Today was the first day of the new term at Olng’arua School. During assembly each child told the school what they had done during the break. Without exception all the children reported that they had been herding livestock during the school holiday. Most had been herding goats and sheep near to their homes, but a …
Yesterday was the inaugural Melody Taft Football Tournament. Peter Bender and Anne Ostberg donated footballs, pumps and goal markers to Olng’arua School on behalf of Melody Taft. The children love football but ordinarily kids here get little chance to play. If they do the best they can normally hope for is a ball made of …
It was just after sunrise, I stood outside a mud and grass thatched hut and listened to a little girl crying inside. Ten minutes earlier the 12 year old girl had been sitting on a cured cow skin outside the door of the hut, naked and surrounded by a crowd of local women. The girl, …
For the last two years the cooks at Olng’arua School have been providing breakfast, mid morning milk and lunch for 45 people in a small traditional thatched hut. It looks very picturesque but as kitchens go, to be honest, it’s pretty rubbish! Thanks to a substantial donation from Tumaini Isiolo e.V. we are able to …
Andy and and some of the many medal winners at the first ever Olng’arua School sports day (organized and run by Andy).
Sarah and Fergus Brown have donated football shirts to help our program of supporting youth football teams in Isiolo County. Football is a useful tool in conflict resolution and reduction. A healthy alternative for young men who may otherwise find themselves dragged into conflict. However most teams in northern Kenya play with plastic bag balls …
As you drive into the small village of Ardfern (which is half way down the Craignish peninsular in Argyll, on the west coast of Scotland) you will find the Crafty Kitchen, it’s on your right, opposite the village pub. Run by Marcin and Barbara Samarow it is well known locally for it’s good food and …
From the outset the plan to support education at Olng’arua was that it should reach out not just to children of school age but to the people in the community of all ages, and ultimately to be a centre of learning for the wider pastoralist community of western Isiolo District. With the addition of an …
It is still a struggle to persuade pastoralist communities to send their girls to school, even when schooling is provided for free, as these two end of term photographs from Kipsing Primary School, Isiolo District, graphically show. Countless studies have shown that women who have had at least some education have fewer, healthier and better …
With the kind support of Mr and Mrs Levy and the Primrose Trust we are able to start building the first teachers house at Olng’arua. Until now our teachers have been hosted by families in the local community, the area is remote and there is no nearby rental accommodation in which to house them. In …