Shining Hope for Communities Shortlisted for Echoing Green Fellowship!

Great news!

Shining Hope for Communities has just been shortlisted as a semi-finalist for an Echoing Green Fellowship, a prestigious award given to innovative new social change organizations that gives $90K over a two-year

We've still got two rounds to go... so wish us luck!

Bio-Center Making Rapid Progress!

Recognizing the need for adequate sanitation facilities for the school and community at large, the Kibera School has started building a bio-center.* This facility will house two showers and four sanitary toilets, two for the school and two for the community. The waste collected will produce methane gas, which the school will use to cook the girls’ lunch each day.

After a difficult month of excavation, construction finally began. Digging more then a few feet down in Kibera requires breaking though huge rocks, so the team had to work tirelessly to create a ten-foot deep hole. Last week we started building the first part of the structure—the underground dome that will collect the waste. We are a few days away from finishing the dome, and then it’s on to building the outside walls. All of the stone for the walls came from the excavation process, reducing the environmental impact of the project. A local engineering group in Kibera is providing technical assistance, and one of the parents is helping to build the dome. Our team is working hard, and now that the excavation is over, the building is going up rapidly, and should open at the end of January!! This will provide the people of Kibera with never-before sanitary toilets and hand washing stations!

* The government provides no waste disposal infrastructure in Kibera, and informal latrines are scarce, with one for every 50 to 100 residents.

Video!

Dear Friends,

Please view the video below. If it inspires you, please share it with others. You can view it here, via our website www.hopetoshine.org or via youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yv6Yrna0Fdo

Community Health

This week we were thrilled to welcome Australian nurse Vanessa Wynn-Jones, who arrived at the school to establish health records and lead HIV/AIDS workshops. Vanessa joined us after spending a week in eastern Kenya, where she worked in rural clinic treating the Massai people.

On Wednesday and Thursday, Vanessa led HIV/AIDS workshops for the Kibera community, first for men and then for women. Vanessa’s first forty minute workshop turned into a three hour discussion on the risks and effects associated with HIV/AIDS. Men from the community would not stop asking questions, eager to have access to her medical expertise. The women also showered Vanessa with questions, not only about HIV, but about other struggles they face in Kibera, such as depression and domestic violence. More than just informational talks, her workshops gave Kibera residents a safe space where they could share their health concerns with one another.

Friday marked the first day of health exams for the KSFG’s students. Vanessa met individually with the girls and their parents to establish medical records for and examine each student. She counseled parents on nutrition and sanitation, offered HIV tests, and referred students in need to medical specialists. These records are an important step in our continued efforts to care for our girls’ health needs, as well as their education.

Though only here for a week, Vanessa plans to return and will be heavily involved in the development of the school’s clinic, which is currently in the early planning stages. We have had such a great time with Vanessa this week, and we cannot overstate our appreciation for her dedication and expertise. Her work is truly a testament to the impact an individual can have on a community, even in six short days.

Wonderful Volunteers!

Everything is moving along wonderfully at the school! Children are busy and loving learning, parents are becoming increasingly involved, and many exciting projects are developing.

This week I'd like to take a moment and reflect on the wonderful volunteers who have so generously shared their time enriching the lives of our students!

This past week Maggie Broadwater worked at the school each day. With her BS in Biochemistry and MS in Biomedical sciences Maggies was the first female scientist our students have ever met. Maggie served as a positive female role model and as an example of the life possibilities that come with an education. She spent the week teaching even our littlest students about the scientific method. The students loved her hands on examples and learned a lot. This week all of our girls say that they want to be scientists when they grow up!

On Wednesday Matt Podolin and Kate O'Reilley-Jones arrived in Kenya. These two '09 Wesleyan graduates will be helping at the school until March, filling in wherever needed and taking on projects of their own to expand the effectiveness of the school and its associated community programs. Sammy McGowan, a student at Brown University, has been working hard this entire semester. He is researching health issues in Kibera so that when our health center opens it will effectively cater to the needs of the community. Rebecca Green, a student at Hamilton College is working to start an after school program for our kindergarten and fist grade students. She will work with youth in the community who will run the program, focusing on the arts, reading, and math.

Through our talented volunteers our students hear and practice English, receive additional individualized attention, and get exposed to new skills and resources!

Below: Sammy McGowan and teacher Madahana Mable.

below: Maggie Broadwater

Read this Article

Sometimes there are things like this article, which remind me how incredibly important our work is: http://www.nation.co.ke/News/-/1056/671974/-/unyogd/-/index.html

Update

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Today I got a heartening phone call from the school. The teachers exclaimed to me that is just one month of experiencing our incredible curriculum our students are a full year ahead of their peers in traditional Kenyan schools. In just one month so much has happened.

45 little girls run to school, eager for 7:30 to come around and the day to begin. School itself is "magic," as four-year-old Lillian Achieng told me. As Lillian said, "at school life is fun." The children learn through exploration, undertaking science experiments in the garden's soil and writing stories about their own lives. In only one month all of our students can identify colors and shapes in English, and write their own names. Many are beginning to speak English instead of Swahili, preparing them for a life outside of the slum.

Each day our children also eat a healthy meal of maize and beans. This is their only meal that they can count on eating each day. It costs a mere $00.20 per child, per day. Imagine if everyone reading this blog spent $00.20 less on food a day... we could fund our feeding program for a year. Indeed, our feeding program costs a mere $175.00 per month. Along with this program we are teaching our students about nutrition and sustainable agriculture. Because of this food our students can focus in class. Because of this food our HIV positive students can take their medication. Integrating nutrition education into our curriculum is a cornerstone of our philosophy. Now that we are back in the US we are working tirelessly to secure funding for the continuation of this program. Anything, even $00.20, makes a difference. This fact continues to amaze me as I think about how much we spend on food here in America. Making a difference in the lives of our children is so very easy.

We now get very detailed weekly reports from the school and are therefore able to keep up with the amazing progress. The sustainable garden is coming along (see the photo above.) The biodigester will be breaking ground next week. There are four parents interested in learning about this green technology. The engineers will be teaching them, engaging them in this process. The biodigester will provide jobs for the community while it is being constructed, and will put the Kibera School for Girls at the forefront of educational programs based on sustainable education.