Lekirimba

Ok, so we haven't blogged anything in a long while.  Maybe because we have moved back to the United States from Kenya, and it has taken some time adjusting to life as we knew it (well at least for me :) So many things to recommit to - life is busier, you are expected to move quickly and to be aggressive in your endeavors - not much time to stop and smell the flowers, or to pause in-between steps to ingrain in your mind the color of the nape of a bird's neck (well I actually am doing this still in the US, but here I receive many more awkward glances). I am happy to be home.  Life in Africa, for me, has triggered an altered sense of interconnectivity and symbiosis, and subsequently a greater value for family and community has blossomed, something that I was struggling to identify with here.  Instead of preferring to sit outside the circle, assessing behavior and analyzing social systems, I actually want to part of that system (well at least part of the time :), despite its imperfections and inefficiencies.

Additionally, Kenya's nature  inspired a new appreciation of my home environment.  I see and hear birds, bugs, small mammals etc. now that I am astonished that I never noticed before (too busy, too distracted navigating the intersecting pathways that my mind endlessly wanders).  What was so commonplace and routine, has been reinvented.  You can't imagine how happy it makes me to know that there is always something novel and exciting right outside my door - maybe that will still my restlessness.        

So, I do not know when we will head back to Kenya or Africa, but probably sometime next year for at least a short period of time.  I may have the opportunity to travel there as a T.A. in July (one month prior to our wedding :).  If not then, then I will definitely be in Kenya in November-December for the graduation ceremony for the Daraja Academy's first graduating class!

Anyway, on to the address the actual topic of this post - Lekirimba.

Lekirimba is the name of the girl that Bennett and I sponsor to attend high school in Kenya.  I was introduced to Lekirimba by my friend Matt, who is the founder of the Simama Project.  From their Facebook page:


The Simama Project is a fiscally sponsored project of the 501c(3) nonprofit organization Empowerment Works, that is dedicated to finding sustainable, community-driven solutions to help Kenya’s most disadvantaged youth rid themselves of poverty. 

Simama Means "Stand" in Swahili and that is what we do, we help Kenya's most disadvantaged youth get off the streets and on to their feet. Here at the Simama Project we believe that the way out of poverty is through self-improvement. Our programs are designed to guarantee opportunities for the most disadvantaged children to allow them to rid themselves of poverty through school retention, traditional education scholarships, vocational training and work opportunities.

Lekirimba is Maasai and lives in Juakali, a very small "town" located just down the road from the Daraja Academy and about 25 minutes outside of Nanyuki. She is extremely bright and driven. She is blunt, yet humble.  She will find a way to get whats she wants/needs and is not shy in her interactions.  She excels in math and the sciences and is concerned about the environment.

Lekirimba comes from a very poor household and due to the relatively high costs of secondary education in Kenya, she did not have another alternative to continue on to high school.  If she did not go to school, she would be forced into an early marriage, pregnancy to quickly ensue.  14 is too young to start a family, particularly if it is not of your own volition.    

I want in this post to outline the costs of attending high school in Kenya, in the hopes of demonstrating that the poor have little chance of improving their situation.  They are not lazy, they do not choose not to work hard or strive academically.  They are kept poor due to restrictive systems that are designed to support the wealthier minority.  

Note that when working, an average laborer would make under $2 a day to feed and care for themselves and their family.

Lekirimba attends St. Francis, and all-girls boarding school located in Dol Dol.  She will live on campus 9 of the 12 months of the year.  Every three months, they take a one month leave.  School fees for the year (which includes the costs of housing and food) come to $312.  Now, this doesn't seem like a whole lot if you are from the United States.  But consider if you were an average Kenyan coming from a low socioeconomic sector.  If one head of household made, let's say $2 per day and worked every single day of the year (not likely), they would only make $730 per year.  This money is better designated for food.

In addition to the fees, supplies are needed to accompany the student on reporting day:

2 skirts

Black leather shoes

2 pair of white socks

Dark green tie

White t-shirt

Green bloomers

Open wrap skirt

White rubber shoes

Metallic plate

Metallic cup

Metallic spoon

2 Blankets

2 Pink bedsheets

Pink bed cover

Mattress 6 ½ ft

Metallic washing bucket

Towel

Toothbrush

Toothpaste

Bathing soap

Washing soap

6 rolls of tissue paper

Bible

Pens

Pencils

Erasers

2 Novels

Geometrical set

Passport sized photos

Medical certificate

Most poorer household would not normally be in possession of the majority of these items.

Lekirimba has just finished her first year of high school.  I met with her in August and she showed me her report card from the first two terms of the year.  She had mostly A's (just one C in Kiswahili).  It will be exciting to see where she takes life!

Maria

- Photos taken from the Simama Project Facebook page.

For more information on the commendable Simama Project:

http://www.facebook.com/SimamaProject

info@simamaproject.org

http://www.intheshadowofmtkenya.blogspot.com/

Lekirimba and I.

Lekirimba and Simama Projcet founder Matt Orcutt.