of their problems, left to fend for themselves they suffered greatly and even when taken in by so called 'family' they suffered further physical and sexual abuse.
So to be scooped up by the amazing people at Good Hope they were thrown a lifeline and given the opportunity to receive something more valuable than any food handout: an education. Although the facilities are not advanced, funding from charitable organisations has given them the ability to educate over 130 children and give them a strong start in life. We helped out with Maths and English classes and introduced ideas for the teachers to make learning more fun and engaging rather than just learning by rote.
It was a time for us to puts things into perspective and to appreciate just how fortunate we are. As a trained teacher I was able to implement ideas about ways of learning and differentiation. For my wife Francesca, she was beginning to realise her job in media wasn't what she wanted to do all her life. After her Kenya experience and working as a teaching assistant in NZ, she is now re-training to become a primary school teacher.
I brought my old Nikon D200 along for the trip and captured life at the home and in the school. It was coated in dust by the time we got home but the pictures were safe and sound.
The amazing thing is, although these children had suffered greatly they had so much love and happiness to give. We were thrilled to see how much fun they had playing games, singing, dancing and RUNNING! Man they are fast! Long walks around the Ngong Hills were an experience like no other and teaching them classic playground games was as hilarious as the kids showing us how to deal with massive spiders. Answer: hit it with a big stick!
So I give to you: A snapshot of life at Good Hope.
I hope their unwavering happiness brings a smile to your face :)
If you would like to find out more about how you can help the children do visit the Good Hope website where you can sponsor a child.
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