Soar Kenya

Dear Mary,
Thanks for the funds. The work started on Monday. We found out that the well dug before could not be done. The construction worker advised that we do another one just next to it. They have already dug six feets by now. The other hole was dangerous to continue with. It slides. It is no longer safe so it was covered.

The other one is now stated more carefully with the foundation being properly laid. As you could remember, the well already buried was meant to be a pit latrine but we did find water in it. When the long rains came, everything was covered. we thought would continue with it but it is sliding hence risky to continue with it.

We have already bought one lorry of sand. Concrete and some hard core and cement. This will help make a strong foundation at the top to avoid any slide in future. We have taken the photos and we are sending them this weekend. God bless you. The children, Irene and I are very greatful to what you are doing for the orphans. We pray that all goes well for your efforts to raise funds for the water well and pit latrine a success.
God Bless You and all the Helpers of Soar-Kenya,
Harrison

Getting to the trail: The trailhead is on Hwy 113 at the southern Lodi city limits. Use the parking lot next to a produce stand.

I was told that there is a shorter route for the 5k’ers
and the 9 mile will be both the loop and the same route as the 5k.

Trails: This is a very scenic hiking trail totaling about 6.5 miles in length and is maintained by the Lodi Valley Chapter of the Ice Age Park and Trail Fountation. There are some fairly steep sections but it is worth the effort.
You will first pass under a stone rail road tressle, skirt a field and then begin about a half mile ascent through hard woods. You will pass limestone outcroppings where there may be poison ivy.
Next the trail begins to open up. You will go under some electric lines, come to an informative trail marker and then reach the trail’s high point. From the open fields you can see the Baraboo bluffs, Gibralter rock and Devil’s Head ski area.
The trail then winds through both wooded and open areas with breathtaking views galor. You will cross Lodi-Springfield road and do about a 1.5 mile loop west of the road in the Lodi marsh state wildlife area. This hike is so beautiful you won’t mind doing it again by retracing you steps back to the hwy 113 trailhead.

Please register for the first ever Soar-Kenya run. 100% of all proceeds will benefit the orphans at the three schools Soar-K is currently sponsoring.The run will take place on Oct. 17th at 10am. North of Lodi. A t-shirt and pumpkin provided. 20.00 advance registration or 25.00 day of the run. You can register via paypal or can by sending a check to Soar-Kenya at 6230 Kuehn Rd Waunakee, Wi.53597.Follow this site for more details.

Hi!
Here’s my last message from Nairobi. Our plane leaves tomorrow morning for London, our little Toyota is tucked safely away at Kibera Kids’ Center, and I have a few minutes to tell you about the Sudanese refugees we met at Hopewell. Rashid called them up to meet us, and each was at least 6′4″, and as black and sleek as panthers. After I met and talked to them for a while, I realized that they are all just boys, (about 16 years old), lonely and struggling to fit into a foreign culture with no adults to guide them. I asked them to write me their story, and they did. Abraham or John wrote it, I think. Notice Deng’s last name.

I’ve included what I said to them. Feel free to write to them; I know they would be thrilled to hear from almost anyone. Lonely and afraid, they need all the moral support we can give them.

Thanks!
Darleen
From: johnsondarleen@hotmail.com
To: angokdau@yahoo.co.uk
Subject: RE: Sudanese students life story from Hopewell high school.
Date: Mon, 21 Sep 2009 08:50:26 -0700

Dear John, Abraham, Elijah, Gabriel, Piol, and Deng,

I have heard stories like yours, and they are all very sad. Please know that the world is aware of your plight, and many of us care, but are too far away to help personally. I will do what I can to tell as many people as I can about your life, and we will see that you get an education at Hopewell.

I know it is not much, but be thankful that you have each other. Together, you will succeed, and we will help. Feel free to write to me at any time, and I will always answer you. The world can be an ugly place, but now you have reached safety, and you will have enough to eat and live among people like Rashid who want to help you succeed. Of course, you have already succeeded; you are alive! That in itself is a conquest of the spirit, and it shows what courage you all have. I am proud to know you, and to have met you personally.

Please join the ranks of my many sons.
Darleen Johnson
Mama Hopewell

Date: Sun, 20 Sep 2009 07:24:43 -0700
From: angokdau@yahoo.co.uk
Subject: Sudanese students life story from Hopewell high school.

HI! Baba Hopewell,
In the year 1987, Arabs came to southern Sudan and displaced every body who was there by shooting us,unfortunately, we never had weapons.We were only nomadic people who use to hunt. Our people who were learners were from northern Sudan in Khartoum . they were also killed. those who were educated and those who were nomadic were gathered and shoot down to death . So now we are living without parents here in Kenya and we came to Kenya through Lokichogio boarder and camped there until UNHCR.came to take us to migrate us to Kakuma refugee camp. they took care of us since 1991 to 2005. There, we were given only one cup of beans each after two weeks.we were to cook for ourselves In absence of fuel . Sincerely it was very terrible situation.In the year 2005, UNHCR cheated us that it was peaceful in Sudan. So we went back and the camp was banned up In Sudan the situation was worse than before.In the year 2007 we came to Nakuru and disagreed to go back. why because people we still killed.Approximately one hundred and eighty five Sudanese were kill by Arabs . So we had no hope in Sudan, because it has taken away our Fathers,Mothers and our big Brothers lives away.In fact life is worse to us here in Nakuru. we are depending on some people who run away with us but they are stable. We have no fathers and mothers here in Nakuru and even in Sudan.That assistance is limited especially education .Similar we have suffered substantial discrimination and persecution at the hands of Arabs,In the year 19991sudanese security force were revolted by Arabs. our mothers were in the second attack. The whole village started shooting the Arabs people. Many innocent people were killed including our mothers and uncles.During this incident of shooting, people were displaced. we were very young at that time. We were running away with people whom we didn’t know .The following students,having the eager to be educated are in Hopewell but have less support.
1.John Khot Duot .
2.Abraham Angok Dau.
3.Elijah Mabior Koul.
4.Gabriel Dau.
5.Piol Garang Lual.
6.Deng Johnson.
P.S please ask question where you don’t understand.

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Hi!
We’re in Nairobi now, and I have had a very pleasant day. Calvin, one of the Hopewell grads we are helping go to college, decided that he could get several Hopewell grads who are in Nairobi together. We all agreed to meet at the Sarit Center, which is a huge shopping center, complete with a food court and movie theaters. I was quite concerned, because Calvin doesn’t have a phone, and both Johnny and Ian had spent the entire night and morning fighting over the toilet and barf bag - bad peanuts, we decided, since I didn’t have the same problem. Since I had no idea how to drive to the Sarit Center, and my chief navigator (more like nagivator) was not up to anything, I decided to take a cab. I met 6 kids there, bought them lunch, and caught up with their progress. One is working in a bank, one is working in a computer shop, one is waiting to go back to college to major in journalism, one is a D.J., having finished a course and awaiting classes to start again to do music production and video editing, one is doing information technology 2 hours per day, and Calvin, who is getting his diploma in actuarial science. It was very gratifying to see that they are continually trying to better themselves. They all insist they would have had no chance without Hopewell.

We discussed several other students, most of whom were working. It was very gratifying, believe me.

Below is a letter from Denice and Alfred, who had to have a huge painful bump removed from behind his ear. He was so uncomfortable that he was going to go to a “traditional” healer, but when I heard about it, I called him and sent him the requisit money to go to the hospital and have it taken care of properly. We had met in Nakuru, when I saw the sizeable bump, and I flat-out told him that he would have to send some kids home. There is no way H.O.P.E. can feed 794 kids on a daily basis, although we would continue to sponsor the teachers. With 600 of those 794 kids being orphans with no outside support, feeding them daily is not possible, especially with the current price of maize. Cruel, true, but better than having an orphan-Auschwitz on our hands! His letter to Denice tells of the response.
Darleen
Read on -

Date: Sat, 19 Sep 2009 09:17:30 -0700
From: mosotamangoa@yahoo.com
Subject: Fw: thank you
To: johnsondarleen@hotmail.com

Darleen,

I am very pleased to hear that you came to the rescue of Alfred.Thank you! I love your generosity.Be blessed.

Denice.

— On Sat, 9/19/09, HANFORD SCHOOL wrote:

From: HANFORD SCHOOL
Subject: thank you
To: mosotamangoa@yahoo.com
Date: Saturday, September 19, 2009, 4:12 PM

Denice,

Thank you for forwarding my last letter to Darleen.She felt so touched that she telephoned me promising she would send me the shillings 6800 needed at the hospital.And yes,she sent the money on Thursday,so I was able to visit Busia District hospital for the operation.But it wasn’t an easy task for the 3 qualified docs who attended to me.You can imagine what would have happened if I were in the hands of the old lady……..I am feeling better now and I am so grateful to mama(Darleen).Thank you too for your prayers and the 1000 shillings you sent to me.

We held a long day meeting with the kids’ guardians yesterday.In the meeting,we discussed a number of issues but the issue of lunches topped the agenda.So far,only tomatoes and sukuma wiki are ready for harvesting in the school’s farm.Darleen,who has taken over the crucial role of paying my teachers,cannot single handedly feed the nearly 800 kids.My efforts to get other wellwishers to sustain the feeding programme have not been successful yet.This is what I told the parents and I went further to suggest that the programme would stop at the end of this month until perhaps we get donated food or wait till the other crops become ready for harvesting.Denice,what followed was tears from the kids and their parents It was indeed painful .I understand quite well that most of these kids largely depend on the programme for their daily meals and this abrupt,yet important action will affect them.I had no alternative,friend.Since we reopened this term,the kids have been feeding on ugali and sukuma wiki from the farm.Darleen sent me shillings 22,000 which I used to get a few bags of maize for the flour.This is what has sustained us for this long.The kales really did very well,and you can imagine the same feeding our 794 kids all this long! How I wish the farm was bigger!

Anyway thank you for the bronchure.I haven’t got time to go through it yet.I will keep you updated.Say hello to Keyi.

Alfred.

The following are the things we want to do as the BURGEI ENVIRONMENTAL AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT GROUP. Due to the hardship we are facing as a community we feel that we need to do something at least to boost our living standards. This has mostly been on the side of illiteracy and unemployment, And to fight this, we are appealing for well-wishers to help us put the following:
1. SEWING PROJECT
This mostly targets the illiterate, most of whom are women. We have already started the process with one sewing machine, two teachers and two learners. Thanks to Joanne Franzene and the old lady(friends). On that note we still need the following:
(a). Table =kshs.4000
(b). Two chairs @600 =kshs.1,200
(c). 1 box of chalk =kshs.60
(d). Elastic band 1 1/4 @250 =kshs.312
(e). 10 metres Canvas/soft @20 per metre =kshs.200
(f). 1 sewing machine = kshs. 15,000
(g) Overlock machine =kshs.15,000
(h). 1 roll of Material =kshs7,000
(i). Salary
-Two teachers @5,000 =kshs.10,000
-Two learners @3,000 =kshs.6,000

2. NURSERY SCHOOL PROJECT
(a). 60 pcs Posts @160 =kshs. 9,600
(b). 80 bags of cement @ 765 =61,200
(c). 5 lorries sand @1,200 =kshs. 6,000
(d). 2 lorries balast @3,000 =kshs.6,000
(e). Timber;
- 4 X 2 1300fts @ 34 =kshs. 44,200
- 3 X 2 800fts @ 28 =kshs. 22,400
(f). 165 pcs Roofing iron(tins) 2 metres 30gauge @400 =kshs.66,000
(g). Nails
- 5 iinches 8 kgs @110 =kshs. 880
- 4 inches 13kgs@ 110 =kshs. 1,430
- 3 inches 14kgs @110 =kshs. 1,540
- 2 1/2 inches 8kgs @110 =kshs. 880
- roofing nails 17kgs @180 =kshs. 3,060
(f). 6 pcs Windows @ 3,000 =kshs.18,000
(g).3 pcs doors @ 3000= kshs. 9000
(h).20 pcs ventilation@ 30 =kshs.600
(i). sisal 180 pcs @50 =kshs. 9,000
Labour
Duration = 1 month
-2 fundis @ 400 per day per person =kshs 24000 X 2=kshs.48,000
-2 artisans@ 200 per day per person =kshs. 6,000 X 2=kshs. 12,000
Transportation
1. 5 lorries sand @1000 =kshs.5000
2. 2 lorries balast@ 15000=kshs. 3000
3. Hardware materials =kshs. 5000

3. TREE NURSERY
(A). Mesh wire 3 rolls @2000 =kshs.6000
(b). posts 15 pcs @150=Kshs. 2,250
(c).U-Nails 2 kgs @ 140= kshs.280

We hope that God will help us to meet all these requirements. God Bless you.

From
James- group co-ordinator
Josphat- group secretary

Hello friends, Mary the money you sent us for the tank, the group members decided to put in the group account since tank price was too high so the money is there in the account and it was 16,000kshs.
the proponsal we sent you was short term project, we sent Joaan proposal for the long term project, let all of us God and ask him help, since we can not do things without his presence.
Mary you told Grace that you wanted to send her something , she came today and used our computer at the iv, you can her anything you want and i will help you to get her, please do not send and thing through post office since am not the one having keys it was taken away from me.
friends i will not let you down, i will not allow money to change me in my life, remember in my group we do things straight and we do not allow any corruption activities.
my group think of you people all day.
Friends please do up to where you can and where you can not help let us ask God do his will.
peace be with you and may God bless as you to make Barut better place.hoping to hear from you .
James.

Hi!
We went to the Ndalat Hills yesterday with Sally, and we got to see the Orphans’ Garden, which needs insecticide (which we bought). We got to share a bite of ugali and secuma wiki with Sally’s brother and parents, and then we went for a walk to the dam, where the water is piped down to the orphan’s field. I started to have some trouble breathing, so we had to cut the visit short, unfortunately. But this ol’ ticker doesn’t like the thin air, and I’m sure it’s well over 7,000 ft. there, since it’s 6,880 ft. in Eldoret. I asked Johnny to sort of hurry, but just then, the sky opened up and rained and hailed so that we could hardly see the road. I was fine as long as I just sat there and didn’t talk, so that’s what I did, to everyone’s delight.

We drove to Nakuru again, but took the “new” road, which, of course, isn’t finished yet. So we had several dozen miles of dust, diesel, holes, and mud to impress Ian with. He’ll believe us when we tell him that the roads are sometimes quite daunting. Actually, we all got the giggles when it was so bad we couldn’t see the truck in front of us! We’re back at the Rift Valley Sports Club.

Johnny actually bought some of the hand painted cards we love to give away. I know he loves me if he’s willing to deal with the street boys!

Sept. 19 Nakuru,

We’ve been in Nakuru for a couple of days now, revisiting Hopewell and having several Rotary meetings. Johnny had another meeting this morning, and it looks like the money will be released to the Ngala School for the Deaf so they can buy the wood to build the shelves for the library. They were in the book shop yesterday buying lots of reference books; I ordered a complete set of Harry Potter for them.

We’re leaving for Nairobi this morning, where we’ll drop off the 79 pairs of shoes at the Kibera Kid Center. Then we’ll do a little touristing, so Ian will get to kiss the giraffes. More soon.
Darleen

Letting everyone know to get their running shoes on. Soar-Kenya will be hosting a 9k run on Oct. 17th at Lodi,Wi. This should be fun–More details to follow!!

I can hardly believe its been 3 years since Soar-Kenya began. It is time for the annual banquet again!!! It is always a fun filled day. This year we will be hosting the event at the Legion Hall in Waunakee. The Legion has generously donated their facility and a bartender to us . Please schedule in Nov. 1st on your busy schedules. That is the first Sunday in Nov. Thankyou