Christine, age 19 is a junior at Machakos University pursuing a bachelor’s degree in education. She is looking forward to graduating and teaching Business & Geography at high school level. Since she was five years old, Christine and her sister were raised by their single father after their mother passed away Christine was first sponsored in 2009 by Pamela while in Elementary school and later by Bayshore Church through completion of high school. She attended Tumaini International Girls High School where she excelled at her 12th grade national exit exams and got admission to join university.
After high school, Christine remembers facing an overwhelming challenge. Her father didn’t have money to pay for her university education. She reminisces on those dark days: “I successfully completed my 12th and anticipated to join university to continue with my education. However, given that Tumaini child Sponsorship officially ends after the 12th grade, I was totally confused on what to do next. My father depends on unreliable rain -fed farming and sometimes he gets almost nothing after investing a lot of labor in the small farm.” But Christine remained hopeful that her dream of pursuing a university degree would one day come to fruition.
She remembers with excitement the day she received an important phone call.….: I was excited when I received a phone call from Tumaini office inviting me to attend 12th grade alumni meeting at Tumaini center…. We were briefed about the alumni scholarship funds and encouraged to apply. I applied and after 2 weeks, I was asked to come to the office to collect my school fees and upkeep money…. At that point, I felt that God had sent angels through Tumaini to rescue my situation because I completely had no idea about who was to fund my college fee. Since year 1, I have been able to attend all classes, do all the semester exams and pay for my rent without much struggle. Though the cost of University Education has tripled, I thank Tumaini for making sure that most of the kids who make it to university and colleges are able
to meet their academic goals without much struggle. I am now in Year 3 and am hoping for the best for my remaining time in school.
Christine concluded her interview with gratitude for her support, “May God continue to bless Pamela and Bayshore Church and, indeed, all the donors for coming to our rescue when we needed you the most”.
Unfortunately, not every story has a good ending like Christine’s. For example, we currently are supporting 140 students attending vocational, professional, and four-degree programs. Each year, we are only able to offer limited scholarships based on available alumni scholarship funds. And now, with the 12th grade class that just completed taking their national exit exams, we anticipate the number of eligible students to grow by approximately 115 in 2024. We are grateful to those sponsors who can continue supporting fully their children in colleges. However, we are fully aware that not everyone can afford the thousands of dollars needed to fund college education.
That is why I am writing to you today. As you plan your end of year giving, would you prayerfully consider a designated donation for alumni scholarship. Donations may be made online or via a designated check. Any amount will be appreciated, however here is some suggested amounts for you to consider:
$3,000 will fund a university student for one year.
$ 2000 will fund a professional career student (e.g., Nursing) for one year.
$1000 will fund a vocational student (e.g., masonry, hairdressing) for one year.
Other:
$750
$500
$250
$100
$50
Other $
May you and your family have a blessed Christmas and thank you for your consideration to support our alumni!
With gratitude,
Stanley M. Mutunga,
President/CEO