During the previous week before Patrick was taken to Nairobi for hospital care, he had visited me twice in the evenings, following his day at Kianginga Primary school, to where he had transferred just in January this year, from Kivuria School. The first time, he brought a colleague, Mbogo, who had been his deputy at Mufu Primary School twenty years ago. “Imagine,” he said,” things have turned full circle! When I started, he was my deputy, and now he is mine again as I finish my last few terms in teaching!”

We also met with another young teacher as Patrick was in a hurry to start a School at our site for those who did not complete formal education due to lack of school fees. It was one of his burning desires to help those who had missed out on life’s chances.  He had talked to several colleagues, some already retired, to offer their services. He also talked to the Education Dept and they had told him to register, as it was such a good idea. The following evening, he discussed some future plans for Peacemakers to extend our current Bible Study classes to being a Bible School as soon as possible. In his inimitable way, he also wanted to see a two storey accommodation built where we grow a few humble vegetables at the moment. I allowed him the enthusiasm and vision for the future but also reminded him about the gaping hole and the tumbling walls in the house where we sat. “All in God’s time and planning.”

The following day, I drove him to Runyenjes to have a blood test as he was feeling a bit un-well. Then we dropped to Embu. He sat in the back of the car talking politics with Peter Tum all the way, each of them becoming louder and more excitable as they agreed and debated current affairs. That was the last time I saw him as he was taken to Runyenjes hospital the day after, then transferred to Embu, then Nairobi; all so fast that the news of his ensuing death has shocked the whole community. I still feel he will come around the corner shouting, “Hodi! (Swahili for “is anyone home?”), is there a cup of chai (tea) there?”

In loving memory of Patrick, Chrissie.

Patrick Nyaga (Kavungura) died on February 15th at the Kenyatta Hospital, Nairobi. He died following an operation to correct a blocked vein, a burst vein and a non functioning valve. He had already had a minor surgery on a hole in the heart that week. The cost of the operations came to half a million Kenya shillings (about £45,000); it was a huge sum for the family to collect during those last few days. They took loans and gathered gifts from well-wishers and family members.

The day before, he talked to his son, Eric, to say he had already been a good soldier with God’s help; he raised his arms wide to Heaven and praised God for being with him throughout his life. But the shock for Harriet was immense when he did not recover from the operation. She kept telling him to wake up even after she had signed the papers for the mortuary. She had been advised that it was a simple procedure. But it was God’s plan to call him that day. When somebody dies, the local community gathers each day to have evening prayers at the home of the deceased and to start a collection for funeral expenses; everybody feels part of the family’s grieving. Early on Friday 21st February, my pickup, carrying the camera man headed the cortege of cars, the Hospital hearse and those who had travelled up from Nairobi. We had tied red ribbons on our vehicles; then made our way slowly through the town and up to our village. As we approached our site, the hearse was playing triumphal hymns and sounding its horn. There was already a great crowd streaming though the gateway. The coffin was placed in the centre of the prayer House on a long bench as it is customary for the body to be viewed. The queue stretched back up the drive but there was a sound of glorious singing from the many pastors and church leaders there that stood as one great choir around the edge of the prayer house, surrounding the coffin. I followed in line, being now used to this ordeal of looking through the small glass window which reveals the dear face of the deceased. Many ladies were overcome and carried out, weeping. I found the singing very uplifting, confirming the passing of one who had gone to live with his Lord and Savior.

The coffin was then carried to the field and was laid on a bier shaded by a marquee for a while. There were three large tents shading the mourners but hundreds sat under the scarce tree and banana palm shade. It was estimated that there were over 1200 people there to give their respects. Next comes the interminable photo- session. Harriet stood bravely as group upon group joined her for the official photos. This took over one hour in the scorching sunlight. After this came the valedictory speeches from colleagues, church and family members, the eulogy, which mentioned how much he had loved and served Peacemakers…and then the preaching of the Word by Moses, preceded by a speech from Bishop Salesio. 

Salesio spoke of his shock to lose his dear friend and how many people might say this or that about him but that the results of the faithful man were obvious and he had been a loyal and faithful soldier to the last. Moses preached about how God has an assignment for each of us on earth and that when it is completed, we are called. So, to take heart that Patrick had completed the work assigned to him to do and that it was his time to go. He urged us to know God’s plan for us, what work we had to do, to serve Him until the day we are called. There were some African songs and dances from family members and church groups, then a grand collection into the African baskets. Then after a time of prayer, the coffin passed through our shamba to the adjoining land, belonging to Kavungura’s.

Mourners were fewer by this time as the space at the home was congested. Again, there was a long sermon and many hymns at the grave, which had been dug that morning near to the house. The same youth who had dug the grave traditionally replace the soil on top of the coffin and the family laid their wreaths there. It had now taken 7 hours to this time. Those who remained were then fed with rice and stew, before leaving for their homes. It was quite an emotional day, as the whole community and Peacemakers have lost a teacher, a preacher, a seeker of the lost, a helper of the addicted, an advocate and intermediary, a dear husband, father friend and brother in the Lord.

                                        Chrissie.

‘I will only come home when I feel my work is complete’

TRAVELLING by van through the dusty roads into the rural village of Runnyenjes, two hours from Nairobi, Christine Gibbard could see first-hand the cruel sights of poverty surrounding her.

She saw a community riddled with health problems who lived in clay and wooden huts, locals who lacked basic skills and education and a village who were deprived of the basic essentials that we take for granted.

 

 

Yet despite the poverty and low quality of life the villagers faced there was a certain beauty and charm that the former head-teacher fell in love with.

After her first visit in 1990 with her church she spent the next 20 years spending her school holidays travelling to the region, and not only helped to provide aid, but also taught villagers how to become self-sufficient and be not as reliant on the western world.

“I was struck by how poor the area was and felt I wanted to make a difference to help improve their lives,” says Christine, who was brought up in Swansea’s Manselton area.

“Until you see how much they need your help, it is difficult to understand how moved you feel.

“The Kenyans are so lively and joyous and they are such friendly people. Seeing how much our work was paying off and watching the locals learn new skills was so rewarding I felt compelled to keep returning to the country and continuing to progress with the work.”

Three years ago, Christine took early retirement after 34 years of teaching to pursue her Christian work in Kenya.

“The time was right for me to leave,” she says.

“I loved my job and my school, but I had to fulfil my promise to get a community centre up and running in Kenya.

“My heart was in Africa and it was hard to leave my family and friends, but it was something I had to do.”

Christine has been based between the market village of Kigumo and the main road shops at Kathageri for more than two years.

“If I buy clothes they are usually off a trader on the street and are clothes people donate to charity shops,” she says.

“They try to sell it to me more than double the price of what it is worth!”

Christine has had to adapt to their culture and it’s a far cry from her lifestyle in Britain.

“As you would expect, it is such a simple way of life,” she says.

“I eat a healthy diet which usually consists of food off the land and maize.

“I do miss ice cream and cheese! But you can get almost anything from Nairobi. Sometimes sticking with the same meal you feel like pulling your hair out, but we are thankful to have food.

“I miss British culture and everything associated with it. I miss going to the theatre or a concert, listening to the radio and going to a nice restaurant with friends and family.

“But I do have some good friends in Nairobi who let me go to them for Christmas and so on.” Christine is the only British woman permanently living on the site, although she gets visits from other peacekeepers and volunteers.

Some of her past pupils have visited her while on gap year opportunities, as well as some of the teachers from her school.

“They have offered their time at local orphanages, hospitals and schools,” she says.

“We are teaching people to become self-sufficient and set up a few projects to support them to become sustainable. They have got things to eat, fruit is dripping from the trees and they have maize, but after eating they have no money to do anything. It is a case of giving them training.

“There are many teenagers and young adults who are unskilled and need employment. Drug misuse is very high and we offer rehabilitative counselling and accommodation to addicts as well as teaching about HIV/Aids-related risks.

“One of the biggest problems we have is watching people die because we can’t get the simple medicines. People have funerals in their gardens and it is so sad seeing how many people die needlessly.”

Christine spent two years building a community house which was hit by fire last September.

“We were at the funeral of our foreman in western Kenya when the fire broke out,” she says.

“It was quite a life-changing day. Hundreds of people turned up to try to put the fire out and save some items. The Kenyans don’t know how to handle a fire. They smashed all the windows thinking they were helping, but it made it worse. But they did their best.

“The community rallied around and now they have said they want more involvement in the rebuilding of a new house. It will not be seen as the White’s House, but the Kenyan’s own centre.”

Christine’s sister, Margaret Jones, of Ael Y Bryn Road, Fforestfach, says she and her other three sisters worry about her safety.

“She is out there on her own and lost everything in the fire,” she says.

“We have very little contact with her as getting a telephone connection to Kenya is very difficult. Her laptop was lost in the fire and we were out of touch with her for a while.

“We haven’t seen her for two years. She has given up her life to do this and it is incredible the amount of work she does.”

Christine has had malaria three times and has had jiggers in her feet — a parasitic flea living in the soil and sand — which had to be cut out.

“It is very unusual to get and probably came from the dust of the fire,” she says.

“It was the embarrassment of having to have them cut out of my feet all the time.

“But you can’t fear anything. This is such a beautiful country and the positives outweigh the negatives. I have my faith and want to keep my promise to offer the Kenyan’s a better life.”

Christine has a night watchman who only has a bow and arrow to protect her and she roughs it by sleeping on the floor.

“We lost everything in the fire,” she says.

“Many of the community resources, such as water pumps, sports equipment and office paperwork, were lost so we have to start again from scratch.

“One day I will come home, but only when I feel my work out in Kenya is complete.”

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Link to original aricle: South Wales Evening Post

The following is taken from a funding request to Safaricom Kenya, trying to obtain assistance in rebuilding the Kisimani house after the fire:

Peacemakers Community Resource Centre, Kenya

Vision of Peacemakers:

Peacemakers Kenya is a registered charity based organization (CBO) who have been working near Embu, Kenya, in collaboration with UK well- wishers, for 21 years. Its main mission is to bring people together to become more effective in networking, learning, training and giving mutual support for positive, dynamic community development. It seeks to alleviate the effects of poverty and other social challenges like addictions, disability, gender strife and community harmony. It seeks to support vulnerable individuals and groups to transform their lives and to become sustainable through motivational, entrepreneurial activities. In the past, it has initiated projects and micro-enterprises, trained hundreds in Primary Health, HIV AIDS, Drugs awareness, Physical Education and First Aid. It has donated cows to over 80 schools, thousands of mosquito nets to communities and school effects to link institutions. Since 2008, it has slowly been building a small age-friendly Resource Centre near Runyenje’s in order to fulfill its aim of having a base for a variety of purposes:

• A community information centre to communicate to all about activities and opportunities for local jobs; a place for help and advice about services; a bureau for typesetting / copying / downloading documents etc.

• A cyber café for all ages to access technology to improve their learning and living standards

• A centre for church and faith leaders to come together to discuss spiritual and social issues; to promote peaceful lifestyles and tribal harmony

• A community health education centre; a permanent facility for HIV AIDS support and access to services where People living with AIDs (PLWAS) can meet regularly to discuss other needs

• A venue to hold a database for community health workers and contacts; a first aid post and information on primary health; healthy diets ; information leaflets on diabetes , heart disease and other conditions

• It will have a restaurant for all ages to meet and try new healthy diet recipes; a place to promote value added products, local fresh fruit juices, yoghurts, jams , (cassava/arrowroot/banana flour)breads and cakes; snacks of dried fruits and nuts; locally grown coffee and tea, fruit smoothies etc.

• A counselling and guidance centre for youth with adolescent and young adult issues around sexual health and relationships; a place for girls to be advised and supported when they have untimely and unwanted pregnancies; a place for teenage mothers to gain knowledge about child –care and healthy development

• A community library with activities like Book Clubs and Adult literacy classes; a newspaper corner, a cultural and traditional tales/story telling- base’ a venue for television, radio and educative films

• A community centre with information on projects organized by Non governmental organisations (NGOs); a monitoring centre for NGO officials e.g. Care International; APHIA PLUS etc.

• A community empowerment education centre with opportunities for demonstrating innovative technology to aid efficiency in farming etc., where value addition to produce is taught and ideas developed ; a place where entrepreneurship development, asset building, business acumen and wealth creation is brought to those whose livelihoods only support meager living standards

• A community centre which provides opportunities forpeople to demonstrate expressive arts and cultural traditions; where people can practice and produce crafts; where dance, drama , music , and performance arts can be celebrated

• An eco-tourist accommodation centre; a base for visitors coming to see rural activities and lifestyles; a stop-over for tourists and outward- bound travellers en route to the Mt Kenya region; for students to spend part of their gap-year on voluntary experiences in local institutions; for exchange visits to Europe and beyond for farmers and businessfolk

• A place for local ministry trainers to reachcommunity members with up to date advice for farming, livestock, fisheries etc.; for short seminars and training sessions of all kinds’ a place for the chief’s barazas ( community information meetings)

• A show case centre for water saving and water cleaning processes; a place to display energy saving devices and environmentally friendly practices; tree planting schemes

• A place for meetings for different groups; women’s groups ; e.g. Kenya Women Trust, widows group, health workers; disabled groups

• A place for youth clubs ; dance; drama; singing and music etc.; a place for youth motivational days and youth information opportunities; e.g. Drugs awareness and HIV AIDS sessions; tailoring, hairstyling

• A place for family gatherings, celebrations, fund raisings and community weddingsat a very basic cost

• A short-term retreat for respite care for disabled people or people living in stressful circumstances

• A place for workshops for school drop outs and disabled people to fabricate items for sale; leather work , beadwork, carpentry, tailoring etc. ; a place to restore dignity and avoid idleness and lack of motivation

• A drugs’ counselling centre for the Embu district working in collaboration with NACADA

• A rehabilitation centre with entrepreneurial activities and accommodation for addicts ; a “half way house”

• A place where facilities, equipment and resource items may be hired to aid the community and to sustain funds

• A place which is an attractive and peaceful setting for visitors

Project objectives

The resource centre is so well used by groups for meetings, education, motivation , celebrations, faith gathering and a myriad of other reasons. It promotes harmony and social networking. It gives access for less privileged members of the community to gain information and skills to improve their living standards. It is well used by youth for study, entertainment and cultural development. It is used for the disabled groups for meetings and mutual support. It is used by administrative officials, politicians and NGOs working with community groups. It is used by teachers and students for day retreats.

It is used by addicts for counselling and support. Rehabilitating youths and older addicts run a tree nursery and help in the garden produce shamba which is sold locally. They keep rabbits and chickens also.

The place will be for public use and any profits, after expenses will go into supporting community projects that help vulnerable groups and individuals, selected by a community committee. These will be sustainable activities rather than hand-outs, except in extreme cases.

The land and buildings are owned by Peacemakers but the trustees and community representatives are the custodians on behalf of the people and maintain its operational costs and development.

The current and future activities depend on the community centre being well used leading to sustainability and eventual profit. No monies will be deployed to other uses other than those that concur with our overall mission of supporting the vulnerable and facilitating dynamic community development.