Day 9 Lumakanda May 17, 2011

Hi all

Today was one of those days.  It started out well enough had a couple of hard boiled eggs, toast and wonderful red jelly.  I think it is red plum jelly.  Anyway it is very tasty.  I also had a cup of tea without milk.  Hezron gave me a call first thing and told me he was running a little late because he was at the tire place getting tires fixed.  Once he picked me up and we were on our way he told me that because of the schedule he did not get the spare fixed and we were without one.  Do you feel that there is a lesson coming here?  Well yes there is take my advice and never ever travel in Kenya or anywhere in the bush without a spare tire.  We were on our way to the second stop of the day when traveling down a very dusty red road.  Hezron ran over a sharp rock and punctured the front tire.  Of course we are in the middle of nowhere, no tow trucks, no AAA, and no one to call.  I must say that Hezron is one smooth Bishop.  He stops the first Motorcyclist that comes by and the next thing I know this kid is removing the tire and getting ready to take it to some far off distant place to get it fixed.  Hezron went off with the tire and I along with Pastor John stayed with the car for two and a half hours.  It might only be 75 degrees out but the equatorial sun at an elevation of 6500 feet is brutal.  There was a tree with a little shade across the road and that was my spot for the duration.  Every time a vehicle came by I would get a face full of red dust.  Two and a half hours of not being able to speak the language (Kiswahili) and being the main attraction on the side of the road is not what I would call a great time.  I did not know that Hezron had agreed to pay the kid 200 Ksh (80 Ksh = $1) and I went and paid him 500 Ksh.  No wonder the kid seemed happy.  Here is a picture.

 

We finally made it to our next stop but the tire that Hezron had fixed was leaking again so he was off again and he left me to speak to the group assembled.  I do so much better when Hezron speaks first and leads me in.  I had three different interpreters all trying to determine what I was saying.  All I could do was wonder what these people were hearing me say.  This visit took much more time then we thought and I knew that I was going to get the most wonderful experience of driving back to Kakamega at night.  Hezron was able to get the tire fixed but the power went out while they were fixing the tire so they could not put enough air in it or balance the tire.  So we had to fill up with some air once we got on the highway but were limited to 60 to 70 kph because the front of the car was shaking so bad.  I remember driving at night in Kenya on my first visit.  I am amazed that there are not tens of thousands of people getting run over and killed on the roads every year here in Kenya.  When it gets dark it really gets dark and you can’t see a thing.  Or at least I can’t.  Hezron had a headlight out and it just made it worse.  The mass of humanity walking and riding bicycles on the road at night are staggering.  You can’t see anyone until you are right on them.  Every time someone came along with their high beams on or their lights were too bright Hezron had to stop and wait for them to pass otherwise he could possibly hit someone.  This along with trying to miss every pot hole and the sugar cane tractors that take up the whole road makes for a most wonderful ride.

Our first stop of the day was to Lumakanda and the Headquarters for Freedom Ministries in Kenya.  For all this time I thought it was Makanda.  I hope Makanda is not a bad word.  We stayed here for a few hours and met with the nursery school teachers, pastors, and about a dozen kids.  The last time I was here all that had been done was the trench for the foundation and a stick structure half built.  After a year and three months they have finished the church structure, added a place for the pastor, and a small kitchen.  They have also started the concrete support beams for the Headquarters.  Hezron is only able to build if there is some extra money that sometimes comes in.  The second stop of the day was to Segoid Area Lugari District Freedom Ministry Church and Early Childhood Development Center.  The nursery class was started in January 2011 with 16 children 7 boys and 9 girls.  As with all the schools I have visited so far payment of tuition is a real problem.  Here only 5 of the 16 parents have been able to pay.  They have to borrow materials from other schools, have no desks, can’t pay the teacher, and no kitchen.  Because they are a feeder school for the area they are required to have two latrines (outhouses) but only have one.  The floor is made of cow dung and within a few days after it has dried it turns to dust causing breathing problems for the children.  Both of these two schools today were nursery schools for 3 to 5 year olds.  Some of the children have both parents, some have one, and some have none very few are able to pay.  The theme seems to be always the same.  These are the forgotten ones that are fortunate enough to get the little bit of education that they can get.  There are literally tens or hundreds of thousands of other children here in Kenya that will never ever step foot in a school.  Over half of the population of Kenya’s 45 million is under the age of 16. 

My message to these people is always the same.  Do not count on any donations.  You might get a donation every now and then but once it stops you are still poor.  The giving of fish is hard to come by, it is time to learn how to fish.  These people so desparately want to be in a better situation and work hard at being where they are but it is barely enough to sustain them.  The Segoid Area Church has members making bricks, tree nursery, farming, chickens, and rabbits.  Getting up the next rung of the ladder takes just a little bit more capital then they have.  Here are some pictures the first is the Freedom Ministries site in Lumakanda.  The second is inside the new church at Lumakanda.  The third is brick making for the bricks to be used in the new Freedom Ministries Headquarters.  Fourth is Bishop Hezron, the two women teachers, two pastors, and the nursery school students.  The last picture is of the Segoid Area ECD nursery school students and their teacher.

In the morning it is off to Moi's bridge to visit with Rose and see her mothers new Passion Fruit Orchard then off to Kitale to meet with Pastor Joseph of Mt. Elgon to discuss possiblities of putting a clinic on Mt. Elgon to assist with the IDP's (Internally Displaced People's) or squatters.  The violence started back in 2005 and to some extent still continues today.  There was a large flare up after the last elections here and the Kenyan Military has a fairly large contingent on the mountain to keep the peace.  Look up Mt. Elgon insurgency and you can see for yourself what has been rarely reported on the mountain. 

Take care and God bless

Dave