Kenya Help: Educating and training women, children and youth in Kenya

Provide education and training for women, children and youth in Kenya through resources and support.

School panorama
  • About Us
    • Board of Directors
    • Supporters
    • Supporter Profiles
    • Related Causes
      • 4 of the Lost Boys of Sudan
      • Mji Wa Neema Children’s Home
      • St Francis Xavier Catholic Parish, social work fund
  • Our Work
    • High School Scholarships
    • Educating Children of Mji Wa Neema
    • Building St. Francis Xavier Girls’ High School
  • The Difference We Are Making
  • How to Help
    • Help Us
    • Donate
    • Note Cards
  • Stories
    • Some Favorite Stories from our Blog
    • Margo McAuliffe at TEDxSanJoseCA
    • Blog
  • Contact Us
You are here: Home / Blog / #6 Becoming Self-Sustaining

#6 Becoming Self-Sustaining

July 14, 2011 by Margaret McAuliffe Leave a Comment

Tuesday, June 28, 2011

#6 Becoming Self-Sustaining

Hi All,

So much has changed at SFG since I was here last in November. The goal is to become as self- sustaining as possible. Of course the big thing is the solar/wind electrical generation. I talked to the people who are installing it, who tell me there are other schools in Kenya with solar but nothing on the scale of ours. As is generally the case, especially with new technology, there have been some glitches, but estimated date to go off the grid is Tuesday. The savings will be enormous! How will it be used? That has yet to be decided, but I’m hoping some of it will be used to increase teacher salaries. It can’t be much, but they are a devoted staff, and the pay is meager.

Inspecting the solar/wind installation                                                   Grace is in charge of putting it together

Several years ago we invested in a plot just across the road, with the idea of building more teacher housing. It will be a long time before that can happen, as our focus is now on raising more scholarship funds, both for high school and for university. So a garden has been planted, which the girls who take agriculture maintain.

Jecinta pulling weeds in her fancy duds                                            A small harvest

Yesterday 5 small boys from the neighboring elementary school were caught stealing carrots from the garden. I happened to see them as they were brought to Jecinta’s office. Scared??? They were terrified. She sent them back to be dealt with by their principal. My guess? No more stolen carrots!

The 2 cows have both been bred. Soon they will produce enough milk for the whole school. They keep the grass on the soccer field cut and eat the stalks from the corn growing around the school perimeter. And, of course they add to the compost used in the garden.  For the biology lab, SFG now uses home-grown rabbits for dissections.  Jecinta tells me they are thinking about raising chickens and possibly some pigs. The greatest limitation is space. But my guess is that if an adjoining plot should become available, Fr Kiriti would snatch it up.

One of the best ideas is the bakery. An oven next to the kitchen produces enough bread each day to supply both SFG and the boys at Archbishop Ndingi. I understand the girls help with that, although I have yet to see it in action. Bread is a big part of the African diet and this bread is delicious. The smell of it baking fills the air—yummmm!

Margaret and Josephat weigh dough for consistent size                        Josephat monitors the baking

The system of eaves and water storage tanks harvests the rainwater. In a good year, they can be almost independent of the bore hole next door. Buying water was very expensive.

All of this and more are evidence of the vision of Fr Kiriti. Not only is he working to insure the long life of the school, but these efforts also teach the students that problems are not insurmountable. One of the things I’ve noted among Africans is their acceptance of what is. How many times have I heard someone sigh and say, “Somehow God will provide” as they become even more mired in their poverty. Fr Kiriti’s vision is “God will provide me with a way to deal with this, but the doing is mine—God helps those who help themselves.” What he has done in building SFG as well as in the parish, itself in his 8 years here is truly impressive. At some future point I’ll write about some of his other accomplishments.

Best, Margo

Filed Under: Blog

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Non-profit

Kenya Help is a non-profit foundation with 501(c)(3) status with IRS. EIN 35-2314350

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Donate

Kenya Help has no paid positions. Operating costs were approximately 3.3% of our 2013 budget. Learn how you can help us out.

Read More »

Related pages

Like Us On Facebook

Archives

  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • August 2017
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • August 2016
  • July 2016
  • June 2016
  • April 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015
  • October 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • January 2015
  • November 2014
  • September 2014
  • August 2014
  • July 2014
  • June 2014
  • December 2013
  • October 2013
  • September 2013
  • August 2013
  • July 2013
  • June 2013
  • December 2012
  • August 2012
  • July 2012
  • June 2012
  • September 2011
  • August 2011
  • July 2011
  • July 2010
  • June 2010

Contact

PO Box 516
Menlo Park, CA 94026
(650) 322-0821
info@kenyahelp.us

Newsletter

Signup for our newsletter!

Our Mission

Our vision is an educated society. Our mission is to educate and train Kenyan women, children and youth, by providing resources and support.  A primary focus is scholarships for students at the secondary and post-secondary levels who need financial support. Many scholarship students attend St. Francis Xavier Secondary School for Girls in Naivasha, Kenya, the school built with Kenya Help funds. Read More »

Recent Posts

  • #23 – Wrapping It Up
  • #22 – Margo, Chief Chef
  • #21 – Mji Wa Neema Reunion
  • ETW Reunion
  • #19 – Day 2 of Math Camp

Copyright © 2021 Kenya Help | Contact Us | Privacy Policy | Terms of Use | Log in