Twiga Rules Cricket

A cricket set was delivered to Twiga last weekend and the boys fell on it like a swarm of locusts, despite the fact that they had never seen the game before.

The basic rules were explained ... and ignored to a large extent and a new set of rules were made up as the "game" progressed.

• Firstly, there are as many bowlers as there are balls (in this case, three). The bowler who gets the batsman out becomes the batsman. 
• There are only two ways to get out, bowling or catching. If the batsman is caught out, the catcher becomes the batsman.
• Although there me be three bowlers, rarely are all three balls bowled at the same time, although this sometimes happens.
• The game ends when all three balls are lost down the pit latrine (which is out of bounds to all children) or a heavy downpour stops play.

That just about covers it. More rules will be added as necessary and when new balls have been acquired.

Surprisingly (or perhaps not) one of the best batsmen is Simon, our deaf child. His hand-eye coordination is very good and he can hit a ball as good as any of the older boys.

When the boys gave up and retreated to a game of Connect Four, the girls had a go and they weren't bad either.

So it was not exactly what you would expect to see at Lords, or even on the village green, but the kids had a lot of fun, which is all that matters.

More Donations

I have today collected a load of clothes to fit a 12-13 year-old boy and also a bag of young teenage girls clothes. On top of this we have received a bag full of Bratz dolls and accessories.

Thanks a lot Linda. They will be very much appreciated.

Update on: 3 year-old seriously ill

The youngest child at Twiga, who is HIV+ was diagnosed with malaria. This combination could have been fatal but we managed to find the hospital fees and she is now now responding to treatment.

Meet Simon ...

Twiga Kids Relax ...

A Day in the Life ...

of some Twiga Children

3 year-old seriously ill

Twiga Children's Centre

We have a 3 year-old, HIV+ child on our register. We have just received a report from Kenya that the child is seriously ill and needs medical attention.

This is a preliminary report and we are awaiting further details.

No treatment can be administered until we have the money to pay for it. Presently, we do not have any funds available.

If there is some kind person out there who would like to help this child by helping to pay for her treatment, please contact us.

More details will be posted as soon as we have them.

Let's Make It Clear ...

In our last post, we made an appeal for a girl, Esther, who is stuck miles from her homeland after being abused by her employer.

Now, there seems to be some confusion about the meaning of the word abused.

Let me make it clear. I am English and I write in GB English. The word abuse means "maltreatment: cruel or inhumane treatment". This could mean sexual abuse but not exclusively so. There are many types of abuse, sexual, physical, mental ...

I used the word abuse to mean mistreatment. The girl in question had been beaten by her employer and no mention has been made about her having been sexually abused. If she had and I wanted to publish the fact, I would have said that "she had been sexually abused by her employer". Obviously, if she had been sexually abused, I would not have published her name and photograph, any more than I would if the child were HIV positive.

Apparently, abuse has a different meaning in Kenya. This is not surprising. Lots of "English" words take on a new meaning in other English-speaking countries. We often say that the UK and USA are two countries divided by a common language.

So, repeat after me: when reading a blog, or news article, one should remember that it may not have been written in your country, in your version of the language. And you should not jump to conclusions.

Abused Kisii Girl Needs Urgent Sponsorship

We have today been informed that if Esther (13), a Gusii girl who is lodged at an orphanage in Kajiado is not taken in by Twiga Children's Centre very soon, she will be taken back to her parents.

This is not good news. Esther's parents sent her out to work as a house girl, where she suffered beatings and other cruelty in the hands of her employer. This will happen again if we do not offer Esther accommodation.

We need a sponsor who can help this girl to lead a normal life, attend school and regain the right to be a child.

3,000 Kenyan shillings (about UK£26.00 or US$40.00) a month will ensure that Esther is placed with a caring family, is fed, clothed and attends school.

Please, is there someone who will help us to rescue this girl from a life of abuse by donating 3,000/- a month?

You can donate through PayPal, or you can contact Vincent at the Twiga Centre in Kisii.

Previous Post:

Twiga Children's Centre has been contacted by an orphanage in Kajiado, asking if we can take one of their children, a girl called Esther.

Esther (13) was transferred to the Kajiado Children's Home from another orphanage, but she is of the Gusii tribe and there is no one in Kajiado who speaks the Abagusii language, and she does not speak the Maasai language. Naturally, Esther is very unhappy and wants to return to her traditional homeland of Kisii.

We would be happy to help and to make this child happy, but we really are stretched financially.

If anyone reading this can help by sponsoring Esther so that she can return to her people, please do not hesitate to contact us at Twiga Children's Centre through our website.

The Hut has a New Stoop

As well as acquiring a new well, the hut has been given a new stoop. It is too small to be called a patio. It is just the area under the roof overhang that has been concreted and painted. But it makes a big difference.

This area is much used when the kids get too hot, or when a shower passes over, this is where they take refuge.

The goats quite like it as well!

Water!

When I was last at the Twiga Centre in Kisii, Vincent proudly showed me a big hole in the ground that he proudly announced would be our borehole.

Well, apart from it looking like a well rather than a borehole, it was very deep - and very dry!

But I was informed this week that it now has water in it - and that it has cost KCIS KSh 6,000.

Ah! I didn't know we were paying for it and I haven't budgeted for it.

And there will be added expense in sealing off the top to prevent the water from being contaminated by things (leaves, small animals, children) falling into it. Then there is the expense of installing a pump, either manual or motorised. Presently, there is a bucket on a length of rope.

So, the Twiga Centre has its own water supply, or it will have when someone gives us the funds to pay the well-digger.

A Gusii in Maasailand

Twiga Children's Centre has been contacted by an orphanage in Kajiado, asking if we can take one of their children, a girl called Esther.

Esther (13) was transferred to the Kajiado Children's Home from another orphanage, but she is of the Gusii tribe and there is no one in Kajiado who speaks the Abagusii language, and she does not speak the Maasai language. Naturally, Esther is very unhappy and wants to return to her traditional homeland of Kisii.

We would be happy to help and to make this child happy, but we really are stretched financially.

If anyone reading this can help by sponsoring Esther so that she can return to her people, please do not hesitate to contact us at Twiga Children's Centre through our website.

Stand tall and help a child today

No man stands so tall as when he stoops to help a child. -Abraham Lincoln

• All these children have lost one or both parents, or have been abandoned.
• All these children need the support of Twiga Children's Centre for something - food, clothing, school fees, uniform or books

Aloys & Nyachuba - living alone

Edwin & Dennis - living alone

Eric, Nelson & Henry - living with sick mother

Risper, Brian and Elvin - living with mother

Befone, Cliff and Samwel - living with grandparents

Morfat, Boniface and Shaida - living with sick mother 

Lilian and Vincent - living with grandparents

Dominic, Mary, Osando, Getembe and Kemuma - living with grandparents

Nyang'au and Edwin - living with mother 

Josephat - living at Twiga CC

Benta - living at Twiga CC

Divina - living with mother

Brian - living with mother

Dorothy - living with mother

Davis & Vanessa - living with mother

Target for 2010

Amongst our children, there are a few who live alone with no adult supervision. They muddle along, with help from us, but they are not leading the lives of children.

They have to cook, clean, grow food, wash clothes, collect water as well as go to school and do their homework. It isn't the life a child should lead. Children need to play. They need to be children.

So, for these few, we have planned to build a residential home on our Twiga Children's Centre site. We already have one hut, which will serve as the dining/study area, kitchen/office and matron's room (we intend to have someone on site 24 hours).

So we need to build two more small huts, each containing 4 sets of bunks. We will use traditional materials to keep the cost down, so we need to buy cement for the floor, poles for the support walls, sheet steel for the roof and windows and doors.

We are in the process of getting quantity and cost estimates and when they are set, we will be launching an appeal.

These kids need a home where they feel secure, where they feel looked after, where they can get on with being a child, rather than a small adult.

So, look out for the appeal. We have set up a PayPal account and will soon have Mpesa to make life easier for our benefactors.

If a lot of people give just a few bob, it will soon mount up and you will know that you are helping to look after up to 16 orphans and homeless children.

That is worth a few shillings to you, isn't it?

Dare We Hope?

We have just received an enquiry regarding our plans to build a small residential unit at the Twiga Children's Centre, something that has always been on the "To-Do" list, but which has never had the funding.

As we had a change of direction regarding residential care of our children, we now need a lot fewer places than originally envisaged. We are going to offer support to family units where there is a capable adult, rather than just take the children into care automatically. But we still have six children who are either total orphans or totally abandoned by parents. These need residential care that, at present, we cannot offer.

So, last night, I was re-drawing building plans, and sending out requests for costings of materials. I have never constructed a building in my life, not even a garden shed, so I am bound to have forgotten stuff - like window frames and doors, pretty fundamental really!

Luckily, Vincent, the other director has build things in Kenya and is well used to traditional building methods, so I passed my initial workings-out to him.

We are planning on two "huts", each with 4 sets of bunks. The existing hut is split into three rooms, which will become the kitchen, matron's quarters and dining/study area. I have designed in a shower block, but we will need to build toilets. We have already started a deep-pit latrine, so we are wll on the way.

Using traditional building materials should cut costs considerably, but we want concrete floors and corrugated sheet roofing.

Of course, we will need to buy the bunks, a unit for each child to keep clothes and personal belongings, as well as furniture for the matron's quarters.

Then there are the running costs, food, wages for the adult supervisor (or matron), electricity (dare we?), clothing, books, etc.

But I will worry about these costs once the huts have been built. Let's cross one bridge at the time!

Newbury Freegle - Thank You from Twiga

I was not disappointed when I arrived at Twiga with toys and games for the children! I will be thanking people personally when I can get the details back (my laptop died in Kenya), but in the meantime, the children have asked me to say a big thank you to everyone who donated toys, games and clothes.

In particular, we were given a giant snakes and ladders and a junior twister game, both of which were big hits with the whole age-range (3 to 16).

Several of the boys also asked to be taught chess. Many are already accomplished draughts players but as we had been given a set with both games, they wanted to try the game they knew nothing about.

I have to confess that, other than the movement of the pieces, I do not know a lot more than they do. I had to explain that it was a game of strategy, then left them to it. It kept them occupied for hours, with potential players staring over the shoulders of those actually involved in a match.

Toy cars and Barbies were distributed to the younger children. One little girl braided and re-braided the hair on a Barbie, each time running around showing everyone the "new" hairstyle - another hit!

So, all in all, Christmas came early at Twiga. Clothes were given to those most in need and money donated went towards the swing and food.

Oh, and we were also given some vegetable seed. The children were introduced to seed sowing on my last visit, so they attacked the chore with enthusiasm. Before I left, there were peas and bean plants up to 2" tall growing on the Twiga plot.

We also handed out seed to the children who had a plot at their home. I visited them just before I left and saw the loving care these children have put into sowing their seed.

So, this trip was another success. I left a lot of very happy children, which, if you saw the living conditions of some of them, you would wonder just how they survive!

Of course, they survive due to the untiring work of the Twiga volunteers, and Vincent and his wife, Abigael.

Swing Low, Swing High

I had thought it a good idea to put up some sort of swing - after all the Twiga Centre is surrounded by trees. A simple rope with a tyre on the end would be simple enough ...

But we don't do simple at Twiga. Vincent's dad, although a farmer, is also an accomplished woodworker, and what he can do with a piece of wood and a panga (machete) is a wonder to see.

He had cleaned of a tree trunk for an upright, another for the crossbar, and shaped the joints using just his panga. He also made the seat from a plank of wood he just happened to have lying around.

All we needed to buy was the rope!


And the kids? We can't keep them off it, although I am happy to say that there have been no arguements as to whose turn it is. They are too good-natured.


So we say a big thank you to Vincent's father, who is always there to help when needed.

When Little Faces Light Up

Without wanting to wish my life away, I am really looking forward to Saturday, when I will be at the Twiga Centre with a majority, if not all the kids on the register.

On my first visit, I took toothbrushes and pencils (with a rubber on the end) for the children, and their were smiles from all of them, so what will the reaction be, especially of the younger ones, when they see cars, dolls and games for them to play with.

There will also be a selection of clothes for the most needy.

But it is the little ones I want to see when they see the toys. Many will not even know what a toy is - they have never had anything other than sticks to play with.

While I am there, and if I can find a suitable tree, we will be putting up a tyre on a rope to swing on, and I think we can also make a see-saw, if the plank I saw last time is still on the plot.

Yes, it may be a bit early for Christmas, but I won't be hearing any complaints, I am certain of that!

Generous People Will Make It Christmas At Twiga

Since the beginning of 2008, I have been collecting old cell phones for sale in Kenya. Last year, this effort raised enough to buy all our kids a new pair of leather schools shoes!

I have continued to collect cell phones, but they are becoming rarer. So I put out a plea for toys and games, as we approach Christmas - and my departure for Kenya.

Orphaned kids in Kenya don't do Christmas. They go to church, but other than that, Christmas Day is just another day to survive.

Anyway, I just want to say a big thank you to Sophie, 10 years old, who lives in Newbury. She has given up her complete collection of Barbie dolls, 15 of them! Her little brothers gave 4 or 5 cars and a few other bits and bobs.

Anne, also from Newbury, gave us a load of cuddly toys, and some games, such as chess, draughts and card games and a junior Who Wants To Be A Millionaire.

Mia, a South African, also from Newbury gave us some games and some seed for our vegetable plot.

Our kids at Twiga are going to have one very good Christmas, even if it will be a little early - I will be back in the UK for the day.

But we still need money to feed them (and to build the much needed children's home), so if anyone is feeling generous, or wants to do some fund-raising, please feel free. Donations can be made with the PayPal button in the right margin.

Also posted on Baba Mzungu's blog

On the BBC - again

I have been asked to "appear" as a guest on Sarah Walker's afternoon programme on BBC Radio Berkshire to talk about Kenya and what I am trying to do there.

Sarah has a slot which her version of Desert Island Disks. But on the dates she proposed, I will actually be in Kenya. So we have fixed the date as the first weekday after my return to the UK - 14th December.

At least everything will be fresh in my mind, although, judging from previous returns from Kenya, everything will still be a jumble in my head - no change there then!

Oh well, at least I will be able to promote KCIS and the Twiga Children's Centre, and all publicity is good publicity, as they say, although I have my reservations about that.