BORN AND NURTURED TO BE THE VOICE FOR THE VOICELESS
BIRTH AND CHILDHOOD
I was born in 1993 in a small village near the shores of Lake Victoria in Suba Constituency, Homabay County in the western part of Kenya. My dad is polygamous and my late mother was the second wife. I am the second born in a family of four, two boys and two girls (both of whom passed on before turning eight years of age). Besides my real siblings, I have seven other step brothers and sisters.
I always consider myself a miraculous child because sometimes the things that have happened in my life are way beyond my explanation. For instance, I have never understood how in a such a large family, my cousin and I were the ones who got a chance to be raised in a children’s home back in 2002, when my mother passed on. My uncle, who is a pastor in the African Inland Church, was offered a vacancy for two needy children in Cheppema Children’s home (the precursor to EBCCK). He was first inclined to give the opportunity to two boys who were not our relatives, but the village elders and some family members counseled him to begin charity at home and that is how my cousin, Julius Ouma, and I ended up in the children’s center.
A miracle, right? The book of Jeremiah 1:5 explains to my soul that it was the plan of God from the beginning, "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations."
EDUCATION
In August 2001, after the burial of my mother following a long battle with high blood pressure and diabetes, the future seemed so bleak. There was no hope for good life. There was no assurance that my brother and I would be able to eat daily, dress well and go to school. As the coffin was lowered, I saw my future being buried too. My mum was not very wealthy nor was she engaged in any formal employment but, just like most moms and African mums in particular, she worked hard to ensure we never lacked. We dressed well, went to school and were fed well. My dad, on the other hand, had divided attention since he had two wives. We were therefore sure that following the demise of our beloved mother it was now God and us, us and God.
God is a way maker and he makes ways in places that we never thought there could be a way. I got a chance in the children’s home, enrolled in class there in 2002 and sat for my final primary education national examination (KCPE) in November 2007. I passed with flying colours, scoring 340 out of 500 marks. Not my power or strength but by the GRACE of God.
I began high school in March 2008 and completed it in 2011, attaining a mean grade of a B, which until to date is the highest grade a child from Elma Barnett Children’s Centre has ever attained. The period between 2008 and 2011 came with a fair share of its own troubles. The Cheppema home had a dark side, and the young boys of the home were the victims. To excape, we left the premises that we had called a home for close to eight years and Mama Jill and other good hearted individuals relocated us to a nearby church. Through constant prayers and encouragements from Mama Jill, we conquered the psychological torture that came with living there, as it was still so close to Cheppema and the source of the problem. This verse kept us going: I can do all things through CHRIST who gives us strength.
CONCLUSION
I sincerely thank God for all the good things he has done in my life. He has never failed me. I also wish to extend my sincere gratitude to Mama Jill Weller who has been a mum that I would never feel ashamed of calling my mum. Her generosity is Godly and I pray that God will forever let an overflow of blessings into her life. The Walindwa board has been a great pillar of strength for everything that is happening here. The beautiful smiles of the children from the home and the magnificent infrastructure over here are a constant reminder that there exists some very beautiful men and women of God who are dedicating their all to make the lives of desolate and needy children better. Pastor Roy Stover, his wife Hellen, Mama Judy Birir and the entire EBCCK board have also been very instrumental in advancing this noble project
Isaiah 55:10-11
As the rain and snow come down from the heavens and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty but I will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.