Kisima academy

Kisima Academy, a mission of COS, is a Christian orphanage and school in rural western Kenya.


The rainy season has started bringing relief from the hot, dry, dusty conditions of a Kenyan summer. Crops, which grow in the cooler season, have been planted and fodder for the cows will be available again. The Equator goes right through Kenya but it’s not as hot as you would think because Kisima is at 7000 ft. above sea level.


The government has been rolling out new requirements for continuing teacher education and for extracurricular activities including drama, music, and athletics. A district-wide arts festival was held recently and Kisima came in first overall. The children were excited to take four firsts, in cultural dance, in a play performance, as best male actor, and as best female soloist in cultural dance, and another four second and third places.


In sad news, the cook died very suddenly last week. He was the sole support of his two wives and six children. Please pray for his family.


If you are interested in being a blessing to the children at Kisima (and being blessed in return!) by making a visit there this fall, please contact me. A typical trip includes a day in Nairobi to visit the ele-phant orphanage and the giraffe refuge, five days of activities at Kisima, a day at Kakamega Forest (the last remaining tropical rainforest in Kenya and an area rich with birds and butterflies), and two days of safari in Maasai Mara. Please prayerfully consider going.


Gerda Fink, COS Kisima Committee Chair-person, www.friendsofkisima.org, on Facebook at Friends of Kisima Academy.

update

The focus of all attention in Kenya recently has been the national election. Uhuru Kenyatta, son of the first President of Kenya and member of the majority Kikuyu tribe, won a second term as President. The results are being disputed by his opponent, Raila Odinga, member of the Luo (second largest) tribe. The violence following the 2007 election resulted in 1200 people killed and was the cause of death of the parents of most of the Kisima orphans. When I visited before the 2012 election people were determined not to repeat the violence of 2007. However, this year there were again rumblings and as of today (August 15) there has been some rioting in Nairobi and Kisumu (the Odinga stronghold) and 24 people have been killed. Thank God Kisima is in a safe area and they are able to go about their daily activities as usual.


Here are a couple of photos of the new girls’ dorm. I wonder if the girls had a hand in the color selection!


You can’t imagine the excitement over having flush toilets and piped water to sinks and showers--improvements unheard of in this rural area.


Exciting news—we now have a Kisima Academy website:

www.friendsofkisima.org. There you can find a photo album of the students under Photo Gallery, some photos of the August trip, background information and so on. Check it out!  


Gently used athletic shoes are needed for Kisima Academy. 


If you or your children/grandchildren have some to donate the children and teachers at Kisima would be very grateful. Please keep it in mind over the next few months—any time before early May is good. Bring them to church or call the Church for a pickup. Thank you!