Kisumu

I don't know how many of you know that I am a Trustee of a charity that runs an orphanage in Kenya??

Well I am!

It's called the Kisumu Children's Trust and has been running for about 14 years in an official capacity. 

We run an orphanage based in Tieng're which is a village on the outskirts of Kisumu (the 3rd largest city in Kenya - see map below). The orphanage houses about 48 kids and supports more children in the community through feeding projects. 

The aim of the charity is to help the children of this community and:

• To help those in greatest need
• To love and care for them individually
• To raise them in a Christian environment
• To educate them and so enable them to achieve their full potential
• To prepare them for life in the community
• To encourage them to be an asset to society

So you might be wondering how and why I got into this. Both valid questions...

How: So my mum does some casual admin work for a guy called Peter - he heads up this charity. One day when he needed some extra help I went along and we got chatting about how I love Africa and about some of my excursions out there. He went away and then wrote to me asking me if I would consider becoming a Trustee involving promoting the work of KCT. I had a think...

Why: I decided to say YES for 2 reasons:

• #1. Because I think as a Christian I should help other people as far as I possibly can - serve them and bless them because I have the capacity to be able to do that. This was an opportunity to reach kids who had no parents and to look after them.
• #2. When I was 16 I went to Malawi. It was my first jaunt to Africa and during that trip I got a real heart for the country. I have always felt that at some point God will call me back to work there in some way. This was an opportunity to get involved in something that could turn into bigger opportunities. 

So since January I have been a Trustee. What does that actually mean? 

Well we have meetings 5 times a year to discuss the running of the home, finances, community work and development. I am then on a sub-committee that's focus is on the promotion of the charity. So we look for opportunities to fund-raise or get a wider audience to know more about us. 

In that regard, if you have any brilliant fund raising ideas please pass them on. Or if you are thinking about doing a sponsored event (run, cycle, bounce etc) please think about supporting Kisumu Children's Trust. Because we are a small charity we are really personal and so can tell you exactly where your money goes and how it's used. 

If you want to keep up to date with things we do maybe think about "liking" us on facebook

I am also trying to plan a trip to Kenya in the summer of 2013 so if you are interested in potentially coming too - let me know!