Home Visits, part 1

Sponsored child Hannah, above.

Today we started our home visits with the 9 new sponsored kids from Osupuko by visiting the four older ones.

This is a very poverty-stricken area. People depend on livestock for a living, but many don’t have the resources to buy any. And much of the livestock was killed in a recent multi-year drought. Many of the women make bead jewelry. But the market for this is limited.

The first visit on our agenda was with Moses and his family. This was a really joyous visit. Moses lives with his mother. His grandmother lives nearby. His father has multiple wives and is only in this home for a few days every few months.

Below, Moses’ mom is third from the right. His grandmother is second from the right. The woman in the United Way shirt on the left is a friend of the mother and acted as interpreter. Mama Moses speaks Swahili, which Virginia translated. But the grandmother communicated in Maa, which the friend translated.

The line of the day was when Mama Moses was describing her husband. “He is in his mid seventies. He is an old man.” To which the woman on the left cheerfully added, “Like Bryan!”

Moses’ grandmother has 10 children. Mama Moses is second. The youngest is younger than Moses.

After our meeting, complete with tea, we started to walk back to the van, which could only get within about a quarter mile of the house. Moses’ little brother immediately grabbed my left hand for the walk. His aunt grabbed my right and was pretty proud of herself.

A lot of the neighborhood joined us at the van. These visits often become a neighborhood event. Nothing happens unnoticed, especially a safari truck parking at someone’s house.

There were still many more photos to be taken and hugs to be shared.

Below, grandmother and mother.

The group, below. Note the sky in both above and below.

Below is James. He lives with his mother, father, and a couple younger siblings.

This was easily our most difficult visit of the day. As soon as we piled out of the truck, we met James, his mother, sister, sister’s baby, and a few other friends. Then James’s dad came out.

It was 11 in the morning and he was very drunk. He clearly was fairly well educated. He had a decent command of English, but the ideas behind the words were nonsense. And he wouldn’t stop talking. He was clearly embarrassing the rest of the family.

Below, Virginia, James’s father, his little sister, mother, and James. 

At one point, Virginia asked Mama James a question. The father told her she wasn’t allowed to speak and answered the question. 

Virginia, always very tactful, said she wanted to talk to the mother, woman to woman, and took her inside. Everyone but the father followed.

Below, left, top to bottom: Virginia, Claudia, sibling, Wangari. On right, James, Sean, mom, sister and baby.

James’s father lost a good job due to his addiction, and has not been employed since. They are in hard shape. We explained that we were covering James’s school fees, uniforms, books, etc. His mother was in tears, from gratitude and mortification over her husband’s behavior.

We formed lines of contact directly with Virginia for the mom and sister. Before, all communication went through the father. We left them with direction to call any time if they needed anything. 

Below is actually the kitchen. Some of the family sleeps in here. 

Once circumcised (the threshold to adulthood), males are not allowed to sleep in the same room with females. So the families often put beds in the kitchen to accommodate. Plus, there just isn’t much room for as many people as live there.

The family home, below.

Shaleen stands in front. We hired her for the day to usher us around the neighborhood, since she knew where most people lived. 

Next on our list was Benjamin. He lives with his mother and siblings. His mother is a widow, pictured below. She said she is 44 years old.

Her daughter came to interpret for us. And probably wanted to see the action, as well.

Below that, Benjamin, his mom, sister, and sister’s daughter, in front of their home.

The home is two rooms, with a small entry. No electricity or windows, so we relied on phone flashlights to see.

As usual, a number of neighborhood kids came to check out the goings-on. Some followed us inside the house to observe. A hole in the interior wall provided a viewing spot for one kid.

Below, Benjamin, his family, and a gaggle of neighborhood kids.

Last on the list, we visited Hannah. This was another joyous visit. 

Below is in their three-room home. Hannah’s father talks to Virginia and Sean.

Hannah lives with both parents and her 6 siblings. 

Her dad is 64. Her mom is only 30. This is a first marriage for both of them. He explained that he was an alcoholic. He was in bad enough shape that the village elders, who approve/arrange marriages, would not allow him to take a wife. He got clean and sobered up, then they allowed him to marry. Mama Hannah couldn’t have been more than mid-teens when she was married and started having children.

I explained my own struggles with addiction issues, including alcohol. I offered encouragement for the battles we both fight. Hannah’s father and I declared ourselves to be brothers.

Hannah’s father would like to raise goats, but doesn’t have any currently. Sean gave him cash to buy a goat. We also provided food money, as they didn’t have any.

A relative also attended the discussion, then brought jewelry she had made. Hannah put earrings on all three women of the Tuko Pamoja team in attendance.

We stopped by Shaleen’s home for a few minutes. We had books for Stephen and her. Stephen was at home. So we got to see him briefly.

And our tour guide again, below. She was like royalty for the day. We were all over the area in the safari truck. They don’t come to this area. Plus we were driving down cowpaths to get to the homes. Everyone we encountered was staring at us, including many kids from the school. And a lot of them ran to us to see what was going on. And there was Shaleen riding in the front seat, directing Thomas where to go.