Written by Ted Horton,LLB – Co-founder and Chairman of HHF
“Mama Hanna and I spent an enjoyable few hours over the weekend not only with some of our own family but also in the company of about 20+ members of our HHFL family. Some of them have been in our lives since 2005. It was a time to reflect and to celebrate. Each of their journeys is unique. What isn’t unique is that each of their lives has been irrevocably changed by the opportunity of a good education coupled with the love and attention that our Project has provided to so many over the years. There is no question that Kenyan life is still very hard for many of them, and we continue to challenge each of them to stay focused and committed to succeed using their skills and talents in the best and smartest ways possible.
Our alums who have established careers are wonderful role models for their younger brothers and sisters. With 56 kids still enrolled in the Project ( 25 in Secondary school, 5 Secondary graduates from the class of 2023 preparing for their post Secondary education and 26 who are enrolled in colleges and universities) there is still lots of work to do. Occasions like this reaffirm the special effects and rewards of our collective journey.”
On international women’s day that was on Friday of 8th March 2024, Jennifer invited us(HHFL’S project manager Lucy Njeri, HHFL Alumni including Mercy Kangwato, Alice Kangwato , Sharon Akinyi and Lydia Gachanja and I) to a special ladies’ diner. It was held at The Karen Country Club from 7pm till 11:30pm. Jennifer, the founder and CEO of Female Fusion Network, has been a friend and supporter of HHFL for close to twenty years, and we have lots of stories about our encounter with her. During the dinner, she engaged us in interactive and uplifting activities that made us get to know each other better and feel inspired. The networking allowed us to share different ideas relevant to our different career paths.
Through the networking on Friday night’s dinner, Jenifer took interest in my career path in Media and production. She then set up a meeting on Sunday evening same week where I was to meet one of her friends called Reim, who is a producer from Dubai.
On Sunday of 10th March, Lucy and Lydia escorted me to the meeting with Reim and her friends at Karen countryclub. The meeting started at 6:30pm to 7:30pm. I interacted with Reim & Deborah Owens and got to be inspired by their journeys in their career paths in production.
I got to understand more about hacks in Television production such as incorporating Artificial Intelligence in video editing, scripting and the entire production process. Reim and I also discussed on the possibility of me joining her media/production team at her TV station in Dubai. We exchanged contacts with Deborah and Reim to discuss further on that new possibility. I really enjoyed networking with Reim and Deborah whilst listening in through their career advice and general life advice.
Lucy and Lydia also networked with Reim’s friends and discussed relevant topics related to their career paths. It was a delightful night radiating women empowerment and I absolutely loved it.
Lydia invited Hanne and I to a “parental blessing” on Saturday afternoon at the home of Mama Margaret (her adoptive mother and our retired house mother/cook for 14 yrs at the Project).
Esther, Alice and Faith now all mums in their own right and Lydia’s project sisters joined in the celebration.
Lydia’s lady’s group the Diamond Divas (in uniform) celebrate these blessings at the homes of their respective parents and today it was Mama Margaret‘s turn to be honoured —prayers, speeches, presents for mama Margaret and us with some lively music and a catered lunch for 60.
The occasion was luckily almost completed before a torrential downpour. We laughed and reminisced with our girls on the way home. Priceless memories. Hugs all round
The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams. For me Agriculture has been more than a dream. It’s the one thing that has always given me a purpose to live for and stay positive about my future. Most of us struggle a lot before realizing what we really love to do. For me it began with a 75 square foot garden at HHFL where we planted one type of vegetable, spinach, with teacher Isaiah. I was so mesmerized watching the spinach grow and to realize that if you take care and water it, by the end of a month you will get your reward- a delicious yield.
When I joined high school and realized that there was a subject called Agriculture, I knew at that moment I must take it seriously and for sure I did. After high school my passion grew stronger and I decided to take a 3 year Diploma in Agricultural Science made possible by HHFL with the help of Baba Ted and Mama Hanne. Earlier this year in April I got an email from father Ted. He had secured an internship for me at Lewa Wilderness Farm for one month. He, Mama Hanne and I drove to Lewa. I was astonished to learn that I was on a farm where everything is grown organically. It would be a great learning opportunity for me. I think organic farms are still quite rare in Kenya, and I was sure that I was one of the very few first -year students in my course, actually I think the only one, who had an internship on an organic farm.
In August, with the help of both Mama Hanne, Baba Ted and the HHFL staff I was able to extend my internship from 3 to 5 months. It was truly worth it. I have learned lots of things and have been exposed to areas beyond agriculture that some of my fellow HHFL brothers and sisters have studied. Tourism was one of them. I have been trained on bird watching and got to learn about many types of birds. I have also had almost 25 outings with tourists staying at Lewa Wilderness from all over the world. I got to interact with them and explain what Lewa farming is about and how the organic gardens are managed.
I have also worked in the workshop sector where they make all kinds of furniture, windows, doors mostly from acacia trees. I have worked in animal and farm management, learned about tractors and machinery, fishing farming and greenhouse management.
The past five months that I have been at Lewa have been many of the best moments of my life.
Luckily this month I met one of the specialists in vineyards and wine processing. She owns an organic vineyard just near Lewa farm and had come to do some grape pruning at the farm and when I saw her, I remembered some words from Mama Hanne as we were driving to Lewa in April. She said “if opportunities don’t knock, build a door” and guess what. I went ahead and built the door and asked her if she would teach me about grape farming. She was very excited that I had the fire in my belly to learn. I am currently doing two weeks of training in the vineyard. It is so fascinating to learn how to plant, maintain, harvest and make wine from grapes. There’s also the wine tasting process where we get to taste the different types of wine: the red and white, Chenin Blanc, and Chardonnay. Tasting must be done before bottling to know if the wine is ready for the market. I have been here for three days and I already feel like Naboth, the man who owned a vineyard in the Bible.
I am grateful to both Baba Ted, Mama Hanne and the HHFL staff for enabling me to live this dream. I know that this wonderful experience will lead to a brighter future in Agriculture.
I hope my story will encourage my younger siblings at HHFL to have the same “fire in their belly” as Baba Ted has been telling us all along. My message to each of you: you must work hard and smart, and focus moving forward to build your own doors to opportunity; stay positive no matter what obstacles you may encounter along the way. Merry Christmas to all.
“They succeed because they know they can” are wise words by Virgil that have kept me going. I say that success is not what keeps me going but rather the steps that I take that draw me to success itself. I was privileged to join the great Moi University in August this year to study Computer Science! This was after the colourful grades I got last year when I graduated from high school, a mean of A-! Even though I had so badly wanted to come with a clean A, it was a satisfying reward for the 4yrs of hardwork at Starehe Girls Centre.
My first days at campus I felt something in between fear and happiness. Fear because I didn’t know what was in store for me yet happy that admission to the University was a great milestone for me. I would frequently ask whether I would really go to campus, with all the school fees and requirements. The answer would always be, “Just get good grades and everything will fall into place”. And here I am!
I’d say my first day on campus wasn’t fun. I felt lonely, being somewhere for the first time and you know nobody. Navigating my life through campus has not been easy, it has been God all through. The little time I have spent in the school, I have learnt a lot. I have met people from all walks of life, people with very different characters. I have sensed a lot of peer pressure in campus which I’d say is the negative type. I have seen people deal with stress due to one reason or another. I feel like campuses should incorporate our parents more to also expose them to the learning environment of students. Life in campus is not easy at all and it requires one to have a strong support system either from your parents or guardian. At some point I also lost it but thanks to my supportive roommates, I overcame it.
With all that I have seen, I realized that education is the greatest equalizer. Education gives each of us equal opportunities, regardless of our background. School provides an environment where everyone is treated fairly and with respect. Moreover, it acts as a stepping stone for individuals to shape their future, as it offers the necessary tools and resources for personal growth and development. I wholeheartedly believe that school is the best place to be, as it offers individuals a chance to break free from their circumstances and achieve their full potential. Whether it is acquiring new skills, building relationships, or exploring one’s interests, school provides the foundation for a bright future.
Why I chose to pursue Computer Science is because it has become a rapidly evolving field with limitless opportunities for innovation and progress.I have a strong desire to pursue a degree in this field. I am driven by a passion for developing new and effective ways of recycling waste from technology devices. The growing problem of electronic waste pollution and its impact on the environment has fueled my interest in this area. As a woman in a male-dominated field, I am inspired to break down the stereotypes and show that anyone can succeed in STEM. I believe that my presence in this field will help to inspire other girls and young women to pursue their passions and reach their full potential. “The best way to predict the future is to invent it.” -Alan Kay.
I am grateful to all the donors that continue to ensure that I study in the best schools with quality education. May you be blessed abundantly. I strongly believe that someday I will be a living testimony of resilience, perseverance and faith. I cannot wait to experience the remaining years in Moi!
One of the beautiful values of being raised up in an African setup is family, community, a village. In spite of the evolving dynamics of our culture and lifestyles, there are certain things that remain unchanged, and these are the things that make us African.
In any neighborhood, people look up to one another at all times. This is irrespective of what season of the year it is, be it for happy occasions and or the not-so-happy ones. It is that person-to-person value between us that makes life beautiful even when circumstances may not allow us to have so much material things in our hands. We have learned to share the little we have with so much joy!
HHFL is a community in itself, and as more and more of us grow into adulthood, the more we learn to stick out our head for one another. This has been seen in many exciting instances that we are glad to share with everyone here:
We have had a number of our young ladies involved with church weddings. During such times, our alumni have mobilized themselves to not only be present for the weddings but as well as contributing cash to buy a suitable wedding gift for one of their own. They also form part of the committees that do the planning for such occasions. The most recent wedding we had was for Priscah.
Another occasion we have seen our young people come together was during the recent bereavement of Sharon Akinyi. She lost her 3yr old son a few days after contracting malaria and it has been a tough time for her. Our alumni came together to offer comfort and financial support for the burial arrangements.
Around the same time, Mercy was blessed with a newborn baby girl who got hospitalized with post-natal complications. A good number of our alumni came through to offer encouragement and support Mercy in offsetting the medical bill which would otherwise have been an uphill task for her on her own.
During covid and post covid recovery times, our alumni have looked up to each other when some of them lost jobs. They stayed in touch and supported any one who was going through job loss. This was either through job referrals and financial support. Some of the alumni that have benefited from job referrals from within the alumni network are: Mercy Njoki gave Chris a referral for a waiter job at Artcafe where he is working in one of the food outlets of the high-end restaurant; she also referred Joyce Wambui to the same establishment and in turn Joyce referred Michelle Wanjiku. Each of them have been kept busy and earning their daily bread there.
Early this year, Muli got a very rare chance to intern in an horticultural farm for his diploma in Agriculture that he is studying for at The Kitale National Polytechnic. He was to be posted in the farm in Nanyuki and the alumni came in to provide him with support for his immediate personal effects needs and rent for two months!
One of our widows, and an old time volunteer at HHFL, Mama Brian, suffered from a motorcycle accident. Her children came in to support her go through the medication needs and taking care of her as she could not do much on her own. These are the children we have raised through the HHFL programmme and are now living their independent lives. Brian, Christopher, Erick and Pharise.
Through the Stellar Generation Kenya, a brainchild of Mercy’s, our alumni have been coming to mentor the younger ones who are still in primary and high school. They set aside time within the school holidays when everyone is home for exciting, enganging and enlightening sessions where guests from different walks of life and careers are invited to give insight to our kids.
It is a very satisfying feeling to see the family spirit continue being embraced and nurtured by our alumni, and it gives us a very promising tomorrow when we know that they can pull together as the small village that they are.
Written by Isaiah K, HHFL IT & Communications Admin
The year 2005 gave birth to HHFL in a very heart-moving and unimaginable manner when Hanne (we have got used to calling her Mama Hanna or just MH) and Ted(we call him Papa Tango or just PT) set foot in the Lenana slum. To them it was part of their itinerary for their Kenyan safari and they needed to have a feel of what life in a Kenyan slum looks like. Little did they know that there lay ahead of them: a task greater than just an ordinary adventure – the start of a lifelong engagement with the slum community. For more about this encounter, please take a listen by clicking This Link
Over the years, we have seen a tremendous growth across the different ages of our children, and we have thought of sharing one of our areas of pride – the sprouting HHFL families. These are stories of the ‘once upon a time’ little kids and teens that entered through the gates of the organization, received an all-rounded upbringing that encompasses both academic, extra curricular and life skills coaching and now they are running their independent lives not just as adults, but also being responsible mothers and fathers.
They are quite a bunch and to avoid tiresome long blogs, we have decided to break the feature in parts. It is our hope that by sharing this, we are showcasing to the world what can be achieved when hands come together to respond to the plight of the less privileged in the society and at the same time celebrate these young men and women while we inspire their younger HHFL siblings that they too will one day rise above the odds if they keep their eyes on the ultimate prize.
Alice Kangwato:
“I am married to Michael Kilonzi. He is a registered clinical officer(RCO) and works with the city county government of Nairobi. He also runs his own private clinic. He is an amazing dad to our kids and a very loving husband to me. “
“We are blessed with two kids – Christian, our son is 10yrs old and will be joining 5th grade next year. Angel, our daughter is joining preschool in 2024. She turns 3 in January.”
“I am Michael’s business partner in his clinic where I am in charge of supervision and accounts. The exposure I have enjoyed at the clinic has opened my eyes to the world of medicine and as a result, I plan to return to college and study nursing in the coming year if all goes well. I also work part time as a tour consultant for a tours and travel company. This is part of what I studied in college.”
“Family life has been beautiful despite the challenges that come with it. I give credit to HHFL for seeing me through life to self-reliance”
Simon Kanyenze
“I really love my family and it is the one that makes me work harder every single day. My wife, Brigit has studied beauty and she has been working in her salon before we got our 2nd born. She will be back to business soon as she has been giving all the attention to our newborn. My daughter Gladys is in grade 4. My son Austin Kitto is in play group and he is 3yrs old. Our youngest, Noah Mekhi is now 7 months old.”
“I have been a gym manager at the Mazoezi Gym in Langata here in Nairobi and I also do personal training with a good number of loyal clients who are regulars. Aside from fitness, I fell in love with painting and I have been using my spare time at home to make art pieces that I sell to clients. I am always proud of who HHFL enabled me to be. “
Sharon Akinyi
“I currently work at Kopokopo Limited as a Credit Officer. For the last few years I worked with Mkopa Solar Limited but moved out when Covid came and had many companies downscale their workforce in order to survive.”
“I have a son who is 8yrs old. His name is Basil Jones and he loves playing soccer. I am sharing a pic of him in the pitch. He is a very amazing person to me, and I wouldn’t trade motherhood with anything else from the journey I’ve had with my son. HHFL is my 2nd home and I am one proud alumnus”
Peter Maina
“I am a businessman, and a proud family man. I sell home appliances and household items in a town near the city. I am married to a beautiful wife and mother of our children, Mercy. We are blessed with two kids – Larry is 7yrs old and is in grade 3 at school. Christian is 2yrs.”
“In one of the pictures above is when I paid my mum a visit with my whole family. HHFL made a forever mark in my life”
Priscah Kalekye
“I founded an IT company! It is called Tishbyte Limited. We are doing well despite the hard economic challenges. This year, I got married in a church wedding to the love of my life – John.”
“He runs a personal business as his side hustle and he is also the finance officer at Sushine Primary and Secondary here in Nairobi. This far, marriage has been awesome and it feels great to be a family woman. I am forever grateful for the opportunity I enjoyed at HHFL.”
Above makes our 1st lot of stories in this series, and we will be sharing the rest of the parts through 2024. We look forward to your curiosity in hearing more and more about our successes!
-written by Isaiah, HHFL IT & Communications Admin
Each of the children from HHFL has a touching story behind the smiles they wear, and Rachael is no exception. So we choose to highlight her story from among the few primary school kids we still have in the programme.
She is born to a widow, and a former staff of HHFL, teacher Nancy. He has a brother, Brian, who is also a HHFL beneficiary and is in high school. Their youngest brother, Emmanuel is about 2yrs old. The two were left in the care of their mom when their dad died in 2010 in a fatal road accident here in Nairobi.
The death of their father dealt a heavy psychological impact on Rachel, and it was after that incident that she started experiencing seizures that were of an epileptic nature, and was confirmed after a few medical tests were done on her. A pediatrician neurologist with the support of HHFL signed her up for medication and proper observation that took a few years.
This situation affected her mental ability to the extend that HHFL had to pull her out of the ordinary primary school and enrolled her in a special needs school even as we continued with her medication – a step that was a life saver because she was able to stabilize and resume normal life with no seizures two years after being enrolled in the special needs school.
Above, is an older pic of her taken in 2016. She has been working hard alongside her HHFL siblings in their daytime primary school. Rachel is now graduating from primary school this year 2023, and it is a unique year in Kenya as it marks the end of an old school curriculum, with the new one scrapping off grades 7 and eight usher learners into junior secondary school after grade 6. Other than Rachel, the other primary school kids from HHFL who are graduating this year are Naomi, Irene, Beatrice and Bernard.
Among the many beautiful things that Rachel never lost, is her charming smile, her love for music & badminton and a gentle spirit. She stands as an inspiration to many of us that we can always stay positive and focused on our goals no matter the downfalls that come our way. As she prepares herself for what high school holds in store for her, we can be confident that she is entering this new phase of her life in high gear and with the right amount of enthusiasm to keep her going. We wish her and her classmates all the best in the national examinations that mark the end of their primary school life.
It’s Albanus again! and I am glad to share with you the thinhgs I’ve been through lately as far as my nursing studies and general life is concerned.
First, regarding my studies, I am currently at community diagnosis rotation two. This is where we go to the community to give vaccinations to babies, give health education to mothers on breastfeeding, to teach the community about nutrition and advising them on clean and safe drinking water.
Kenya is among the developing countries where many of our communities don’t get access to clean water. Most of the families survive on barely one meal a day. Also, you get to realize that we have communities and villages that do not seek for medication when sick. To some, even during the time of giving birth, their women are being assisted by traditional birth attendants or midwives. In some of the communities, it is due to culture and to some it’s because of the lack of nearby hospitals or health centers for such occasions.
Babies born in the villages don’t receive the birth vaccinations, so when we go for these kinds of rotations one of our functions and duties is to give vaccinations to the babies to prevent certain infections. We also sensitize the mothers who have given birth to the babies about coming to the clinic for checkups, nutrition, hygiene and any danger signs that might occur and what to do in case of such emergencies. This community diagnosis is more of an outreach programme for our nursing school.
In the month of April and may, I was at the new born unit placement 2. This is a unit for babies admitted because of premature births, very low birth-weight babies, respiratory problems, babies with congenital abnormalities like cardiac problems and also babies from other facilities can be brought to our facility for continued management and care. What happens here is that, babies are put in incubators and nourished and administered with medication while at the nursery until the baby gains weight to a point of moving to stay at the bedside with the mother. Also we have those other babies which stay at the care of the nursery attendants awaiting theatre or lab results for their diagnosis so that treatment can start.
My general life has also been affected by the state of our country, especially when there have been some heated demonstrations from the opposition side of the government. The economy is so tough with high prices of commodities making the cost of living go very high. The darkside of these protests is that people lose lives and get injured, that’s why I’m never part of that game.
Everything has been smooth for me leave for just a few challenges with the economy here in our country but Mama Hanne, Lucy and Isaiah do their best to keep us going. I am scheduled to graduate on December 4th 2024 and will officially join the medical profession. I am actually hoping to do a specialty in Intensive Care after my basic nursing. I have the passion for taking care of the critically ill patients and that will land me into intensive care.
I am a big fan of football and I actually play football tournaments most of the time here in school. I am a big supporter of the Manchester United. The premier league is my best league with top level players and high intensity of play. I love that.
The junior students (high school and primary) from the project will be closing this week, so I will have to make it to the project for our interactions and mentorship sessions which we always hold when schools close.
The laptop that HHFL bought for me has been of help all the time, during research, doing my exams, reading online books and so on. I take this time once again to express my immense gratitude to HHFL and our sponsors for supporting my education and that of my HHFL siblings. Your continued contribution has given me the wings to soar high and achieve my dreams without any financial worries. I am thrilled and eager to make the most of this opportunity.
Written by Muli Muasya, HHFL Post-Secondary Student
Hello world, hello friends! I am Muli from HHF-L and here is a little update about my life. We all have that one thing in life that we feel like it’s made for us. It can take some time before one discovers it, although with a little bit of interest, self- assessment and taking the right course of action can make the process of realizing what’s best for you easier and quicker.
I have always been passionate about Agriculture and everything entailed in it. I had already made up my mind when I was in high school on what to study in college and it was Agriculture. It wasn’t that easy for me to keep up with this decision as I watched other students choose other fancy courses and most of them despised agriculture a lot. At times, this made me feel lost as far as my dream career is concerned, but with the interest and passion I had for Agriculture I settled my mind and after high school I applied for Diploma in Agriculture at Kitale National Polytechnic.
When I got my calling letter on 20th August, I talked to Lucy and Isaiah about it and through the HHFL support on 5th September 2022 they allowed me to enroll at the college. During my first holiday break I and shared with father Ted and Mother Hanne on how my studies were fairing and they were excited to hear about it.
In March this year, I got an email from father Ted informing me that he had talked about my career with his friend and recommended me for an Agriculture internship at the friend’s Wilderness Farm located in Isioilo. Through the HHF-L support things worked out well and on April 28th , I started my internship at the farm.
It has been a great experience being at the Wilderness Farm. I have gained more than I imagined. I have learned about Agri-protein/ rearing of black soldier fly larvae – something that isn’t taught in my course although it’s related to Agriculture. I have also taken part in the production of Lucerne pellet which is fed to some of the wildlife animals and horses. Also in the Agricultural engineering part I have taken a step to learn more about farm power which entails the tractor and other agricultural machinery.
This machine is called a Gallignani Baler. It’s an agricultural machine for harvesting, baling and wrapping all types of crops such as straw, hay and silage both in square and round bales. The machine is capable of compacting hay into more easily transported large square bales that could be stacked or loaded on trucks or containers for trucking or export. Depending upon the baler, these bales can weigh from 1,000 to 2,200 pounds. As the pickup revolves just above the ground surface, the tines pick up and feed the hay into the flake forming chamber, where a “flake” of hay is formed before being pushed up into the path of the plunger, which then compresses it with great force against the existing bale in the chamber. Once the desired length is achieved, the knotter arm is mechanically tripped to begin the knotting cycle in which several knotters tie’s the 4–6 strings that maintain the bale’s shape. I was fascinated by how this machine works and makes Agricultural operations easier and faster.
Farm records entails resources, farm products, and day-to-day maintenance of farm production and financial activities of a farm. In every farm it is necessary to keep and update the farm records daily, Record-keeping helps the farmer plan and do realistic forecasting in his farm. It also helps to measure the productive efficiency of livestock. When an animals falls sick the farmer has to keep records of that particular animal note down the type of disease, the dose administrated to the animal the dates in which the animal was diagnosed and other essential factors for future reference. I have been going through the farm records almost daily and I have learned on how they are recorded, they should be recorded systematically or chronologically and with accuracy.
I was also privileged to meet an Agronomist here at wilderness farm. She has been training me on how to handle field crops and dealing with the pest and diseases that affect crops. We have been doing a research together about aquaponics which is still in progress, and others about crops and gardening.
I learned how to use the Knapsack sprayer. This is an Agricultural equipment used for spraying pesticides and herbicides to crop and livestock. This is mostly used in small scale farming as in large scale large equipment’s are used such as the AG sprayer. The equipment is easy to handle as you only get to wear it as a bag and keep pulling the handle up and down to allow the pesticide to come out through the nozzle part. One is required to wear protective gear especially when handling toxic chemicals that can affect our bodies and respiratory system.
I am reporting back to school in May for my 1 st year exams and after that I have to go for an internship which will start in August until December. Thanks to the warm relationship with the Wilderness farm manager Jackson, he has allowed me to come back again in August and continue gaining more. I am so grateful for this internship. Thanks to Father Ted and Mother Hanne and all of you for your support. I am truly grateful.
