Wednesday, July 13, 2011

Vulnerable Women and Children

Today, Sarah Ellen took us to see a Women's Shelter here in Eldoret.  Most of the women there are HIV positive.  For many, when their husbands found out that they were sick, they kicked them out.  Yet, in most of these cases, the women became infected by their husbands, so the next woman who comes to live with these men will suffer the same fate.  The shelter houses about 8-10 children as well - some who came with the women and some who came because they were "defiled" (what  they call rape here).

Florence, the caretaker, was lovely. Yet, the scene felt grim and far from joyful as was the case at the other places we went.  But, at least they are safe, for now.

Next, we went to the Neema House - a thriving orphanage that houses and educates somewhere around 50-75 children, from birth to teens.  The Directors, Joshua and Miriam, have devoted themselves to the hard work of meeting the many needs of the children in their care. Folks at IU put together a YouTube video about the place. www.youtube.com/watch?v=B3Hj1ke2fUE
Sarah Ellen and Miriam at Neema House
Most of the children at Neema (which means grace) were abandoned and came here HIV positive.  Miriam lines up the children in the morning for their ARV's (anti-retrovirals) - think Oliver and castor oil.  One 10 year old had a mother who did not want her, so she left her with her Aunt.  The Aunt then decided that she did not want her, so she threw her down a dry well.  The girl survived the experience, but her legs were severely malformed as a result.  She had surgery on one of her legs to straighten it and is walking in a way that she never was able to before.  She is supposed to go back for surgery on the other leg soon - maybe.
Javan, our driver, and the children at Neema House
The children lined up to play a game.
The final stop was the home of a family from Idaho who have lived here for five years. They are devout Christians who came to Kenya and found their calling.  They have five children of their own, two of whom are with them here in Kenya - girls, ages around 14 and 15.  Their teenagers are being home schooled.  The girls told me that they have two friends here, but they go to school out of town, so they don't get to see them very often.  Otherwise, it's just them and their family.  They seem perfectly content, but having teenagers of our own, it's hard for me to imagine a life like that all the time.

This family has taken in 10 boys and 13 girls - all abandoned as infants.  The 23 children are all ages five and under.  It feels like a large infant toddler center.  Their newest addition was a newborn who was born prematurely and left in a bag at the side of the road.  She said that she could tell that this baby has a strong personality already.  She believes that her strong personality kept her alive through the challenges she experienced in the first days of her life.  I wonder.

The commitment and compassion that these people show in their life work is extraordinary.  The embodiment of tzedakah and tikun olam.

1 comment:

  1. My son became friends this past year with a young man from Botswana who attended a school there prior to coming to the United States that sounds a bit like Neema House. He too lost his mother to AIDS. He is back there visiting after a year in Boston. The work of these people is certainly extraordinary. Thanks for sharing. This is a great blog.

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