Kilifi Plantations
It’s been a week now and I am still looking for a dairy cow that will provide milk for the boys at the centre. I have been asking local people and friends to direct me to farmers around Kikambala, Mtwapa and Vipingo area. Unfortunately most of the farmers this period don’t sell their cows. I went to the Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (KARI) and I thought that would be the best place but the officer told me that they weren’t selling either. He directed me to Kilifi Plantations which it is almost an hour from Kikambala.
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We arrived at the centre on the morning and all the boys from Mikindani and Kikambala were there waiting for us. They didn’t know if we had any plans for them (as it was a surprise) and their faces looked a bit bored.
We placed the Christmas presents in the dining hall and started blowing some balloons to make the venue more joyful. We invited all the boys in the room and told them whenever they hear their name to come and collect their present. Before I started calling their names the boys started singing ‘We wish you a Merry Christmas’ moving the balloons with their hands up in the air.
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Hello everybody,
Firstly I would like to introduce myself. I am Stella Bili, I was an ex-volunteer at Grandsons of Abraham rescue centre in Mombasa, Kenya and I founded Africa Watoto in July 2009 with the aim to help street children who live at the centre.
I visited Grandsons centre twice and have experienced it at first hand. The impact of not having water and the lack of nutritious food to the children’s health, who live at one of the centres, increased my enthusiasm to help these children. Africa Watoto has been established to help the children in various ways such as providing nutritious food, buying clothes, books, organising events to raise money and raising awareness about street children’s life.
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As Easter Sunday approached the volunteers spent the week incorporating Easter based activities into their shifts. These activities ranged from making Easter cards and paper-mache eggs, to egg painting and Easter quizzes. Both the Mikindani and Kikambala boys enjoyed getting involved.
To celebrate the boys exceeding in their exams and the end of term, the boys were taken on a trip to Jamboree at Pirates.
There was something to keep all the boys entertained. Music and Football for the elder boys, and a Bouncy Castle and the Beach for the younger ones. For lunch they were treated to a favorite meal; chicken and chips (with a lot of ketchup) and juice. The boys were really well behaved that day.
All 57 boys, the Staff and the Volunteers had a great day. It really was the perfect way to finish a good term!
Kenya, Mombasa – 17/01/2010
But the nicest day of them all, was a Sunday when myself and another volunteer which is doing an amazing job with the children, when to the village and bought 13kg of sword fish, a couple of kg of potatoes, carrots, and other vegetables to cook for them a fish soup! Their joy was indescribable! Read the rest of this entry »
A special friend shared with me the most wonderful moments in her life, when she volunteered in Costa Rica and Africa helping children. She said it was one of the most rewarding experiences in her life!
Her personal volunteer statement and many others, helped me decide to embark on a life changing trip with one thought on my mind, how to make a difference in the lives of those children who are so much less fortunate than all of us!!
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11/01/2010
I will never forget my first day at the center… I arrived on the assembly time, 48 boys standing there, age 5-17 years old, 3-4 classrooms made of stone, at the back was a yard with mango trees, cashew trees, nothing alike the European schools, but the smells from nature was so strong, the loud laugh of the children was so alive, the colors so vibrant, made me think that although they were having their lessons under poor circumstances , yet it was the perfect environment for a school to be, nature, no cars, no buildings covering the sun, no pollution!
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