Good evening everyone,
My name is Hilary Papo and I’m here representing the
Association Solidarity with Children of Kenya, which
supports the Furaha Orphans Centre in Kilifi, a poor rural
town about 1 hour north of Mombasa in Kenya.
Many of the children at the Furaha Childrens’ Centre have
been orphaned by AIDS. My daughter, who has been living in
Kenya for more than a year now doing research on AIDS,
learned of their needs and now helps the couple who have
taken in the orphans.
Esther & Joseph are very, very poor. Their biggest
dream was to be able to send all the children to school. We
are pleased to say that the funds that we have raised so
far have enabled them to buy the compulsory uniforms, shoes
and socks and school supplies, and to pay the inscription
and tuition fees, and 27 children started primary school in
September, a great achievement.
But there are others - over the past 5 months the funds
that we have raised have enabled Furaha to make other basic
but major improvements:
They have been able to have a healthier diet.
They now have a tap for drinking water and a bore hole to
provide water for washing.
They now have electricity, and so they have light after
dark to do their homework.
They have been able to buy bunk beds, mattresses, sheets
and mosquito nets.
A doctor has come to check all the children and provide
treatment against malaria attacks and worms.
And they have built a semi-permanent structure where the
children can take shelter from the sun and rain, to have
meals and do their homework.
A little money goes a very long way in Kilifi. For example:
1 Franc is the cost of medicine to eradicate worms
5 Francs is the cost of a doctor’s visit
10 Francs will pay for a school uniform or 1 term’s
schooling for 1 child
60 Francs will pay for 1 child’s inscription to start
school
100 Francs will pay for a 2-bedded bunk bed or food staples
for all the children for a month.
Through the commitment that The Geneva Literary Aid Society
made to our association to donate the proceeds of tonight’s
performance we were able to take another major step
forward.
The Orphans centre is applying for official orphanage
status, but there are a number of hurdles still to
overcome. One of them is the requirement for more space.
The adjacent plot of land came up for sale in March and we
put down a small down payment. However, as the months
passed, the owner decided to sell it to someone else. There
was great disappointment. As luck would have it the new
owner was prepared to move elsewhere and last week, in the
knowledge that some significant funds would come in after
tonight’s event, a contract was signed and the land was
bought with a payment schedule put in place. Esther and
Joseph are very excited at the prospect of being able to
expand the accommodation and improve the conditions for the
children.
If anyone is interested in any aspect of what we are doing,
if you would like to help us or become a member or if
anyone of you is going to the Mombasa area and would like
to visit, who knows, please do come up and speak to me
afterwards. We wish to sustain the Furaha Centre and
guarantee the children’s education into the future.
So I would like to give my thanks to Conor Lovett who will
be entertaining us this evening, to the GLAS sponsors, and
especial thanks to you Denis and the GLAS team:
•
firstly for all your hard work in organizing and bringing
English speaking performers to Geneva and enriching the
theatre scene here
•
and secondly I wish to thank you and congratulate you for
the wonderful work you do so discreetly and modestly in
donating the proceeds from these shows to deserving causes
and making a difference to peoples’ lives. And our
Association is very honoured to be the recipient tonight.
Thank you
Hilary Papo, President