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Tumaini Homes of Hope Special News |
| AUTUMN 2011 SPECIAL UPDATE NEWS | |
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Greetings!
Welcome to our special update of the Tumaini Homes of Hope newsletter with apologies for lengthy omissions |
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Home Update
We would like to thank you for your continued and generous support of Tumaini Children's Home, now shown in all its full glory above. We now have over 50 children resident and nearly all of them attend the Sirio School, across the track.
We have achieved a lot during the last few years and want to give everyone a  good pat on the back for your efforts and hard work. The Home could not have kept open without UK backing. Many, many thanks indeed from the children and staff at the Home. We have reserved funds to keep them healthy and educated for a number of years to come.
The children are developing well and and are always smiling as soon as a camera and sunglasses appear. Some of the children are pictured with UK Visitor Mark Overend playing on 'Christina's Bench,' Built in memory of Christine Osullivan. |
School & Clinic Update
The Sirio School now has more than 250 pupils, mostly privately funded and include the children from the Tumaini Home, funded by the UK charity supporters. The children are motivated to learn and the teachers a nd volunteers help them with their lessons as well as tending to them, with the Mothers, at the Home. The education standards and results are excellent.
The clinic is now well equiped and well used, funded now by a German Charity. |
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The Future
As the Home is almost full, the UK Charity has been looking at other projects which could complement our existing project, Tumaini. During the last few months we have had extensive discussions with top doctors, nurses and AIDS counsellors in UK and Kenya and have realised that there is a lot we can do to prevent this dreaded disease. When mothers with AIDS give birth to babies, a large percentage of those babies will be HIV positive. However, with the right medication at the point of birth, the babies will be able to build up their own immune system and have a normal start to life. We feel that this is the way forward as a first step in eradicating this dreadful disease
Mother & Baby Clinic
Our intention, initially, is to run a clinic alongside an existing feeding programme. The weekly Kenamai feeding programme - run by Kenyan business people and their friends, serves an average of between 1400 and 1600 orphaned and vulnerable children who cannot afford to buy nutritious food. Having walked several miles to the site, some youngsters carrying babies on their back, some 13 and 14 year old pregnant girls, wait quietly and in an orderly queue to be given a free, wholesome meal plus a bag of nutritious food and other items to take back to their families. We will be able to screen the pregnant mothers and give advice, guidance and medication while on this site. The equipment will be portable and staff will be able to travel into other, vulnerable areas to help inform and educate existing and would-be mothers, and hopefully, even the fathers.
We have some funds already earmarked for this pilot project but need more if we are to sustain it.
The Feeding Programme
This takes place every Sunday. They operate from a site behind the Coca Cola bottling plant to the north of Mtwapa and well worth a taxi trip to see and help hand out the food and load the trays. You arrive to see hundreds of children from the poorest and most needy homes lined up. It won't be long before we launch the Mother and Baby project there and donations are welcome for both of these projects.
As well as prevention work we are also working hard to identify orphaned and vulnerable children in other areas in desperate need of help. To this end we are looking to support a local slum school in the Mikindani region of Mombasa, through the donation of gifts, such as textbooks, stationery, food, clothes, etc.
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How you can help
We understand that some supporters may wish only to support Tumaini Children's Home and if this is the case we ask you to please contact us directly so that we can allocate your donation specifically to the Home. Unless we hear from you we will assume that, in the future, you are happy to support all the work that we are doing.
Some of you will be travelling out to Kenya during the next few months - many of you ask us what to take out there. A lot of what is needed can be purchased in Mombasa, but if you have a spare suitcase, or want to take extra luggage (we can help with that), then stationery, English reading books (which are difficult to find out there) are very very welcome. For the slum school, clothing is needed and if visiting, then food bought locally, even fruit and bread, would be very much welcomed by the children and the staff. See below for more information .
The Gift School
The Gift School is in a slum area on the Nairobi Road just outside Mombasa.  There are 89 students ranging between 2 - 14 years of age. Almost the whole school is vulnerable: most of the parents are single parents living below the poverty line.....each classroom, houses two classes, separated by the students facing different directions. Linda, the head, has 3 teachers - mostly the teachers work on a voluntary basis since they are also concerned about the welfare of their students and sometimes they even go for several months without pay.
They have to find rent for the small building and parents are asked for 300Ks a month (approximately £2.75) to cover the cost. Many are unable to do this as they are too poor. The children are keen to learn and know that their only way out of poverty is through education. Their classroom is a mud hut with a dirt floor, very small with holes in the walls. A recent visitor reports:
"There is a possibility of a piece of land being given to them by the local head of the village. We spoke to the parents and suggested they get together and find their talents, bricklayer, labourer, etc. The cost of building materials is prohibitive to them but compared with UK is good. It would be lovely if schools in England could get involved to help in some way, donations towards building, books or uniforms." |
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CONTACTS - in Kenya and Here
We have employed a Development Worker - Grace Munga - to oversee the projects we are involved with. She has a small office in the SOMAK building, close to the larger hotels, Travellers and Bamburi Beach on the North side of Mombasa town. Her phone numbers are: (Safaricom): 0721913574 and (Orange) 0770260047 (if using this number you may need to drop the first 0 and precede the number with +254). Grace will happily direct you to visit the Gift School and the Feeding Programme (run every Sunday) so that you have a better idea of the enormity of your support and help. Grace will also suggest the best shops to visit in order to get a good deal for items to give to the children. Grace's email address is nyawanzakache@gmail.com
For normal enquiries, please email Michael at michaeltumaini@googlemail.com who will respond direct or pass the query on to any one of the UK or Kenya trustees. |
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Fundraising
We are fortunate that so many people continue to support us through fundraising events - going on throughout the year. Our website can list all future events if you want them publicised. If you need flyers or dvds or sponsorship forms, etc, to support any fundraising event, please let Sarah, our Administrator know. Her contact details are: sarahturner35@hotmail.com
Pictured here is Collman, A Somak Driver, and one of our supporters, donating a bag of Maize to Danielle, (Ex UK Trustee - now on our new project in Kenya) for distribution.
We have had so many events, from sponsored birthdays and anniversaries (instead of presents) that we could fill a newsletter just with them. Perhaps we will! |
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Special Fundraising
Row the boat across an ocean?
Benjamin Stenning and James Adair tired of their daily commute and agreed it w as time to row an ocean. They have just completed rowing the Woodvale Challenge Indian Ocean race from Geraldton in Australia to Port Louis, Mauritius, a journey of a minimum of 3,136 nautical miles. Ben did this for the Tumaini charity and James for the Guillain-Barre Charity. Check them out at http://www.benandjamesandaboat.co.uk
They started the race on 21st April and completed on 15th August. We sent the odd message telling them they could have a day off if they wanted. Ben & James are pictured at the finish - now more hairy than ever. "Sponsored Shave?" |
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Volunteering
There are several voluntary organisations operating in the northern part of Mombasa. You may want to research your own. However, Grace can identify the bigger organisations whom you can contact. We do not have any direct involvement with any of the voluntary agencies working in Mombasa although we suggest that you will need to have an up to date CV, plus a current CRB (Criminal Record Bureau) check. Mr. Paul Kongo, one of our trustees living and working in Mombasa is happy to receive your CV and answer any queries you have regarding voluntary work on any of our projects. His email address is: paulkongo@yahoo.com |
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Changes
You may have noticed that, in order to incorporate our new projects, we have changed our name slightly to "Tumaini Homes of Hope"
This is an exciting time for our charity but please be assured that the focus of our work will always remain the same; to provide medical care, education and welfare to orphaned and vulnerable children affected and infected by HIV/AIDs. You can be assured that we take our role as Trustees very seriously and can guarantee that donations are used effectively and efficiently. All finances are now controlled solely within the UK. Our model of working ensures that we have tight financial control, transparent finance systems and rigorous accountability. These all meet with the UK Charity Commision requirements in full. |
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Gifts & Donations
For any gifts or money you give to any of our projects above, Tumaini Children's Home: The Mother and Baby clinic (opening in the autumn) and the Gift School, YOU MUST ASK FOR A RECEIPT. This is important in maintaining the integrity of all our supporters and staff at each of these projects. Grace will also ask you to sign a Visitor's Book and issue receipts for goods given. We would be grateful if you could respect this request. Thank you. |
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A final note
We have been informed by returning visitors that some hotel staff are recommending certain orphanages claiming the others are not good. We have discovered these staff members are commissioned to do this by certain orphanages. Please be assured the projects we promote are genuine.
We have achieved so much and can achieve so much more but we need your continued support. Together we shall continue to make long and lasting change to the lives of some of the world's most vulnerable children. Thank you for taking the time to read this and thank you for your continued support. |
Sincere Thanks
Patron - Andy Day - CBeebies
UK Trustees:
Michelle Porter (Chair): Paul Kongo (Mombasa): Mary Leadbetter: Michael O'Leary: Steve Turner: Sarah Turner, Administrator.
Tumaini Homes of Hope |
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