It was another sunny morning as we excitedly set off from Nairobi for the drive to Denis Marshall Foundation, Kathageri on Monday 20th February.
I was so pleased to see Christine again and renew friendships with those living and working there, that I had met in 2010 and 2012, and we were given a wonderful welcome.

Meeting Isaac, the sponsored walker!

It was Molly’s first trip to Kenya and she was really amazed at the beautiful bourgainvillea, gardens and centre that has been built there over the past 9 years. I could not believe all that had been achieved by Christine and her team over the past 5 years since I last visited and we were all especially impressed by the new restaurant that is about to be opened. We admired the woodwork and other carpentry done by Boniface and the Makuti roof made so beautifully by Rooney and a tutor from Mombasa for the restaurant. It is so clever how the craft room and other rooms are integral to the building underneath it.
Not only that, but the Shamba has grown with the new animals and the slightly larger area and we watched as the new Pigsty was nearly completed by Boniface and the others in the week we were there. The goats and piglets were real characters and should provide some much needed income. It is lovely that the Irish Embassy has given the award to Peacemakers’ for this. Also the chicken house is well stocked too! We saw the incubator awaiting eggs to start the cycle again!

The building attached to Kisimani  House is truly amazing with the computer suite, library and Reception area attached thanks to some funding from the French Embassy in Nairobi. What a mighty work Christine has achieved with Peacemakers’ friends fundraising and the support from the Embassies.

We were very comfortable in Kisimani house with the lovely rooms and luxury of a shower or bath in two places, and of course food a plenty on the table thanks to Christine, Fred, Wawi, Josephine and others. Andrew and I had withdrawal symptoms from the Mangoes and Pineapple and Passion fruit we were given and Molly especially liked the passion fruit.

One of the many highlights of the week was to visit the Kivuria small Home and Primary school just up the road and present the jumpers, exercise books, varied pencils and other items to the jovial and very friendly Head teacher Madam Lilian Ireri. The new Deputy Head had given us a tour of the grounds and three classrooms. Between the two of them, I think that the school will go from strength to strength, if the three teachers who were promoted are replaced, and the Government delivers on the books and new Curriculum promised. In addition, there is the underlying and wonderful support of Peacemakers International for the small Home and other children in the main school.

Money we raised was spent in Embu on a decoder (to change the analogue to a digital signal) and an aerial for the television in the small Home for disabled children. It may also help with the electrical work to get the solar panel working for electricity. Isaac, a new recruit to Peacemakers who has experience in all kinds of work (he was most welcome on our trips) had put the aerial up that morning before we visited school!

There were many other highlights including the visit to Chuka for drugs for the health needs of ladies on site and it was lovely to see a quick recovery for them. There was also a heartrending visit later in the day to give John his epilepsy drugs and before meeting his family, looking into to the muddy space he calls home. There are holes in the walls stuffed with plastic bags and it is not water or weather proof. His half-brother was given his own jersey on our visit to the school later in the week. We were shocked to see Patrick remove Jiggers from under the toenails of Eric although it was Andrew who gave them support all afternoon whilst Molly and I didn’t like to watch!! It is great that there is a campaign on ‘Jiggers’ at present.

Krispie cakes, tea loaf, chocolate tiffin and buns anyone!

On the Friday afternoon, Molly and I showed Fred, Stella and Wawira how to make Krispie cakes, tea loaf, chocolate tiffin and buns which was great fun. The next afternoon they taught us how to make chapatti dough. This was all for the guests we were expecting for the great visit from the famous Kenyan Gospel Singer ‘Daddy Owen’. In fact, he eventually arrived Sunday morning when we were at service in Chuka town Methodist Church, but he was still there when we returned. He is a very impressive young man with an increasing knowledge of the needs and the places supporting children and adults with disabilities. He was visibly moved by the wonderful work being done on the Peacemakers site. It was so lovely to see him give Christine the wonderful Malaika Foundation award.

Chrissie receiving the Malaika Foundation's

Good Samaritan award.

There I much more we could say but suffice to say that Molly said when we had been that she could live there and we are all saving hard for a further trip!
I will always remember Josephine’s wonderful singing of ‘Then sings my soul, my Saviour God, to thee, How great thou art how great thou art! as we left feeling quite sad but with God’s Peace and Joy in our hearts.

Thank you so much to Christine and all her team for giving us a wonderful week at Denis Marshall Foundation. It was such a privilege to share Kenyan life there for a week.

May God Bless all whom we met in Kenya and may His Blessing be upon the wonderful work being done there by Peacemakers International.

Helen Maguire

Peacemakers e-link Bulletin 11   Jan 2017

We have had some exciting news leading up to Christmas.  From all the letters we sent to companies and embassies requesting financial support for the future of Peacemakers, The Irish Embassy responded, visited our Resource Centre, and was so encouraged with what they saw, they pledged to sponsor us for around £5000.00 to purchase a greenhouse, a piggery etc. I also had news from Christine that our sow had given birth to six piglets, so the timing was perfect, a new family sty for them.  It just didn’t end there, somebody had anonymously nominated us for The Good Samaritan award, which is a prize that is awarded every year in Nairobi.  Peacemakers’ won it this year for the work we have done with the vulnerable over the year. Christine and three other Peacemakers’ were invited to dinner to the Kenya International Conference Centre and presented with the prize of around £1000.00.  Such a blessing and a BIG thank you for all our friends who have sponsored so regularly for these vulnerable children’s education.

This brought us into 2017 with great gusto to organise the ‘Walk’ that Isaac Gacugo has volunteered to do.  He did suggest walking from Mombasa to Nairobi, but it was felt that this route was too dangerous so another route has been planned to start on 23rd January and our Chief for the Embu District will start him off from Embu Town.  The walk will be across country for safety reasons around the foot hills of Mt Kenya and will take approximately 12 days staying overnight in arranged accommodation.   Others will be walking with Isaac and giving out invitations to come to the opening of the Restaurant on 25th March 2017 and bring their sponsored money with them, while newcomers will join the walk at Karurumo to finish at our Resource Centre on 4th February.

PLEASE NOTE THAT THE DATE OF THE RESOURCE CENTRE GRAND OPENING HAS BEEN MOVED BACK TO 25th MARCH 2017

I’m sorry, but the change of date for the ‘Opening’ was unavoidable because there is so much to arrange and we were just running out of time.  The last day of the walk on 4th February, will be re-walked again on 25th March to co-inside with the ‘Opening’.

Joan Rushton is visiting Kenya again in early February and will be one of those people who will be joining the walk on the last day and has a few friends who are sponsoring her.  Well done Joan.

Helen and Molly are also visiting in February, Molly for the first time, but Helen has been several times before and works very hard in raising money for Peacemakers within her church members, groups and friends.  Thank you Helen.

Hundreds of letters have been distributed and I’ve been told that Ben Muriria who works for the President of Kenya will personally take a letter to the First Lady for us, so wouldn’t it be wonderful if she came along to the opening.  Fanta from  Kigumo will help with media coverage.  Peter Wag will lend his bike (I don’t know who is riding this) and Christine will be driving ahead.

Grace Kaurma, who is the Secretary and Trustee of Peacemakers in Kenya, is visiting her family who live in the UK and I’m taking the opportunity of spending some time with her.  Grace has been the principal of a private girl’s school and is retired now.  She has been involved with Peacemakers for 30 years + and maybe this is the time that Grace could be more involved in taking some responsibility in the Micro Enterprise projects.

Grace is spending a week with me and I’m having a ‘At Home with Grace’ Wednesday afternoon 18th January.  I know its short notice but it’s an informal time to meet Grace and have Tea and Cake with her.  I know it’s a work day but do come if you can.

Please keep us in your prayers
Every Blessing
Brenda

We are moving towards the Grand Opening of the Resource Centre and have settled on a date of 25th February 2017, which is usually a dry season!  At present I'm unable to travel to Kenya because I have a couple of leaky heart valves and so cannot cope with the high altitude, remember Nairobi is 6000ft above sea level and the Peacemakers site is on the edge of the lowlands of Mt. Kenya. Consequently, I'm trying to find a person(s) of some standing in the communities to ‘cut the ribbon’.  I’m in touch with my MP Sir Oliver Heald, to help us in establishing a working relationship with the MP responsible for Kenya. It was Nick Hurd MP but since “Brexit” there’s been a reshuffle and it's now James Wharton MP, so I will extend an invitation to him.

So far, we’ve had a few responses from the 34 companies we wrote to in Kenya for future sponsorships. They've sent forms for us to fill-in, which we will return a.s.a.p. We have also recently written to the British Embassy in Nairobi and other Christian organisations.

We recently had a couple of fund raising events in August.  Saturday 6th was on our Resource Centre in Kathageri, Kenya, and raised an incredible 142,000 Ksh (£1,150). This shows the support there is with the locals who are benefitting enormously from all the projects initiated through Peacemakers.  Then on the Monday the 8th we held a Craft and Tea Event at Clare and Phil Stokes’ house and raised a further £500.00

Thank you to all for attending – you now know

what that money is going towards.

Jackie in Kenya, read on below!

You saw in our last Bulletin No..9 that Jackie North, the mother of Sophie was visiting Kenya for the second time.  She was not disappointed and has come back inspired and wants to help with some of the organising leading up to the ‘Opening’.  The main part of her involvement is to keep people in the UK informed of the ‘Walk’ from Mombasa to the Resource Centre arriving 25th February.  An elderly Kenyan, Isaac Gacugo, has volunteered to walk 570 km for Peacemakers, to make it known to all the districts he’ll be walking through, just what Peacemakers have done and brought to his people for free. it will take him 3 weeks; He cannot thank God enough.  So that’s Isaac’s part, Jackie will send out a special bulletin shortly to explain her ideas of how we can all be involved.

The 2 young students, Alice and Hannah have now returned from their visit to Kenya and were involved in the Fund Raiser Day.  They couriered lots of items for us to have a stall on the day, and have returned excited and wanting to help further with the very needy in the area.  More news later.

Update on the progress of the Resource Centre:  We have moved on with the kitchen and restaurant (see pictures below) and now doing grills for security, but we need funds.  The plan is to get to Hygiene level, register for tax and business, train for certificate and inspection, all by October!

It’s now getting very exciting and may I extend an early invitation to you to join all the other Peacemakers to the ‘Opening’ Celebration!

Above are a couple of pictures showing a new addition to the resource centre! A young heifer, donated by Sammy to supply milk for use at the centre. She's been named 'Mpwenda' in Swahili and when she's old enough she'll be sired, the resultant calves will be placed with schools or groups in the area to supply milk for the needy. She was lonely and pining when she arrived on site, so the handler brought his own calf along to keep her company, ahh! It's also great to see the "Pickup", paid for by a generous friend of Peacemakers, still working hard after all these years!

An update-bulletin will follow shortly.
Every blessing for now,
Brenda.

Sorry for the delay in our latest news letter, some members of the team have had health issues. This hasn't however stopped work forging ahead towards completion of the Resource Centre; we have had a few extra donations this year, which have enabled us to move nearer to the ‘Grand Opening’ -  a big thank you to those people!  We are now looking for Sponsors that will help maintain the continuance of the Centre and it’s many projects in the community. 

When the construction work is completed there will always be overheads, such as building maintenance, renewal of registrations to the Kenyan Government, insurances etc., We are already registered with the Kenyan Government as a CBO, also CADA (Campaign Against Drug Abuse) is a CBO in its own right.  Perhaps through these registrations we may get some funding from the Kenyan Government!

Brenda has written to her local M.P. asking for financial help who in turn has passed her email onto Nick Hurd M.P. who is involved in a very similar way in Mombasa with the Kenyan Government.  Because of his involvement with the government he cannot help us personally, but he has given us a list of potential Kenyan business sponsors whom Brenda has written to in Kenya.   We are awaiting their response!

Christine and the Trustees in Kenya are having a “Fundraiser” on August 6th to raise money to help finish the construction. It probably won’t raise a great amount as money is scarce, It's great however that they want to be part of the work to improve life in their community. We are sending invitations to all the Business Companies who we've invited to become sponsors. It will be a great opportunity for them to view the resource centre and find out about it's value in the community. We pray that they will respond.

Peacemakers UK are having a Craft & Afternoon Tea Fundraiser on the 8th August.

Click Here to see Flyer. 

Please let us know if you would like to attend or maybe send a donation!

People visiting the Resource Centre this summer are Jackie North (below), she has been before and fell in love with Kenya so wants to return. Also two students Alice and Hannah will be going out, they will help with some of the projects hopefully develop an understanding of the needs and poverty which others live in. All three are being couriers for us, taking out lots of children’s clothes, a computer for training room, plus a variety of craft materials and more books for Library.

I do like to encourage young people in their gap year or any young person who would like to serve in a very different and needy community, to volunteer themselves to a Life Changing Experience.  You will Bless others and be even more Blessed yourselves!

Peacemakers would like to extend an invitation to all our friends and sponsors to become

“Friends of Peacemakers for Life”

By making a regular standing order donation, however small or great, say £5, £10 or £15 a month, it will enable this wonderful resource in Kenya to be maintained and hopefully grow into the Wellspring that it has started to become. Improving the lives of the poor and needy, young and old alike.

Click Here to open Standing order form or Right-click and "Save target as" to save and print.

This will enable and guarantee Peacemakers to have a future in Kenya.  Remember the land for the Resource Centre was selected and purchased because of the poverty and great need in the area.

Since we have been there we have seen a drop in the death of new born babies also abandoned babies, provision of mosquitos nets in shambas and help through training in many more areas. You can see on our website, the extent and depths we have reached in the area due to your love and generosity.

The Resource Centre is like an oasis and is used as a ‘Drop in’ for help daily.  These people will eventually take on the practical side of the mission, but we need your help, to be sponsors for overhead costs.
Please consider sponsoring the work in Kenya, or even coming to Kenya and being a part of the help which makes such a difference.
Every Blessing until  next time, Brenda