If you have never been to a developing country, you may wonder how vulnerable children spend their day. Or, if you have never had a chance to participate in one of our annual vision trips to Kenya, perhaps you wonder how your sponsored child spends a typical day. Well, Junior Mutinda is such a child and a great example. Junior Mutinda is in 5th grade and lives in rural Kenya with his widowed mother and two siblings. The three children are sponsored by Bill & Saren. Our staff recently spent a day visiting with Mutinda during his daily routine on weekdays. He was keen to share how his day begins: “I wake up around 5 am every morning during weekdays when schools are on and start preparing myself. My mother makes breakfast for us early in the morning and by 5:40 am we leave for school."
Junior Mutinda walks 40 minutes one way to get to school and back after school is out after 5:00 pm! Once he gets to school, Junior Mutinda joins other students during personal study time at 6:30. Regular classes begin at 8:00 am ending at 5:45 pm. During the day, there are several 15-minute breaks, one hour lunch, and one hour for various sporting activities. By all accounts, the school day is extremely full and busy for this 5th grader. Yet, he is happy for the opportunity to learn and better his life in the future.
Junior Mutinda has after-school responsibilities at home as well. “After school, I always know that I have to return our cows and goats from the grazing field while my brother fetches water. After eating supper, I revise [schoolwork] for some 30 minutes before I retire to bed at around 9 pm," said Junior Mutinda. And the routine continues the next day for the entirely 5-day school calendar.
Thank you for partnering with us in providing opportunities for children like Junior Mutinda to attend school. His class teacher was very complimentary of Junior Mutinda's academic and other complimentary activities. Once they get an opportunity, most vulnerable children are highly motivated to study because there is a support system helping to enable them to excel in school and better their futures. If you would like to sponsor a child and give them hope, please go online or call us TODAY.
Eternally grateful to you,
Stanley Mutunga
Covid 19 Update:
Tuesday, September 28th, 2021
The Delta Variant remains a challenge across the country though the numbers are slightly lower this week.
The average positivity rate was lower this week down to 4.0% from the previous week. Trending towards the right direction!
There were 2,127 new cases reported, which is higher than reported in the previous week. The total caseload is now 248,770.
There were 108 deaths reported, slightly higher than the number reported in the previous week. Total deaths now stand at 5,116.
There is continued positive uptake of vaccines across the country from previous weeks!
There is also more availability of vaccines than ever before. These include Johnson & Johnson, Pfizer, Moderna (from the US), AstraZeneca (from the UK), and Sinopharm. (From China).