2011 Kenya Mission

A Lakewood team of ten had an amazing mission to Kenya in July of 2011.  Eight of us had been to Kenya before and two got to experience the beautiful people of Kenya for the first time.  The mission took the team to Nairobi, Maua and surrounding villages, and the Masai Mara.   

In Maua we worked with the Maua Methodist Hospital (MMH) and the GBGM missionaries of Jerri and Bill Savuto.  The MMH is an amazing place considering all the physical and spiritual care they provide to the local people and communities.  The staff are professional medical personnel that have expertise in many fields and a faith that they rely on and share daily.  Simply being in their presence, hearing of their work, and watching them in action is a wonderful experience.  While in Maua the team built one home for an Aids Orphan as a part of the Community Outreach Program of MMH.  The orphan that received this home was a young man named Josaphat.  It was a joy to contribute to the building of this new home for Josaphat and his grandmother.  Also, we worked on plastering walls in the staff flats that are being built, as well as helped in needed painting around the hospital complex.  One day we were able to go with a group of staff members to visit the MMH sponsored Early Childhood Development program (ECD) and help in conducting a ‘bush clinic’.  We were all blessed to be able to participate in these outreach programs of the hospital.  The ECD is a program for orphaned children that is sponsored by the MMH.  This program enables the children to attend school, and also helps in providing food and shelter.  The bush clinic is an outreach program that brings free medicines/vitamins and free medical counseling and diagnosis to villages around Maua.  Lastly, some of the team was able to go visit local people that are participating in the Hope Companions Program that is a part of a ZOE Ministry that is based there in MMH.  This program provides young people (most are orphaned) in the community both training and a small grant to set up a business from which they support themselves and usually other family members.  This program is 75% successful in helping locals start and sustain a small business and support themselves.   

We also spent time at the Kawangware UMC (KUMC) and school which is located in one of the slums of Nairobi.  This too is an amazing place that is helping the people in this community in many ways.  We attended church on a Sunday morning and wow do they worship with a great deal of energy and vitality, it was wonderful!  We also helped out with some painting that they needed done and conducted a short VBS for two groups of children at the school.  Rev. John of KUMC is a charismatic man and he, and the entire congregation, made us feel very welcome and loved.  Our time there was very special and we expect that some of us will again visit this church in the future.   

Our last couple of days were spent in the Masai Mara located in southwest Kenya, which is the home of many wild animals.  Seeing the beauty of this place and the animals that live there is a great reminder of that this is all His creation.   

The team was blessed by this experience and expresses our thanks to those who were are prayer partners, all of LUMC for your support, and to Him who called us.