|
Greetings!
I love my work. This morning as I arrived at
the Center, I was greated by nearly 100 children
with beaming smiles and wildly waiving hands.
One little boy, Kadir, ran about 50 feet to jump
up on me. Without shoes, and wearing a tattered
Vutakaka uniform, he practically ran up my right
side and clung to me so tight I didn't even have
to hold him. Unlike so many pictures of
starving, desperate African children, this
little boy is strong, chunky, and has a smile as
wide as a giant slice of cantaloupe. I really
love working with these kids. I love knowing the
EAC is helping Kadir learn how to count, learn
how to read, and is generally encouraging him as
he struggles with the challenges of school.
Across the street from the Center there are
four sticks stuck in the ground marking four
corners of a square, each about four feet apart.
The four sticks hold up a few pieces of old
makuti (woven palm fronds). A few months ago,
under this shelter, a woman named Harusi would
cooked bhajias (small fried finger foods) for
the Vutakaka students during their break. Harusi
was also in our sewing club. Some of you may
have even bought some of her items. This past
February, late in the evening, she passed away
from heavy bleeding during labor. She had no
transport to the hospital. She was just 20 years
old and it was her first baby. I used to tease
her about being so BIG during her last few weeks
of pregnancy. I still can't believe she has
died. I think her death was so stupid, so
needless. I am comforted, however, that the EAC
offers help to local women, connecting them with
good, practical health information, encouraging
them to seek proper health services and to go
for regular ante-natal check-ups. Someday, I
hope the EAC will even be able to provide a
vehicle for emergency transport.
I am so grateful to all of you who have
contributed to this grassroots effort. We are
making a difference here in Takaungu and I know
that as the EAC grows it will bring about
positive change in many locations across East
Africa. Thank you. Suzanne K. Jeneby
|
Thank you West Seattle Rotary!!! |
 |
A few days ago, I wrote the above
message about the boy at Vutakaka and
Harusi, the woman who passed away
(largely due to lack of emergency
transport). Now, we have just been
informed the West Seattle Rotary has
granted the EAC $10,500.00 for the
purchase of a vehicle for Kenya. This is
amazing news for us. Thank you West
Seattle Rotary for your exceptionally
incredible assistance!!
|
|
Volunteer Insight - Kristi Arthur |
|
|
Today was the first day of school for
the children who attend Vutakaka (The
East African Center School Program). It
was very exciting to see the energy of
all the children eager to start a new
quarter in school. Vutakaka teaches
Nursery School for children between the
ages of 3 and 12.
One of the projects that I have been
working on is creating silk screen
labels for the sewing club items. I
started off with a silk screening kit
that was bought in the U.S. By hand I
created a silk screen with labels that
said Takaungu. The labels were not
printing as nicely as I would have liked
and the paint was drying on the screen
very fast. To figure out the problem,
Suzanne and I have visited two different
silk screening manufacturers in Nairobi
and Mombasa. This has been interesting
to learn more about silk screening and
see the factories that make the prints.
Tomorrow I will start assisting with
the Adult Basic Education classes in
conversational English. I am looking
forward to getting more involved with
the teachers and students at Vutakaka.
To create the CD I recorded the school
children and women in the sewing club
singing various songs.
The teachers at Vutakaka are inviting
parents to come volunteer in the school.
Yesterday Mzee Kitsao (my neighbor) came
to the school and told stories. Mohamed
(the teacher) said the the school
children really enjoyed having Mzee
Kitsao and were asking for him the next
day. I think this is a great way to get
the community more involved in the
school and other EAC programs. It shows
that community members want to support
Vutakaka and appreciate what the EAC
does for the community. I am just
beginning to grasp the complexities of
running an NGO in Kenya. Suzanne has a
very big job as the Executive Director
and is lucky to have volunteers and
school staff to keep the programs
running!
|
|
Call for Volunteers - |
|
|
The EAC is a remarkable grassroots
development organization offering real
opportunities for positive change in the
lives of hundreds of people, each and
every day. In order to keep the
organization continually running in good
order, we are in need of ongoing
volunteer support, both in and out of
Kenya.
If you are interested in volunteering
in Kenya, visit www.comekuona.org. Come
Kuona is a separate organization, based
in Kenya, that recruits and guides
volunteers through the entire volunteer
experience of working with us at
Vutakaka Center in Takaungu, Kenya. We
always need more volunteers to help us
run the Center. If you have any
questions about the program, please
email volunteer@comekuona.org.
Moreover, if you have a passion for
international development, and/or skills
in non-profit / NGO management, and
can't get to Kenya but would still like
to volunteer, please contact Theresa
Wilson at twilson@eastafricancenter.org.
We would be happy to list you as one of
our "on-call" volunteers in the US.
(This means we would contact you if we
need extra assistance for specific
events or special tasks)
|
|
"Takaungu" bags, aprons and more... |
|
|
The Vutakaka Sewing Club started back
in October 2003. Over the past 20
months, the Center has trained more than
100 men and women in basic sewing
skills. Our third sewing class will be
graduating from the program on June 1st.
Some of our students have truly become
excellent! At first, the sewing club
made only quilts and one simple bag
design. Now, they are making 20
different items in a variety of fabrics,
colors and designs - and more are being
developed all the time.
Because we know you want even easier
ways to order our fabulous "Takaungu"
items for yourself or as gifts, we are
in the process of launching a shopping
cart on our eastafricancenter.org
website. Also, you will soon be able to
order a catalogue of our items, sent
directly to your home or office. More to
come on this shortly...Suzanne Jeneby
ps. Above is a picture of our latest
design - the "Jane Bag Briefcase". It is
available in almost any color! -- Got a
question about this or any of our other
items? write sjeneby@eastafricancenter.org
|
|
Pic of the Month |
|
|
Another beautiful day at Vutakaka
Center
|
|
|
Donate Now to the East African
Center
|
|
|
|
Did you know that it costs just $20 an
hour to run all aspects of the EAC? Even
with such low costs, we very much need
your help to keep our doors open and our
programming going. Please consider
sponsoring an hour or day each month so
we can continue to offer all our great
programs to the people we serve. Your
gift will make you a partner in
providing education and resources that
hundreds of children, women and men can
use to improve their own lives.
Other ways to help... |
East African Center
|
