Projects

While the situation in Kibera is very overwhelming, a little can go a long way in making a difference.

“During my first few weeks in Kibera, I kept asking myself what I could possibly do that would make a lasting difference in the people’s lives. But what finally encouraged me that even doing something small could leave a big impact was my experience at St Charles.

The St. Charles Center is a pre-primary school for 105 children, most of whom are orphans. When I first arrived at St Charles, I walked into the one room metal structure to find all of the children sitting in conditions that were so dark, I could hardly see.

While observing the class, I noticed that only a portion of children were working. After asking one of the teachers named Jeremiah why, he explained to me that he and Mary (the head teacher) could not afford to buy enough supplies for all of the children and so they would have the class work in rotation (One fourth of the class would work while the other children sat quietly waiting, and then the class would rotate so that another group would begin working using the pencils and books). After seeing this, I went to the store the next day and was able to buy enough books and the pencils for all of the children for around twenty dollars… Something as small as $20 was able to provide enough supplies for 105 children and dramatically improve their ability to learn.”

- John Cooley

• Provide enough supplies (Books, Pencils, Paper, Chalk, Diapers, etc.) for both Mama Tunza’s Orphanage and the St Charles Center.

• Set up a feeding program at the St Charles Center.

The St Charles Center is a pre-primary school for 105 children, most of whom are orphans. However, the government does not sponsor pre-primary schools in Kenya and the teachers are therefore, not able to feed the children at the school. As a result, many of the children do not eat during the day and have to work on an empty stomach. All Roads Lead to Kibera would like to change this by setting up a program where the children are fed a breakfast when they arrive and a lunch half-way through the day.

• Work towards the long-term goal of building a new orphanage and moving the children from
Mama Tunza’s Orphanage out of Kibera.

• Assess and implement other programs according to the needs in Kibera that can realistically be met.