Angel Covers:September 2006

I want to start off this newsletter by apologizing to all of you. We have been so busy in the past few months that we haven’t updated you on all that is happened. That was a big mistake for us because without all of you, nothing would be getting done. The children wouldn’t be eating, getting an education, or receiving medical care. The last couple of months have brought amazing changes and opportunities. We are so incredibly fortunate to be working with so many people around the world who are just ordinary men and women, and yet the things they are doing seem so extraordinary. Feeding, educating and providing medical care really isn’t that extraordinary. We work with men and women who are doing these things in incredibly difficult circumstances and where most people don’t even attempt these tasks because the scope of the problems can be so daunting. Your donations may not seem extraordinary, but you are saving lives by feeding children who would not have food, providing and education to children that need hope for a future, and providing basic medical care to children who would never otherwise receive it.

Bouncers and Cribs

Project Tigger continues to make a difference in China. Recently, more than 300 baby bouncers were ordered and will be shipped to orphanages around the country no later than the end of September. Project Lullaby also purchased cribs for the FuJian SWI, giving these babies safe beds. Orphanages in China continue to have many needs. While a crib and a baby bouncer might not seem like that big of a deal, it helps the orphanages to deal with being understaffed. Babies have safe cribs for sleeping and playing. The bouncers allow nannies to get the babies out of the cribs and provide much needed stimulation during these early months when they need stimulation to aid in development. They are in no way a substitute for being held and nurtured, but

Since our last newsletter, I spent 10 days at the end of July in Kenya visiting programs and projects that we are already working with and visiting many new places that would like our help and support. I had the pleasure of traveling with our assistant director, Barb, and a volunteer, Ashley. Traveling to Kenya always puts our world into perspective and continually reminds us that we are just ordinary people refusing to give up on children. It is always a reminder of how much need there is, and how much of a difference we can make.

We spent several days at Humble Hearts School for the Deaf. Oh what a difference a year has made for this school! One year ago, the school was in one room, and only had 25 children and 5 teachers. Now, it has more than 175 children, 12 teachers and an entire “complex” for school. Even with the incredible growth in the number of students, the director has done a tremendous job of managing the growth. Class sizes have remained small and manageable; textbooks to student ratios remain at 1 book for every 2 to 3 children depending on the classroom. Sponsorships have continued to grow with the school, allowing it to meet the needs in this slum of Nairobi, and continuing to provide an education for deaf children that have routinely been left out of educational solutions for children that cannot afford an education. Additionally, a secondary school has been started and the first group of students will soon begin their final term in Form 1. Because of the amazing sponsors, only 1 teacher has left in the past year for a better paying job. Keeping teachers in this environment is an incredibly difficult task. Kenya and countries surrounding Kenya have a severe teacher shortage. Many teachers have been hired away from schools in Kenya to work in other countries for much higher pay. The ability to maintain the staff at the school provides for a consistent education and allows the director of the school to spend time in other needed areas. Infrastructure for the school complex is also improving. A water tank was donated and is currently being built to provide clean water to the children. The small containers that were previously used to store water were simply no longer large enough and were no longer lasting between deliveries of water. A generator has also been purchased to supply the school with electricity. This will help to meet many needs including providing power for a computer lab. We were able to deliver an additional laptop to the school this year, and hope in the next few months to be able to send a couple more. As the deaf community at the school grows more and more children are also being cared for at Angel Cottage. The children continue to have medical and dental exams, and receive medicine and treatments to correct things they have previously been living with.

At the age of 2, John suffered from a malaria attack and was diagnosed with a heart condition. The surgery to fix his heart was more than his family would ever be able to afford so John has grown up on medication. Because, of the condition his growth has been slowed, and he has been developmentally delayed. He was unable to walk until the age of 6. The condition also resulted in him being deaf. John is now 13 years old. This summer he finally received the heart surgery that he has needed for years. It was so incredible to see John this summer after his surgery and to see him doing so well.

However, all of the growth and developments result in new needs. Angel Cottage was originally established to not only house children who are deaf and/or orphaned, but also to make sure they have a safe comfortable place to live with people who will support their education. But with 35 children at Angel Cottage it is just too crowded. When I arrived 15 boys were sleeping in 7 beds. I had to ask three times to be sure I was understanding what I was being told correctly. The girls are now sleeping with 8 beds for 16 girls in one room approximately 20 feet by 6 feet. Additionally, children who need Angel Cottage have been turned away. Just after I left, we were able to make a down payment on land where a new Angel Cottage will be built. We are going to need continued support to raise the remaining funds for the purchase of the land and to build a new Angel Cottage. Would you like to help build this much needed home?

Another new piece of land was purchased next to Humble Hearts to allow the secondary school room to expand. The secondary school will move next door to the current classrooms to create more room for a laboratory, new latrines, and expansion as the current Form 1 kids move on each year. There will be many things required to continue with the secondary education of these children. Classroom space is the first thing we need to create. Please help these secondary students achieve their goal of graduating.

We also had the joy of visiting the Dagoretti Youth Centre. This school has approximately 300 students and little support from other agencies. Several months ago, Angel Covers started a chicken project at Dagoretti. This program is now feeding 40 of the most desperate children at this school. Because the project continues to be so successful, we committed to starting a second chicken project here that will feed approximately 100 children. During this past month the chickens for the expansion have been ordered and delivered. It will be great to see these little chicks grow and know that more children will be receiving daily meals.

Earlier this year, Barb and I met a Catholic priest that is working in Kenya. We were invited to visit the city of Kisumu, on the coast of Lake Victoria by the priests who are working with more than 250 orphans and destitute children. What a beautiful area of Kenya this is! These men are doing amazing work and are caring for amazing children who have no other hope. After discussions of their plans and needs, Angel Covers has decided to support and expand their trade school, which is currently teaching 10 girls how to sew. Additional classes for carpentry and other trades will be established to give these children a way out of terrible poverty. Teaching the children skills that are needed in the area will help to insure that they can provide for themselves as they grow older. A new orphanage is also needed for the many children in the area living on the streets. An ordinary building is going to make an extraordinary difference in the lives of many children.

In Kisumu, as in other regions close to the equator, there is a high prevalence of a childhood cancer known as Burkitt’s lymphoma. This cancer, although it develops quickly, is very treatable. Sadly, children are not always taken for treatment because of the belief that the tumors are caused by witchcraft rather than a medical condition. Doctors and researchers in Kisumu are working hard to change this belief and Angel Covers has agreed to partner with them in treating these beautiful children. One treatment of chemotherapy costs approximately $150 and a child could need as many as 30-35 treatments in order to ensure the cancer does not return. When we think of Africa, we think of AIDS, malaria and other diseases that are more prevalent and claiming many lives. Yet alongside these pandemics, many children are dying from lesser known diseases that with proper treatment can have an 80% survival rate. Education about the disease is just the first step. As the community understands the disease more and more children show up for treatment. We will need to be prepared financially to help cover the costs of treatments that will save these children’s lives.

Besides Kisumu, we also traveled outside of Nairobi to a Maasai village, Eland, that is a part of our child sponsorship programs. It was wonderful to visit these children, to learn more about their homes, and their schools. This tribal village is a much different way of life than the slums around Nairobi. Homes are still very small, but instead of being made from tin, they are huts made of sticks, mud and thatch. The Maasai used to be a herding people, and even though much of their land has disappeared they still maintain livestock in much smaller herds. It is not enough for them to survive. The women and children work to make beads, jewelry, belts and other items that can be sold in markets for additional income. Children come from all over to attend the school. Life is changing for these villages and it is wonderful to be able to help them as they head towards a life that merges their tribal past and a more modern future.

Thanks so much to everyone who contributed to the Kibera/Mitumba food crisis!! Combining efforts with First Love, enough funds have been raised to feed the children through the end of the year and part of January. Although the crisis is over for this year, we are continuing to accept donations for January and later. Because of all of you, 850 kids will continue to recieve 2 meals a day...a huge luxury for these children.

Everywhere we traveled in Kenya the faces are changed, but the story is constant: a struggle to survive daily and to find a hope for the future, ordinary people doing ordinary things under extremely difficult circumstances, not giving up in the face of adversity when it would be the easiest thing to do. It is a wonderful honor to be working with the men and women who rise up, care for the children and make this extraordinary difference. One common thread is found in all of these people, they know that what they do is not about them, but about the children. It isn’t them, but everyone involved including those who give so generously from what they have in money and time that really makes the extraordinary happen. Thanks for all that you do to be a part of extraordinary changes in this world!

Sincerely,

Kari
Director, Angel Covers