Thank You for Saving Lives in Kenya.

It is true. There are times when no human language can truly express the depth of appreciation in one’s heart. But please allow me to say THANK YOU for hearing my cry and contributing your resources, even during these economic hard times, to save lives of famine-stricken Kenyans.

My prayers, plans, and hopes were to write this thank you letter sooner. However, I discovered that I am not immune to being depressed by witnessing human suffering. Thus, I have been an emotional wreck since traveling to Kenya and witnessing firsthand the devastating effects of three years of drought, pathetic governmental leadership and AIDS.

Your contributions saved lives. You kept families together. During famine couples sometimes have to separate in search of food. You protected underage girls from being forced into marriage—which is often a survival strategy. You helped prevent mothers from using their bodies to raise income and provide meals to their children.

I visited the people you helped from starving to death. I was astonished beyond measure. You see cattle skeletons, the evidence of lost livelihood. You see so many brilliant young boys and girls out of school because their parents can’t afford $150-$250 per year tuition since every penny had been spent on whatever meager food they could get.

It took me more than a month after I came back to the United States to regain a balanced perspective and sit at a restaurant and order a decent meal. How could I be blind to the suffering of the mother of six who hanged herself because she could not afford to pay tuition for her daughter to attend high school? How was I supposed to live knowing one of Kenya’s college bright stars, an orphan whose parents were claimed by AIDS, was at home languishing because he cannot afford $200/semester to continue his university education?

Or how could I erase the emptiness I experienced with pastor Kiseve and his wife when we visited a single mother whose son had been sent home from school for lack of Ksh.8,000 ($105) needed for his high school senior year exam fees and tuition.

My question for the mother was, “What are you to do?” “Nothing” was her only response.

Thank you, that you didn’t do “nothing” when you read about the famine problem in Kenya. The rains have come in some parts of the country. But not everyone planted since many people had used the seeds for food. However, if the rains continue, by August this year, food availability will not be an issue. There will be people to eat it because you played a significant role in their assistance.

But a non-government and targeted long-term strategy is the solution that can prevent masses from starving in future famines. The orphans and children of widows are being left behind because of lack of school tuition. For the widows, we are providing either a cow for milk or steers and a plough to work on their gardens and/or hire them out for income.

We sent tuition directly to the schools of high school and public university students who are orphans or children of widows. That way the money is used for the purpose it’s intended for. If you are a sponsor ($250/year for a high school student, and $400/year for a university student) you will be given the student’s name, school, and contact information.

Thank you for saving lives in Kenya.