Kaimbiu

We went to Kaimbiu yesterday, another Nairobi slum. Although the living conditions there appeared to be better than those in Kibera, there were no paved roads for the most part in Kaimbiu, water spewed out from broken pipes in some areas turning the roads into small lakes, parts of the roads were full of smoking garbage with goats foraging in it for food, and all of the tiny businesses and homes were made of either sheet metal or dried dung mixed with straw. (Note: One of the businesses we saw was named the Texas Salon! A friend took a picture of it so I hope to post it eventually.)

We spent most of the day at a community center in Kaimbiu located next door to the chief's office. The medical team worked inside the unlit center. Two other volunteers and I worked outside in a dusty parking lot. We were in charge of activities for kids and we were totally unprepared for the number of kids who showed up. So far, working with those kids has been the most emotionally gut-wrenching experience I have had in Kenya. I fought back tears most of the day and really wanted the opportunity to just be somewhere by myself to sob for a little while. The reason why it was so difficult was that all of the kids, ranging in age from about 3 to about 11 or 12, appeared to have nothing in the way of toys based on their enthusiastic responses to what we gave them, which included just about everything we had. We started out by passing out all of the 75 animal puppet/dolls we had brought with us and then we gave those who did not receive a doll, pieces of yellow and red yarn. The kids were happy with anything and everything. No complaining or whining as would probably have happened in the US. Eventually, one us got a ride to an office and brought back a box of construction paper and crayons that had been shipped by AFK. So, we passed out the construction paper with two crayons per child. Once we had passed out all of the paper, we passed out the remaining crayons and then we let kids take the remaining crayon boxes. I put stickers on kids' heads and then on their hands and arms, nearly depleting my supply, and we fed kids pieces of our energy bars and cut up a chocolate bar and fed small pieces of the bar to as many children as possible.

Once we had given away every possible item we could give away, we began taking the kids' photos. That was a lot of fun. First we took group photos, but then some of the children wanted individual photos. At first, the individual photos were serious, but then eventually some of the children began making funny faces or posing. Every time we took a photo they would all crowd around us and take turns looking at it. I think that for most of them it was the first time they had ever seen their own image.

The medical team was busy all day seeing the mostly mothers and children, who lined up outside the Center waiting their turn. They ended up sending two young children, including an infant, to the hospital because they had very high temperatures and needed more medical care than the team could provide. Also, they said that every child they saw had head lice, ringworm, respiratory problems, rhinitis, and that every child was dehydrated. Those problems seem to be facts of life for the children of the Nairobi slums.

After the medical team had completed its work, we drove about 20 minutes to a church center where Jane Njoroge, the head of the Voluntary Counselors of Kenya (VCK), www.vocoke.com, and some of her volunteers, served us a delicious lunch of home-cooked Kenyan food. (AFK provides VCK with support and assistance. VCK community volunteers provide HIV/AIDs counseling, awareness services, like educating women and children about their legal rights, help take care of orphans and widows affected by AIDS, create income-generating projects, and run a home-based reading program, among other things. VCK works throughout Kenya with members of any tribe.)

Jane introduced us to some of the orphans being supported through AFK's Orphan Support program, including one of the two boys and the girl that Beth and I have been sponsoring for several years. (The Chebi children had driven 8 hours with their uncle to meet us. Sadly, one of the boys was not able to travel because he had hurt his arm and had something else wrong; I was never clear exactly what the other problem was.)

After the formal part of the program was over, Beth and I went outside with the Chebis and an interpreter, to talk and to give each child some gifts we had brought for them from the US --a bracelet and small mirror for the girl, a soccer ball and pump, Texas Longhorn tee-shirts, Yankee baseball caps for the boys and flashlights with extra batteries for all. They were very, very shy, but seemed pleased with their gifts. Will try to post photos of the kids with Beth and me later.

On our way to and from Kaimbiu, we drove through downtown Nairobi for the first time. It was a mass of people and busses. Some of the busses were headed out to rural communities in Kenya and their roofs were piled high with luggage, boxes, crates, bags of maize and tires. Although there were some large office buildings and government buildings downtown, everything we saw looked neglected and rundown, which is the way it seems to be throughout Kenya, courtesy of a neglectful government. Not sure yet where we are headed tomorrow. Stay tuned.