Sunday, September 20, 2009

FHC in Kuresoi, part II - "We need help to get started again."

Against the historical background of violence and bloodshed in Kuresoi, Family Hope Charity is teaming up with two local community based organizations to initiate and implement three projects that will attempt to rebuild and/or establish long lasting and constructive relationships among the three ethnic groups of Kuresoi, the Kikuyu, Kalenjin and Kisii. These three projects are:
1) A ‘daily savings group’ that will help Kuresoi residents to begin to accumulate a little initial
financial capital and begin to rebuild their businesses and homes.

2) A construction and life skills training program targeting the youth of Kuresoi, who because of
protracted unemployment and idleness, were the principal perpetrators of the post election
violence of 2008.

3) An ‘early warning system’ run by the youth of Kuresoi which is a community network of
observers trained in recognizing the signs of potential conflict and trouble within the villages,
mediate disputes between the various ethnic communities, and even engage in some
reconciliation and healing exercises.
The key dimension of any program that Family Hope Charity sponsors and implements in Kuresoi is that both the participants and beneficiaries will be members of all three local ethnic communities - and, that all members of each group will be treated as equal partners and given the respect and fair treatment they deserve.

Over 40,000 homes were destroyed during the post-election violence. As mentiioned before, the hillsides of Kuresoi are completely empty of houses these days. Pictured above is a delivery of building materials made available by the Danish Refugee Commission and the UNHCR for the residents of Kuresoi. The materials are supposed to be used to construct temporary housing until people can afford once again to build a more substantial home. Family Hope Charity and our partner community based organizations want to be key players in rebuilding the homes of all the people and families of Kuresoi whose lives were shattered by the senseless violence of January-March 2008.

Pictured above are some children from the local “IDP” camp in Kuresoi—who because of the selfish interests of Kenya’s politicians, have become destitute, hopeless and despairing refugees in their own country. A local chief told me in a meeting I attended that he and most of his neighbors and friends—whether they are Kikuyu, Kalenjin or Kisii---believe that if the government and other outsiders simply leave them alone they will be able stay in peace with one another. The chief also stated that he and the others from Kuresoi are not looking for charity. “We need help to get started again. Then we can resume taking care of ourselves like we have always done in the past.”

1 comment:

  1. Thanks be to God! My name is Ann. I have been seriously looking for You Tom . I am the Lady who was doing bookbinding in Depaul library. I no longer doit now . someone else was given my work and so I no longer go there and I never wanted to find you from there.. I have been trying to find where you are though my own means but thanks be to God because today I found your contact after scroling through the computer for more than three hours . I t is a Miracle Tom. May God bless bless you for the good work you are doing in Kenya. Glory be to God who has kept you responding to his call even after you left de Paul. I am egerly waiting to hear from you My email contact is gathingira@yahoo .com. Ann.

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