Shosho and babu (grandmother and grandfather)

Friday was the last day of the gathering 2010. We invited the guardians of the students to join us for a few hours, get to know us and share their views about the sponsorship program with us. Many came. And they came from far. I was really moved when I saw those old grannies and grandfathers coming to the venue. Most of the guardians are widowed grandmothers and they have no chance to retire. In many cases they lost all their children due to HIV/AIDS and now struggle daily in order to feed their orphaned grandchildren. Most of them never had the chance to go to school. I saw only one old grandfather who was able to read and sign the document we gave out. Other guardians are only a few years older then the supported students. Child-headed families are nothing rare here. The older brother or sister simply has to step in and take responsibility at a very young age. One boy still has his mother. He was accepted into the program because she is terminally ill. Imagine, it was her boy who got the award "Best performing boy 2010". You should have seen the proud smile radiating on her sunken face!
Awards were not the only thing we gave out. The students also received the promised revision books and were definitely very happy to have them. The books belong to TaC, which means that the students have to look well after them and hand them down to the next generation after one year.
It was such a wounderful time we had with the students, the local committees and the guardians. Three days of learning, sharing and contributing. The students surprised us with several performances on the last day: two poems, one TaC-song and a short drama about how hard it is for impoverished talents to access education. The shy students of the first day turned into a cheerful bunch of promising young people overnight. It was not all too easy to let them go...

Mentorship workshop 2010

The long awaited annual gathering 2010 took off yesterday! We gather the students at one of our cooperating schools for a three days meeting in order to get to know them, bond with them and have them experience inspiring role models. All students came! Yesterday's key note speaker was Jack from ISMAT (International school of Medicine and applied technology). The students sure had many questions concerning careers after secondary school! It's good they start making up their mind - there will be 22 candiates next year and it is high time to find a solution for them. The students got also highly inspired by Jared from Tembea Youth Group, who taught them the basics of entrepreneurship. They then had to come up with a business idea and work on it in groups. Later that day, I challenged the students by requesting them to compose a song for Teach a Child, write a poem, tell a story or play a sketch.

Today the students received a training in public speaking, listened to an inspirational speech about academic excellence and received valuable advice on boy-girl relationships. Our days are packed and long, there is almost no time to rest. But guess what I heard tonight after a late supper? When I passed by the students' dorms I heard many of them singing. The students were actually rehearsing the TaC-song they will present tomorrow! Now, I really can't wait to hear it...

How to transform phones into books

When I visited Switzerland in late September this year, many of you greatly supported the work of Teach a Child - Africa by donating equipment, such as scanners, a laptop, flash drives and mostly: mobile phones. I agreed with the donors to sell whatever is not needed for the work of TaC. After bringing most of the equipment to the field during the second mission in October, I was left with five quality mobile phones. But how would an obvious foreigner sell them on the local market? I didn't know the answer to that question until I started my 4 weeks training in Monitoring and Evaluation at AMREF. During the last week of the training I asked the most vivid class mate to assist me in selling the phones among the group. What a marketer! In only a few hours he sold all the phones and one flash drive for 19'000 Kenya Shillings! This is the equivalent of 150£ or 240$! Last Saturday I went to town in order to buy revision books for our students. With the help of our project-coordinator who happened to be in Nairobi, we purchased revision books for all the form 3 and form 4 students! With the money left, William and I bought three scientific calculators to award our best performing students during the annual mentorship workshop which will take place from the 15th to the 17th of December.
We are still fundraising for more books and more calculators. Kindly visit the current fundraising event on betterplace.org:

http://emailinvited.betterplace.org/groups/simone-haeberlis-spendenaktion

Giving revision books to our students will make them so happy! By now I interviewed most of them and there was not a single student who did not ask for books. Would any of us deny water to someone who is thirsty?

Fundraising event!

Dear friends of Teach a Child - Africa!

I just created a fundraising-page on betterplace.org. Would you take a moment to support the project I'm raising funds for?

betterplace.org is an online platform for social engagement that connects people who need help accomplishing their mission with people who are eager to help.

With this fundraising-event "Simones Spendenaktion" I'm supporting the Project "Teach a Child - Africa". Getting involved is really easy. Click now on the link below to find out more:

http://emailinvited.betterplace.org/groups/simone-haeberlis-spendenaktion


Best,
Simone Haeberli


Simones Spendenaktion

The way forward!

Since returning from the field I have spent three days in Kisumu, the capital of Nyanza province. It is one of my tasks to find strong local partners for co-operations. The number of NGOs operating in Nyanza is very high, the potential for synergies is enormous. TaC is currently exploring possibilities of co-operation in the following areas: health, holiday attachment, and higher education. In 2010 only one girl will graduate from form 4, but next year TaC will present 22 candidates! That means, there is only one year left to come up with a strategy for what I like to call "phase 2". What was the impact of the work of TaC, if we abandon the children after form 4? What have we then really done in the end of the day?
I therefore established contact with a good college in Kisumu that has a lot of experience in educating orphaned youth and assisting them to create a meaningful and bright future for themselves. The director has agreed to give a career talk during our beneficiaries' annual gathering in December! That will enable them to start thinking about their way forward.
The health co-operation will be the easiest to set up, Tac will soon have a solid policy and a reliable medical partner to refer her emergency cases to. At the same time, I was exploring possibilities for attachments and career exposures during holidays. The time off school is such a high risk area for our beneficiaries. Their homes can be hazardously dangerous for their mental and physical health, we better find alternatives for our harshest cases, before the schools close again by the end of November. And lastly - what to do with future drop-outs? There is no way to guarantee that all beneficiaries will clear form 4 and make it to university. But there are at least two wonderful NGOs around here, who are specialized in absorbing and empowering drop-outs by training them in life skills. It's all there, TaC doesn't need to reinvent the wheel! Isn't that good news? Partnership is the way forward!

What happened to Marceline?

During the first M&E mission in July 2010, we came across the harsh case of Marceline, a highly talented total orphan and well performing student who was abandoned by relatives and sponsors equally. I have mentioned her in my post on the 14th of July. What happened to her since then?
Many people were touched by her story and contributed specifically for her, so that we could start considering TaC-sponsorship for her. William, our co-ordinator, talked to the school several times, until they were ready to waive the largest amount of Marceline's astronomic balance of about 50'000 Shilling. Yesterday we visited the school again and I insisted on new negotiations. We were quite tough and managed to convince the school to waive all outstanding balances in 2009 and 2010. TaC would only step in from 2011 onwards. Eventually, they agreed to share the burden! Once we received the consenting document from the school, we called all our TaC-girls in, informed Marceline about her scholarship and welcomed her to the TaC-family. At first, Marceline didn't say much, as she was probably too surprised by the events. But when she sat down with the five other girls for the photo-shooting, she quickly opened up and gave us her most beautiful smile.

A few success stories

Today was the last day of the second Monitoring & Evaluation field mission. All in all we visited 13 schools and interviewed 22 TaC-beneficiaries. Most schools were visited for the first time, only two were visited in order to follow up our measures taken since the first visit. For example: in August, seven of our beneficiaries who struggled with diseases were taken to hospital for a medical check-up. I have by now seen four of them again - and you know what? Those four are all in good health, energetic, and in most cases even their performance has improved! I was most impressed by one boy in Yala, who didn't perform well back in July and made a lethargic impression on me. When I met him again today, I almost didn't recognize him: a smart young man with a cheerful smile and an impressive report form in his pocket. His teacher complimented highly on the increased performance and thinks of the boy as a promising case. Three girls, who struggled with eye problems, have also received treatment and are no longer disturbed nor distracted by sickness. One of them proudly presented her new glasses to us...
During the first visit we found that one boy had run away from his boarding school and was even suspected for theft. It was not easy to track him down and when we eventually managed, we were very disappointed by his behavior, but decided to give him a last chance: if he manages to inscribe himself in a different school on his own and doesn't misbehave anymore, we wouldn't drop him. The boy apparently grasped the seriousness of his situation. He indicated the school he would attend and promised not to let us down a second time. I must say, I didn't quite believe him back then. Today however, we paid a surprise visit to his new school. We found the boy in class, friendly and relaxed. The principal and his deputy praised him and his performance and proudly presented the results of the last exam-cycle, where he scored the second best result. We told the principal to keep an eye on him and bid good-bye to the school with a smile of relief on our faces.

Q&A

Q&A sounds very harmless. But at times I am really afraid of my own questions and even more so of the answers. Today was such a day. After the NRHS gave me a lift to Siaya, the project-coordinator and I drove to Mbaga Girls', where TaC sponsors two young ladies. The deputy talked to us and urged us to sponsor a third girl at their school, a pathetic case, as she puts it. I agreed to at least talk to that girl. The girl is a total orphan, an aunt, who is a widow and a mother of four herself, took her in. The girl is very well performing at school and until last year, an uncle paid her fees. However, he suddenly stopped paying and moved away. He is not even picking the phone when she tries to reach him. The girl has a younger sister, but hasn't seen her for over 4 years, as she was taken in by an uncle in a remote place.
Those questions are already quite tough on the children, as they have to go through their losses with me. I then normally ask about how the guardian generates income and where the children spend their time off school. Turns out that this aunt, who is by now very sick and bedridden, brews and sells alcohol in her house. I get quite alerted and ask who uses to consume that alcohol. The girl says, that there are always drunken men at home, i.e. the customers. I then want to know where exactly she sleeps, while she is at her aunt's place. Well, there is no choice, as there is only one room. By now, I am horribly uneasy. I try to find out from the girl how those men behave towards her. After a while of me going round in circles, she simply says: there is no way they would leave me alone...
The only thing I can do for this girl right now is to tell her, never to lose hope. I kindly remind her that there is a way out and that this way is called education.
A story like this can have two effects: it either really depresses you or it does the contrary. I'd always opt for the contrary. Carry on!

A Saturday in Kisumu

After taking a good rest in a simple, but spacious hotel in Kisumu, I install myself on the rooftop of the hotel in order to go through my paperwork. Sitting in a shady place and enjoying a fresh breeze from lake Victoria sure makes typing and wiritng a most enjoyable activity. Yet, I clearly underestimated the breeze. There is a sudden blow, all my papers are thrown to the ground and with them my phone. My virtually undestroyable, off-road proof Nokia from 2003 (!) doesn't cope this time. I once dropped it from a third floor, it burst into pieces and when I put it back togehter again, it produced its welcoming beep as if nothing had happended. Not today. After a few vain attempts to repair the mobile, I go downstairs, looking for someone to help me. The first guy I bump into refers to himself as a technician. That turns out to be utterly true: after five minutes of meticulous analysis, he pulls my most faithful phone back into life! Back on the rooftop I meet a young lady and get to talk to her. She turns out to be a medical doctor doing her research in the field of HIV transmission. We find out that her team will drive to Siaya on Monday morning - this is exactly where I need to go as well by the same time! She offers a lift and I gladly accept. Like that, William, our project-coordinator, doesn't need to come to Kisumu the night before to pick me up. We save around 4000 Shilling like that - money that can be spent on much smarter things than fuel and accommodation! Nyanza Reproductive Health Society, you sure made my day!

A sad story - with a happy end?

Today, we start early in the morning by visiting Maranda Boys' Secondary School, one of the highest performing schools of the region, and even in Kenya. After talking to the officials of the school, I get to see our sponsored student here. When I shake his hand, I notice with concern that it is completely disfigured. I normally take each student aside in order to talk to them privately. At Maranda, we sit down under a wonderful tree and I get to talk to the boy. The boy's mother died when he was only three years old, and he says he has no memories of her. The father followed her a few years later. The boy's eldest brother was then the head of the family and apparently managed keeping the five siblings together. Unfortunately, this brother passed away last year, leaving the younger siblings in the care of a step brother. This step brother is a simple farmer who is not able to feed himself, let alone four other people. There are no other relatives alive to assist those teenagers. The boy is extremely stressed about his home. He says he is fine as long as he can be at school, but the moment the school closes for holidays, another ordeal begins. I then ask about his health whereupon he reports some problems, telling me that he was given the diagnosis malaria. When I ask him what they gave him at the dispensary in order to cure his alleged malaria, he replies that he is usually given Panadol... Malaria and Panadol - how do those two go together, honestly? I suspect the boy struggles with something else, we shall arrange for a proper health check soon. Finally I get to ask about his hand. He tells me that he was left alone in the house when he was still a toddler. He crawled into the fire and that's how he lost his hand. It is not functional, but doesn't seem to disturb him much as he elegantly uses his left hand for everything.
During such talks I often cannot believe the amount of neglect, pain, stress and trauma these children have been going through at such a young age. Yet, they somehow find the strength to carry on, just like this student of ours at Maranda who remains ambitious and really wants to fight his way out of poverty. Lets try our level best to ensure that this sad story has a happy end. It's not too late.

A wonderful girls’ school in Usigu division

What do we actually do during a school visit? The principals are informed about the visit of TaC-representatives some days beforehand. They are to produce reports about the student’s academic and personal development and to discuss any issues with us. Today we visited two girls’ schools, one of them is called Lwak. Lwak is a very big school with a population of over 1000 students! The principal is a nun, who is truly committed to her school. Thanks to the school’s capability and transparency, they attracted many serious donors over the last few years. Terre des hommes sponsors 100 girls here, a Canadian NGO around 80. Rotarians have donated new sanitary facilities and new buildings are put up with various funds at almost every corner. After the meeting with the principal (and sometimes the class teacher), we ask to be taken around to assess the school’s facilities. We found Lwak to be very organized, extremely well kept, very tidy (the first school to have dust bins!), bustling with new buildings and initiatives. In order to generate a small income, the school hosts a bakery and rears chicken. They even have their own dairy cattle as well as pigs. Health care is not neglected here: there is a qualified nurse on stand-by, the school possesses a dispensary and a sick bay. Further, the principal keeps stunningly professional files of all sponsored students, every Shilling is accounted for. We learn a lot today. And surely, this is exactly the kind of school we want to co-operate closely in the future. After talking to the principal and evaluating the facilities, we got to see our sponsored student here, a girl we are very proud to have. Macreen excels in all subjects and wants to become a lawyer. When I ask her which cases she would want to tackle, she immediately replies that she wants to fight for the right of the girl child. The potential and determination of this 15 year old impress me: Macreen is a clear high potential, who will make TaC even more proud in the future.
During the interviews I normally also ask about the guardians, the siblings, how the children spend their time off school, and about potential health problems. If we encounter medical problems, we arrange for health checks and our local volunteers try to contact the guardians for further consultancy. Lastly, we decide whether or not to shortlist the school for further collaboration. In a case like today, that is not even a question though!

Back to Nyanza – The first two days

On Tuesday, I left Nairobi at 7 am by Easy Coach and actually really enjoyed the rather long bus ride through the stunning Rift Valley up to lake Victoria. There is nothing as calm as a green tea field. And there is nothing as bustling as all those small markets along the main road. I reach Kisumu in the early afternoon and transfer immediately to the hotel where I take a rest before meeting OGRA’s Dr. Obewa again. The meeting is efficient and fruitful, we agree on meeting for a second time next week in order to draft our cooperation. The next morning, William (our project-coordinator) and I leave Kisumu around 8 in the morning and pick up Philip (the secretary of our Usigu committee) on the way. Together we visit two boys’ secondary schools in Usigu division. Both schools are performing really well, are well kept and undergo promising developments. Both are benefitting from a project called ecosan. Biogas tanks will help reduce the amount of firewood used in the kitchen and will hence help cutting down on CO2 emissions. Both schools are very cooperative and interested in strengthening the cooperation with TaC. Our two students are doing well and aiming high. In the late afternoon we reach Bondo, where we will stay overnight. But before we can think of resting, my two fellow volunteers have to undergo a rather rough session in computer training. They have both received new netbooks and need to get more familiar with the programmes and things like e-mail and internet. Sunset marks the end of the lesson and we all happily devour our dinner in the pension’s restaurant. Let’s call it a day? Alas, not quite. I sit on my bed for another three hours to write down the data gathered today and ... well: keep my blog going.

What happened since July?

(Outdated blogs, goodness, they are so boring...! Huh!)

So - what happened since the first field mission in July 2010?
Many things indeed. Good things. Exciting things. After Margaret and I came home from the visit of the project site in the first half of July 2010, I was busy writing my report about the state of Project Nyanza launched in 2007. My report grew into a massive 44 page document and was presented during a teleconference to the UK board of TaC. I was very happy to learn later on, that many of my recommendations were accepted. TaC now pursues a more holistic approach or in other words: has significantly increased the budget per student. From now on TaC does not only pay the school fees, but makes sure the beneficiaries have sufficient uniforms, better equipment at school, access to medical care and hopefully from next year on even a little pocket money to cover their basic needs. Moreover, the annual gathering like the one that took place in 2009, has now become institutionalized. This year's annual gathering will take place in mid-December. During the meeting, the students will have the chance to bond, challenge each other, learn about career opportunities, listen to role models and acquire life skills. Last but not least: there is even some time for games and sports.
It is my great honour and pleasure to currently implement the recommendations I have given previously. That includes basically all organizational aspects and one could describe it as a general professionalization of TaC in Kenya: infrastructure, communication, formalization of processes, set-up of co-operations, networking, outreach, and of course: fund-raising. Especially Kenyan fund-raising, as there hasn't been any Kenyan contributor other than our extremely committed volunteers here.
My next task is to visit the project site for a second time, evaluate the schools not covered by the first visit, and interview the students I haven't met yet. Further, I will discuss co-operations, meet government officials and representatives of other NGOs. I will try my very best to keep you posted on the events during the second field mission!

Meeting the Ukwala committee, meeting Dr. Obewa - day 4 and 5

On Thursday morning we meet four members of the Ukwala committee. Again, we enjoy a fruitful, constructive, and very goal-orientated meeting. It is very encouraging indeed to see how responsible and caring the people on the ground are. At the end of the meeting we proudly learn that one of our students, Everlyne, has ranked no. 1 in the two subjects Christian Religious Education (CRE) and Geography. She has received two certificates and two book vouchers! After lunch, William, Margaret and I drive to Kisumu where we meet Dr. Obewa and his medical officer Kenneth. The meeting lasts about one hour. We learn a lot about the challenges OGRA Foundation was facing in the beginning and get precious advise how to avoid certain mistakes. We request for medical assistance and agree to cooperate in the future. We further agree that an annual health-check of our students is paramount. Moreover, Dr. Obewa has opened his own college in order to enable his average students (C or below) to obtain a solid higher education. There is again great potential for future cooperation, as OGRA’s students do not occupy all the places the college offers! It would really help if we knew where to send those TaC-students who will not qualify for university. In Kisumu they can obtain a certificate in two fields that allow them to contribute to their society as community workers.

After a last night in Kisumu, William attends a meeting of the Kenyan National Union of Teachers while Margaret and I fly back to Nairobi. Only when arriving in Nairobi we both notice, how exhausted we are after this intense field mission. And we also know already now that there is a huge workload awaiting us…

Visiting Usigu division day 3

On Wed morning we reach Usenge High school at around 10.30. While the headmaster is still in class, Philip, the local secretary of the selection committee, arrives and comes with us. We are invited into the headmaster's office for a general discussion. Later, we meet Alphonse and Jack, two of our sponsored students, and interview them about their life in school. After saying good-bye to them meet this division’s selection committee. Every year a number of students is selected for sponsorship by the local committees. The meeting is very constructive, open-minded, and fruitful; issues are addressed and solutions discussed. It’s the first time for me to meet a local chief and to collaborate with our local staff operating on the grass root level. They are the ones visiting the homes of applicants in order to verify their statements and to identify the most deserving cases. We enjoy a rich lunch together, close the meeting, and receive two visitors. One of them is a sponsored student to be interviewed, the second one is a desperate young man who did not manage obtaining sponsorship. It’s heartbreaking to see those young talents who don’t have anybody able (or willing) to meet their fees. Again, we shall do our very best to enable this young man accomplishing his dream of higher education!

Ukwala division day 2

The next day, we carry out two school visits. In the morning, we meet Sister Margaret Lydia, the principal of Sega Girl’s secondary school. All three girls are in school, but regrettably one of them, Anne, has a health problem. She has received treatment and feels better, but we decide to arrange a health check for her soon. After interviewing the three girls, we say good-bye to them and pick up Everlyne at the gate. Everlyne goes to a different secondary school in the region.  She was sent away for fees, a measure that clearly shouldn’t be applied on sponsored students! We assure she can go back to school right away and later proudly learn that Everlyne ranked no. 1 in two subjects and was therefore presented with two book vouchers. Keep it up! After a quick lunch we proceed to the second school, where we are warmly welcomed and informed about the five student’s performance and well being. This school impresses us with an innovative method of mitigating the daily struggle of the poorest: the Franciscan basket. Wealthier students contribute to the basket in order to assist their less fortunate peers. However, the basket cannot fully cover the great need of the young ladies. We are shown some relevant documents about our students and are shocked to find a record listing all orphans attending this school. We find more than 150 names on that list and are cruelly reminded how overwhelming the number of needy children still is. 

Later, we meet “our” girls, and we are truly happy to find them performing well. At the same time we are informed about the very harsh case of Marceline who was abandoned by her uncle, then by her sponsor, who has never paid a single shilling. Marceline would really deserve sponsorship: the total orphan is the top student of the year! Imagine, no. 1 out of 250! I shall try my very best to arrange sponsorship for her. It is simply heartbreaking to see such a bright young mind left out.

Ukwala division day 1

On Monday morning, William picks us up at the hotel. William is a senior educationalist and TaC’s local coordinator for the whole province of Nyanza. During our visit we witness many times how crucial it is to have such an experienced local coordinator! The first school we visit is St. Mary’s Yala, where TaC sponsors four boys. The principal and the career counsellor are well prepared, they know our students and are fully aware of the work of TaC. After a general discussion with the boys, we give them our questionnaire, and while they answer the questions, William and I are shown around the school. After videotaping the boys, we say good-bye and leave for the next school. As we are running behind schedule, our lunch consists of a few bananas we buy at a junction.

The second school to be visited today is called Sawagongo, where TaC sponsors three boys. Unfortunately, the principal has either not received our letter or is generally unaware of the work of TaC. Moreover, two of our boys have been sent home for fees and are unavailable. We get to talk to the bursary, where we learn that TaC was not given the fee structure for 2010, which created the whole misunderstanding. We find their fees to be correct, get the permission for the two boy’s immediate return to school, and instruct the principal to never send away our students before contacting our local coordinator. William locates one of the boys who was sent away and asks his guardian to bring him to our hotel. We are truly impressed by the commitment of his guardian, a teacher called Betha: the widowed lady is a mother of three herself, takes care of her late brother’s two children and has taken in Denis without even being related to him. We get to talk to Denis, learn that he is doing well, and are very happy to know that he is in such good hands.

Arriving in Kisumu

Margaret, the head of TaC-Nairobi, and I catch the afternoon flight to Kisumu. When the plane is about to land, Margaret confuses me by asking „Where is the lake?!“. Turns out that we have been landing on a very new runway and therefore approaching Kisumu airport from a different direction that usual. We then catch a taxi to our hotel and the driver praises the newly restored roads and states that things have improved. I try to remember the last time a local has told me that things have improved. I cannot recall any such statement. The hotel is very new and lovely as well. We rush to town in order to do the shopping for the field trip. Back to the hotel we sit outside and go through our schedule, prepare our task-list and print the last documents needed. Margaret tells me that the hotel was built by a medical doctor who runs a clinic in Kisumu. Somehow, I feel that I really want to talk to this man and convince a staff member to call him. The doctor happens to be at the hotel and listens carefully to my explanation about TaC. Surprisingly, he does not only run a medical clinic, but also a big NGO in Kisumu. And he has been sponsoring needy orphans through secondary education and is fully aware of the challenges! As we both sense great potential for cooperation, we agree to meet again on Thursday evening.

First days in NBO

The first days in Nairobi have been surprisingly easy. In the beginning I felt a little dizzy and figured it must be because of the altitude. Did you know Nairobi is almost 2000 meters above sea level? Me, I didn't know...

I found the city much calmer and much more organized than I had expected (compared, say, to Mumbai). The people I met were all very friendly and opend minded, I sure made many new friends right away. The first days I spent mostly in and around Strathmore University, where my friend Njeri works. On Friday for example, I witnessed the Strathmore graduation party and was very happy to spot some graduates from remote and very poor backgrounds. Imagine, one Masai clan had spent two days in a bus to attend the graduation of their village's teacher...!

Work for TaC also startet almost right away. On my second morning in town, I obtained a very carefully arranged folder with reading materials about TaC, which helped me understand the project in more detail. Further, many documents and questionnaires had to be drafted and revised before the field trip which is scheduled for the 4th of July. I met Margaret, the Nairobi chapter's head, and we spent quite some hours together preparing our materials. A lot of time was also invested in getting the material ready and defining its scope. Poor Margaret went around in town many hours to find an extra battery for our Camcorder, but in the end she got it and we are now fully prepared to take off to the field. It will be a true experience.

Leaving and Arriving

No matter how well you plan and how early you start packing - in the end you will always run out of time and get really stressed. Luckily, I had three friends helping me clear and clean my place, so that I could rent it to a tenant. As soon as that was fixed, my friend Soham came to my place in order to help me getting my luggage to the airport in Zurich, which is 80 minutes by train from Bern. Do I need to mention that I had the worst overweight of my life? After throwing out about 16kg and repacking at the airport, I passed the evening check-in, packed the other stuff in a few bags and went to my friend's home in Baden. They fed and hosted me, helped me packing an illegally heavy hand luggage and gave me a place to sleep. I woke up early, had to bid my last good-bye, took the direct train from Baden to the airport, got my enormous hand luggage through security and then had breakfast at the gate. Phew!

The flight was on time, smooth and didn't feel long at all. Arriving in Nairobi was very easy: getting my luggage, going through immigration, and getting through customs smoothly. And there she was: my ol' roomie from Oxford! Njeri and a friend took me to town by car, cooked dinner, welcomed me in many ways and gave me a home right away. I am now living in Njeri's very nice and calm apartment near Mbagathi Road. She sure helped me a lot in the first few days!

The farewell party

Just a few days before take-off, I gave a farewell party at my home in Bern. Again, so many friends volunteered to contribute in one way or another. There was a highly efficient crew in the kitchen, another team was putting up a tent in the garden, others did last minute shopping for me or simply brought food and beverages for everyone. We had a grill in the garden and the directly imported saussages from southern Germany were a true hit! In the evening my friend Sylvia carried out a most amusing auction by selling out utterly useless stuff as art to the guests, then we had Yen and Malte playing a small concert. 270.- Swiss Francs were raised by those events, of course that money will be used for TaC-related purposes while in Kenya.

Dear friends, it has been the most lovely party ever! Thank you all for coming and contributing in so many ways!

Briefing in Copenhagen

Pam and I had agreed that I should come over to Copenhagen in order to get to know TaC and its values better. Therefore, I spent a long weekend in Denmark's lovely capital in May. Pam and her husband David were so welcoming, that I felt at home right away. We were constantly talking about TaC: when we made our walk to the Little Mermaid (who was actually in Shanghai!), when we had lunch in one of the cute restaurants at Nyhaven, and even during our boatrides back home. Every day we discussed many issues over and over again, took minutes, planned my mission, drafted forms, and just couldn't stop brainstorming. We all went to bed after midnight every night. After those very intense, yet joyful und happy days I went back to Switzerland, where I come from, and couldn't wait anymore to pack my things and take off for Kenya.

How it all began

My first encounter with "Teach a Child - Africa" took place in Oxford, U.K. I must say, back then I didn't quite grasp the greatness and impact of the project. My kenyan flatmate Njeri took me to the launch of TaC at New Road Baptist Church in Oxford on December 1st, 2007. There, I met Pamela Steele, Executive Director of TaC, for the first time. I was truly impressed by her authenticity, energy, and strong will to change the destiny of the less fortunate. Back then, I understood that education is the key to everything. By giving underprivileged talented youth the chance of going to secondary school and reaching their intellectual potential, we can actually make a true difference.

After leaving Oxford and moving to Heidelberg, Germany, for further academic research, I didn't quite follow TaC's activities and got busy with other things. Two years later, my former flatmate Njeri had moved back to Nairobi and kept saying that I should come over and work in Kenya for a while. After finishing my Ph.D. at the University of Bern, Switzerland, I started considering Kenya as an actual option. And this is when TaC came into the picture again. Eventually, Pam offered me to work for TaC as an evaluation and monitoring volunteer. I agreed immediately as I clearly felt, that this is what I wanted to do: leaving the academic ivory tower, getting involved with the real life out there, and addressing urgent issues.

Preparations for Kenya

After the briefing in Copenhagen I had set myself a clear agenda: I wanted to raise all the technical equipment needed for the mission by myself and bring it to Kenya. Since I knew I would quit my job at university, I started with an event for my working colleagues, baking cakes and selling a few of my books I no longer needed. My colleagues liked TaC and the project so much, that they suggested to throw money together for a laptop. Nine colleagues from the faculty of humanities eventually joined and raised 400 Swiss Francs. With that money I purchased a very smart notebook that will serve me as mobile office during the field mission. Because I was in a very good mood that day, I told the sellers of the notebook, a nice Swiss couple, where their notebook would travel and which task it would fulfill. And then the unbelievable thing happened: they gave me a second notebook for free! Just like that! I will gladly hand it over to the project coordinator in Kisumu, who urgently needs a computer in order to write all his documents for TaC.

After the successfull funding of the computers, the word about TaC spread: two friends and their mother enabled me to purchase a camcorder, which means that I can actually document on site the work TaC has done - and I will also interview the sponsored students during my visit! Four friends gave me their mobile phones they no longer needed, others gave money for laptop cases, surge protectors and even a solar charger - surely a smart thing to have in such a remote province like Nyanza! The cutest action though was carried out by my 74 year old dad. I told him that some of the children are so poor, that they don't even have a pen to fill out the form and apply for TaC's sponsorhip. He frowned and said: "No pen??!" Then he walked straight into his bank, told them about TaC and walked out with a hundred pens. With the biggest smile on his face. That was really the most heartwarming thing ever.

Four days before take-off I had everything together I needed for my mission. Dear friends and family - you were great!