Monday, August 27, 2012


Today I stopped by the children’s ward at the district hospital. We went in just to greet the patients and their parents. I learned that the back room where Willy used to stay is what they call the malnutrition room. All of the children in the room are suffering from severe malnutrition. Many of them have additional illnesses, but the prime cause of them being in such bad shape is simply because they aren’t getting enough food or proper nutrition.   There were so many children in that room with great needs, but the one that caught my attention the most was Caleb. 

Caleb is three years old. He lives in an area that is about 30 minutes outside of Kitale. I didn’t have much time to talk to them today, but it is clear that this family is truly struggling. His mother looks malnourished herself and Caleb is in bad shape. On top of being extremely underweight he also has painful sores in his mouth. His mother told me that he can’t sit, hold his head up or walk and his arms and legs are both very stiff. So on top of everything else he probably has cerebral palsy as well. We are going to bring Caleb some Plumpy Nut to help jumpstart his diet and help him get to a healthy weight. Since he is at the district hospital, the physical therapists come by and give him therapy. Please keep Caleb, his mother, and the rest of the kids at district hospital in your prayers. 

Saturday, August 25, 2012


We had a nice relaxing Saturday at the house this morning. It’s been pretty cold and rainy, but today the weather was nice, sunny and warm. We brought all the kids outside and they played in the backyard all morning. 

As I sat and watched them play, I realized that these kids truly are like one big family. Sammy and Willy were outside first and we brought the others out one at a time. Each time Sammy saw another kid come outside the door he started cheering their name and Lavender joined in as soon as she came out. Willy and Sammy will both help Lavender drive her car around the backyard where she can see because she can’t walk by herself. Sammy and Lavender, without needing any prompting, make a point of interacting with the other kids even though they are nonverbal and often don’t give back much of a response. It’s just great to see them all coming together to help and involve the other kids who may not be able to do the same things that they can. I just love all these little ones and how they are already so ready and willing to accept the other kids as they are. 

Dan in his chair. With physical therapy he can now sit
well on his own and even is getting used to putting
his feet down on the floor.

Sam kicking his soccer ball around the backyard.

Cyril

Lavender holding hands with Isaac.

Sam making Isaac laugh by making funny faces at him.

More holding hands!

Sam and Willy rolling the tire around the backyard.



Sleepy Dan.




We took Willy and Dan to Eldoret this week to get some medical tests done. When we got back we went to the doctor and he prescribed some new medicine for them so that hopefully they can get to a place where their seizures are more under control. 

Dan had a bad day last week where he had 12 seizures in one day. Since he started the medicine last Sunday he hasn’t had a single one so we are praying that the medicine continues to work and that Dan continues to make improvements. 

Willy has had a bit of a rough week. After two weeks of no seizures we had a week where he had two to three everyday. Now it has been two days since his last seizure, so we are hoping that his medicine is starting to work as it should and help the the seizures under control. 

Wednesday, August 22, 2012


Willy is still doing great. He’s still been having seizures, but they are getting less frequent than they were when he was at the hospital. He's making big improvements already and we are hoping and praying that we can get the seizures under control.

He’s had a week full of new experiences. We took him into town to buy him a new pair of shoes, probably the first pair he’s ever had. It took him about an hour to get used to wearing them, but now he loves putting them on and running all over the backyard. 


So happy to leave the store in his new shoes.

We also took him to get his teeth cleaned. He is such a tough little guy and was even smiling through parts of the cleaning. Today we took him to the hospital to get a check up and get his medication refilled. 
In the dentist chair.

Showing off his clean teeth.

The more time we spend with him the more we realize just how tough of a situation he must have lived in even before he was abandoned at the hospital. We don’t really know much about his life before the hospital. His discharge papers say that he came from Endebes, which is a village is that about an hour outside of town. 
Love this little guy.

Willy is not only adjusting to living at the house, but he is so curious and learning to experience the world. Willy can talk, but he mostly just comments on the things he sees. Many common everyday objects, like money and shoes, he is unable to identify. He started out eating more than his fill at every meal because he is so used to not knowing when his next meal will be. He is so used to being neglected that he often seeks any type of attention he can get, even if its being scolded. Willy is learning how to play with others, adjusting to being able to just be a kid and most of all learning what love is. No matter how many times I see it, my heart will always break for children like Willy, who were born with a disability and simply because of that are subjected to things that no child should have to deal with. Please continue to pray for Willy as he continues to thrive and live the kind of life that he deserves. Also please keep other children in Willy’s position in your prayers and that God will place them in our path. 

Friday, August 10, 2012


Sarah and Mary are already winding down their trip even though it feels like they just got here. We are sad to see them go, but have had fun with them around and know they will be back. We had some kids from Shimo come over to the house for lunch today. It was fun having them all over and great for the kids to spend some time with their peers. Lots of food, laughs and fun!



Lunchtime!

Lucy with her lunch.

Brino

Lucy and Mercy

Passing out lunch.



Sweet Peter loves playing with Sammy.

Lavender and Newton eating their chipati and have a great time.

John.

Emily

Making more plates as more kids trickled in. 

Chris

Peter and Brino climbing trees.

Augustus and Sarah

Trying to make Willy stand still long enough for a photo.

Mary and John

Mary and Augustus

Sarah with Augustus, Ester and Jennifer.

Ester

Willy playing cars with John

Wednesday, August 8, 2012


Willy is doing great! We are amazed that he still hasn’t had any seizures since he moved to the house. He is just so happy to be able to play with the other kids and is a good little eater. We are so glad to have this little bundle of joy around the house!
Just chatting away with Lavender.

Playing cars with Sammy.



I’ve written a lot about Mary recently. I’ve been helping her family for almost a year now. Last year we started them with a little business to help their family get on their feet and be able to pay their rent, send their other children to school and feed their family. This family has never been anything, but grateful. They tell us their problems without expectation of anything. 
Saying hi to Mary outside of their home.

Sweet Mary

Last year when we met Mary’s father, Samuel, he showed us a lump on his side. He said that it made it difficult for him to work all day and that having vegetables to sell around their neighborhood was the perfect job for him. Now the lump has gotten bigger and  more painful. It is keeping him from being able to eat and he looks very skinny and sick. This Friday he will be getting an operation to remove the lump. Please keep him in your prayers and pray for a quick recovery. 



It’s been a great week here in Kitale and God has blessed us by putting even more children with disabilities in our path. 

We met Siri, who lives in a part of town called Namanjalala. She has severe epillepsy, but her family struggles to make enough money to provide for her medicine on top of her other needs. Siri lives with her mother and grandmother. She is a sweet little girl, whose family just needs a little extra support to be able to fully meet her needs. 

We also met Prudence. I was given her dad’s phone number by another group of missionaries in town. She is just the happiest little girl I have ever seen. She had severe meningitis when she was five months old and it left her with some permanent disabilities. She is unable to talk and the left side of her body is paralyzed. Her family is so supportive of her and does everything that they can to provide the best possible care for her. She has a wheelchair,  a sitting aide and a standing aide in her home. It was such a blessing to meet a family so is so supportive of their child. 
Such a happy little girl.

She loved shaking hands with everyone.

We were on our way back from visiting Mary in Shimo. On the same path that we always take, past the same house and I saw a little boy named Kevin. We talked briefly to his mother, but didn’t want to jump right in to asking medical questions until we had more of a relationship with her. She said that he was walking, but I have only just seen him sitting down on the ground. I am looking forward to visiting Kevin more and developing a relationship with his mother. 
Meeting Kevin for the first time.

Kevin!
A few weeks ago we arranged a meeting with the Chief of Kiminini. It is an area that is located just outside of town where Isaac came from. We got to meet some of the children with disabilities that are living in that area. 

First we met Emmanuel, a sweet ten year old boy. He has epilepsy, but his family is able to provide him with the medication that he needs. He is able to walk on his own, but tires very quickly. He also can talk, but he is very shy and doesn’t like talking around strangers. 

Next we met Elemina. When she was two years old her father was walking around their home during the rainy season. He lost his footing and fell while he was carrying her. After that she was left with spine and possibly brain injuries. She was a typically developing child and now she can’t hold up her head or sit or talk. 

Then we met Dennis he is nine years old and was delayed at reaching his milestones as a child. He walked at 2 years old and attended preschool for two years. He was unable to keep up with the other students so his students took him out. He is able to talk, but has difficulty recalling what he has said or what he has been told. 

Then we met Jasper who is also nine years old and suffers from epilepsy. His seizures last for about five minutes and it takes him a while to recover. His father told us that the doctors told him that Jasper doesn’t need to take medicine regularly only when his seizures start up. He was in school, but his father told us that he doesn’t play well with other students and was often aggressive so they took him out of school. He was a little nervous of coming into the office because he thought he was at a doctor’s office going to get an injection.

After we got to meet Steven. He is twelve years old. We talked to his mother and she told us that suddenly one day when he was seven, he stopped talking. He is independent and can do everything else on his own. He went to school until he was six years old, but now he just stays home. 

After that we met Michael. He is a spunky little six year old boy with a lot of energy. He is currently attending preschool at a local public school. When he was younger it took him longer than typical children to reach his milestones. His mother told us that he is constantly getting sick with malaria and typhoid and any other illness you can imagine. When he comes down with an illness it takes him longer than most children to recover. However, he is such a happy little guy. 

We decided to visit this chief in particular because we know that he has a heart for children with disabilities. We had the opportunity to meet Miriam, the chief daughter, who has cerebral palsy and epilepsy. She is thirteen years old and attends a school called St. Teresa’s that caters to the specific needs of children with disabilities. The skills that they teach are pre-number skills, perceptual training, communication skills, adaptive PE, music and movement, daily living activities, social training and environmental knowledge. 

We are planning on returning to Kiminini to visit the home of every child we met and see how they live. Then we can make a decision on exactly how we can help each child.