Last week I met Collins and Noel and this week I went back to pay them a visit and see where they live. Collins was as happy as ever with a huge grin constantly on his face. Noel was still quiet and shy, but she let me hold her and didn’t cry which was a victory for me. 

Collins and his sweet smile

Me and Noel

First we went to Noel’s house. We went inside and found that there was not much room for the family of five. 

Outside of Noel's house 

Inside of Noel's house

We asked Noel’s mother, Ndiema, to tell us a little bit more about her family. She told us that they used to live in Mount Elgon and fled during the post election violence. Their family has been struggling to make ends meet ever since then. Noel’s father traveled to Sudan about three months ago to try to find work and never came back. He called Ndiema to tell her that the group he was traveling with had been attacked and she hasn’t seen or heard from him since. So this poor mama has to provide for Noel and her two other children on their own. She works on farms near where she lives doing hard manual labor for less than a dollar a day. While Ndiema goes to work Noel’s 10 year old sister is responsible for caring for her. This family is really struggling to make ends meet. 

Then we went to Collin’s house. The place was clean, but very bare. Collin’s father, Andrew, drives people around on the back of his bicycle and his mother does work on farms with Ndiema. When compared to Noel’s family they are better off, but still in need of a lot of help. Despite this, the whole family is still so filled with joy. They just keep working and putting their children first. 

Me with the whole family

Both of these families have struggles to begin with, but then are met with the additional weight of having to care for children like Collins and Noel that need extra medical care, medicine, good meals and constant care. Pray for these families and the countless others with similar situations around Kitale.