Wednesday - October 5

Wednesday - October 5, 2011

Today is our last full day in Kenya.  The team was able to sleep in and then enjoy a leisurely breakfast in the guest house garden.  We then headed to a tea farm for a presentation on the making of tea, a wonderful lunch on the beautiful and lush grounds, followed by a debriefing about our time in Eastleigh, led by Erica Kenny.  We discussed a number of issues such as to how ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­our experiences in Eastleigh compared expectations, some of our memorable moments, the impact of our experiences on our spiritual growth, et cetera.

Back at our guest house we did some packing before heading off to the Kenny’s for our final dinner with them. We enjoyed making s’mores while sitting around a campfire in their backyard. Tristan, Emma and Ava were fun to be with.   Please pray for us as we say goodbye to the Kenny family, our driver, Sammy, and the superb staff at the Guest House.

Tuesday, October 4 - Our Last Day in Eastleigh

Tuesday, October 4, 2011  -  Our Last Day in Eastleigh

The Team was not looking forward to ending our time in Eastleigh because of the many wonderful friends we have made during our time there.

The workshop with the staff went well. God answered our prayers.  Don was able to walk the staff through the exercises they had done on team building and lead them into a discussion on communication. The staff worked very hard and it was exciting to see them learning and growing in these two areas.

Interspersed with this hard work were two games.  The staff went from hard working adults to a group of people who laughed their way through the fun games.  They were very competitive and creative.  One game was called “On Board” a game that teaches problem solving and the other was a scavenger hunt.  We were laughing along with them as they played.

Another highlight for us came after lunch.  A group of teachers from the primary school  and instructors from the vocational school came together and spontaneously started singing worship songs.  One man played a guitar and a young lady played a bongo drum.  The others clapped and swayed to the music as they sang these wonderful worship songs.  One could not help but feel the wonderful presence of God!

We sadly said our goodbyes to the staff and the centre.  It was very bittersweet as we drove out of Eastleigh for the last time.  

We ended the day with a fabulous dinner provided by the staff at our guest house.  We ate outside on a roof top deck.  The night sky was clear and the air was warm.  The Five Kennys joined us and we had a lot of fun celebrating Ava’s birthday.  She was five on Saturday.  The chef made her a cake and we sang Happy Birthday before she blew out the candles.

We have certainly felt God’s presence in all of our activities, from our preparations for our work at Eastleigh right through to the presentations.  We thank you for your prayers and ask you to continue to pray for us and those we left in Eastleigh.

Monday, October 4th - Staff Workshop at Eastleigh

Monday, October 4th, 2011 - Staff Workshop at Eastleigh

We were up and on the road by 7:15 a.m.  After a 1 1/2 hour ride which normally takes 40 minutes we arrived at Eastleigh.

We were well prepared for our workshop today and were very pleased with the results.
Included in our day were group and individual activites.  Games like "20 Questions" and "Survivor" got the staff working together and enjoying each others company.  Our purpose of the day was to have the staff think about team building and these games were a great jumping off point.

Coffee and lunch was provided by the catering class at the centre.  After lunch, the staff had to individually write 2 positive and 2 negative thoughts about Eastleigh.
This information will provide us with a starting point for tomorrow.

The Kenya Fallingbrook team was very exhausted after the day was over.  Unfortunately, we are unable to have an early night because we are working on tomorrow's workshop.  It is now 9:15 and we are still working out the fine details.  We will once again be up 6 a.m. with breakfast at 6:30.

Please pray that we will have a good night's rest and awaken refreshed and ready for another meaningful day.
 

Monday Morning - 6:30 a.m.

Monday Morning - 6:30 a.m.

After a restful weekend spent preparing for our workshops for today and tomorrow, we are up early to go to Eastleigh.  One can never knows what the traffic will be like!  Our workshop starts at 9:00.
Please pray that the employees of Eastleigh will be receptive to the new ideas presented to them today.

Thursday, September 29 - Eastleigh

Thursday, September 29, 2011 - Eastleigh 

Today was an emotionally and physically exhausting day!  

Julie and Joy worked with the Iften ladies for the last time.  We have learned to love them and they certainly blessed us in many ways.  The ladies were very excited to receive the notebooks, pencils and sharpeners, volleyballs, volleyball nets and 2 soccer balls that we brought for them.

Lila and Nick distributed toothbrushes and toothpaste to the pre-primary classes.  The children were very excited to receive this gift.  Lila and Nick were hugged and thanked many of the children!  They were also pleased to have the children sing to them.

John was busy painting the Iften Ladies’ classroom and Don was preparing for our workshops with the entire staff on Monday and Tuesday.

At lunch time, we presented the library books to Peter, the Head Master, and 2 students from each class,   It was very moving to see how well the books were accepted.  Two students formally thanked us.  The excitement increased when we presented them with the 10 soccer balls and 2 volley balls.  Stephen, the Director of Eastleigh, was also very touched with the number of books we bought for the library.  What was especially appreciated was the fact that we bought the books in Nairobi and they all had African content.  Many, many pictures were taken.

After lunch we all donned our painting clothes and got busy!  We achieved our goal of completing the painting of the Iften classroom, the Noor jewellery making room, the showroom for the jewellery and the office.  It has been extremely hot painting these rooms because of the tin roofs. It was fun when  the staff joined in and helped us.  Lila worked hard cleaning windows that had not been cleaned in many years!

We are all very tired tonight as we sort through the many emotions we experienced today.  We have experienced God’s love in so many unexpected ways and pray that God’s love has shone through us as we worked with these wonderful people.

We will not be writing for our Blog for Friday and Saturday because we are going to rest up in the country in order to get rejuvenated and prepare for the Workshops we are presenting to the 67 staff at Eastleigh Community Centre.  In the Interim, we recommend that you check out the Kenny’s Blog by Googling, The Five Kennys.

Wednesday, September 28 - Eastleigh

Wednesday, September 28, 2011 – Eastleigh

As usual, Sammy, our superb driver, was very helpful as we loaded our “stuff” into his van.  Today, for example, we took a 3 foot wide brown roll of paper, a red suitcase containing markers, pencils, paper, scissors, etc. and a cooler which contained our lunch.

Traffic in Nairobi is chaotic at the best of times and today was no different.  Four lanes of Matatus, (10 passenger vans used as buses), buses, lorries and cars vied for two lanes on roads where there are no lanes marked.

Julie and Joy once again worked with the Iften ladies.  Today they were teaching  them  basic body parts. Some of the ladies had their bodies traced on brown paper and others just drew body shapes and labelled them.  A lot of laughter could be heard coming from their classroom.

The rest of the team continued painting the Iftin and Noor classrooms.  A lot was accomplished but there is still more to be done.  We hope to complete the painting tomorrow.

Nick and Lila went on a home visit today.  They visited a woman who lives with her husband and his three children from a previous marriage.   The woman was thrilled to have visitors and enjoyed sharing with them.

  

Tuesday, September 27 – Eastleigh

Tuesday, September 27, 2011 – Eastleigh

Tuesday’s schedule was very similar to the day before.  Some of the highlights for today were teaching the Iftin class about Canada.  Aaron drew a large map of Canada which was cut up into Provinces and Territories as a puzzle.  After teaching the ladies the names of each, they were asked to rebuild the map of Canada.  It was very funny to watch as they rebuilt the map of Canada. 

Day two with class 8 was another wonderful experience.  The students all were very keen to participate in all activities.  One team building  exercise  called “All Aboard”.  Each team is asked to fit inside a small square of cloth.  When the group succeeds, the area is decreased.  We halved the cloth four times until it was a small square.  This activity requires working together, cooperation, patience, creativity and problem solving  to accomplish the tasks.       

 

While John and Julie went on a home visit into the Eastleigh community, the rest of the team  was busy painting.  Some of the Iftin and Noor staff joined us for the painting.  

How we reconcile the difference between the Eastleigh community and the wider community is something each one of us is struggling with.

Monday, September 26 - Eastleigh

Monday, September 26, 2011 – Eastleigh

It was our first day to journey into Eastleigh.  The roads were full of potholes and there was a lot of hustle and bustle as people were going in every direction.  For the most, part our day went very well. Everyone at the community centre was very welcoming.   Under the direction of a new Director, the community centre is getting a much needed facelift.  Gravel had been spread to cover most of the dirt. Buildings were being painted, picket fences erected and the event centre is getting a ceramic floor.  The Iftin Ladies have moved to a different building with the Noor ladies, who make the wonderful jewelry, next door.  We toured the vocational school which consists of catering management, automotive repair, computer, hair dressing, electrical, carpentry, etc.  After an introduction with Farris, the manager of the vocational school, we proceeded to our various assigned activities. 

We were told to make “flexibility” our theme word.  Don and John experienced this to the fullest as they had expected to be with Class 8 and found out at the last minute that instead of having 27 students they had 37 from two classes.  However they still had a wonderful time with the students.  They played a name game and survivor team building exercise.  The kids really enjoyed the survivor game.  They interacted well, thought through their decisions, did good problem solving using their group dynamics working cooperatively.  Don and John were pleased at how well the students related to them and to the team building activities.

Joy, Julie, Nick and Lila worked with the Iftin ladies, where all the students had to introduce themselves in English and say something about themselves.  In groups we did a grammar exercise thinking of adjectives using the first letter of our names. 

After lunch, Don and Joy went on a home visit while the others started to paint the Iftin and Noor rooms.  The rooms are very dull right now but will be very bright and inviting when the painting is completed.

Don and Joy’s visited a home where 3 adults and 11 children shared 2 rooms and a kitchen.  The mother was from Somalia and told us she enjoys being in Eastleigh because she doesn’t hear gunshots every day.  We took her a care package consisting of flour, salt, oil, powered milk, rice and candies for the kids.  She is very concerned that 4 of her children are not in school.  We ended our visit with a prayer for the family.

It was a very exhausting day for all of us both emotionally and physically.  It is hard to get used to the sights and sounds of Eastleigh.

Tonight we went to the Kenny’s home for a traditional Kenyan dinner.  Once again the food was exceptional.

Your prayers are gratefully appreciated.  Please continue praying for us as we visit Eastleigh tomorrow.  Please pray that God will help us to see the people there as He sees them.

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Sunday, September 25

Sunday, September 25, 2011 – Nairobi

The morning began breakfast at 8:00.  The Kenny’s took us to the International Christian Fellowship Church (ICF) located in Rossly, where the Kenny children attend school.  There were flags representing all the countries which are represented by the children who attend the school.  Praise songs were led by a group of young adult musicians.  The pastor’s sermon was based on Matthew 28 “The Great Commission”, which left us feeling refreshed.  

Lunch was at Peppers Restaurant, an authentic Indian cuisine with chef’s from India.  Peppers had a sandy playground for the little children.  The group returned to The 140 Guest house to finalize lesson plans for Monday’s schedule in Eastleigh.

 

We finished the evening with a great dinner on rooftop patio, talking with Peter and Ali who both work at The 140 Guesthouse. 

We’re now off to make our lunches for Monday and prepare the care packages for the home visits.

We ask for prayer to help us get a good night’s sleep, guidance as we go into Eastleigh, our first home visit and begin working with the class 8, Noor Ladies, Iftin and go into a new environment.

Saturday, September 24

Saturday, September 24, 2011 – Nairobi

Well we started the day off with breakfast at The 140 guest house.  This was followed by orientation with Erica who is the manager of the Eastleigh Project.  We learned that Eastleigh is actually a ghetto rather than a slum, because it has real buildings, rather than just tin and cardboard make-shift shelters.   We then drove to the Sarit Center where we purchased hundreds of books for the Eastleigh library.  After spending several hours purchasing over 400 books, we were presented with a register receipt that was five feet long.  Despite our best efforts, we still had 90,000 Ksh left.   

We had a wonderful time in the Textbook Store selecting books and getting to know the staff.  They assigned 2 cashiers to check-out the books.  The owner, his son, the store manager and several customer service clerks had a terrific time with us and were thrilled when we asked to take a group photo with our newly purchased books.  

Our next stop was the Westgate shopping center where we had a quick coffee and desert then proceeded to the Nakamut grocery store (similar to our Walmart) where we purchased some much needed groceries for the home visits that we will make to three families.  We proceeded to fill 3 shopping carts with lots of rice, flour, toothpicks, oil and many other staples which we will pack and take to these Eastleigh families.  We were surprised that all the food for these families totalled approximately $61.00 CAD.  This will make a huge difference to these people who have very little. These shopping trips and expeditions took us to after 6:00 pm.   

Sammy, our driver drove us back to The 140 Guesthouse and the staff helped unload and store our boxes in a spare room.  After a quick freshen-up we walked next door to the Kenny’s where we were served another delicious dinner consisting of beef stew, rice and yummy rich chocolate pudding cake with ice cream.   Thoughts about having an early night completely left our minds once we started chatting and getting to know the Kenny’s better.  At ten thirty we finally hit the sack for the night.