What an amazing day!!
The drive to the school through the many different slums was full of sights that reminded me of the infinite blessings in my own life. My heart was both warmed and saddened by what I saw. Through extreme poverty, there was hope.
At the school, we were greeted with smiling and singing children! The pure joy from the kids was an unbelievable experience. We sang and danced together, giving glory to God and having a BLAST. I've never been so uninhibited to dance and let loose, their joy just electrifies you.
Ginger led a wonderful devotion..."God speaks and God calls" Modern day Moses' all around the world are helping to lead people out of poverty and dire circumstances through God's callings and many blessings.
We then met with some of the teachers. What these women can do with 50 kids and a piece of chalk is miraculous. We talked with them about some lessons we will be modeling on Friday...we are focusing on how to ability group the students and use data to drive your instruction to help all kids be successful. I cannot wait to get into the classrooms with those precious children.
Tomorrow we travel to the secondary school to work with the teachers there. We will mainly focus on electronic data entry to help expedite and align the record keeping of the school and data driven instruction. I am excited to meet the educators there and visit with some older kids. Jen tells me that they are true inspirations...
Many Blessings!! Miss you all!!
-Rachel
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
Sunday, June 13, 2010
Karibu to Nairobi!
Karibu Friends and family! We've made it safely to Nairobi, Kenya after 24 straight hours of traveling. We are extremely grateful for your prayers and support. We thank God for safe travels and we look forward to utilizing the wireless internet (in our rooms!) to update y'all and stay in contact.
-Jen
-Jen
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Kenya Children's Fund DVD clip
We are just two days away from our departure to Kenya! We pray to travel safely and to walk humbly with God throughout our trip. Please take five minutes to watch the DVD clip from Kenya Children's Fund. You can observe the environment where we work as well as the impact of that the Kinyago-Dandora Schools has on the children in the Dandora community. We appreciate your partnership both in prayer and financially.
http://kcf1.streamedic.com/media.php?MTA=
Please continue to praise God for this opportunity and pray for our trip.
-Jen
http://kcf1.streamedic.com/media.php?MTA=
Please continue to praise God for this opportunity and pray for our trip.
-Jen
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
Calling All Prayer Warriors!
Hello Friends and Family!
Whether you pray faithfully morning and night, sporadically, or only in a time of need, we need you! As we embark on our journey across the world, we are praying for several things:
We are praying for a group of people to pray for our team. We believe the power of prayer is unsurmountable and believe spiritual warfare is alive and sadly working to deter our plan. We pray that we will not fall victim to this.
We pray for safe travels for the leadership team as well as the individual teams traveling to Nairobi, Kenya this summer. Rachel and I's travel dates are Friday, June 11-Saturday, June 12 and returning Thursday, June 24-Friday, June 25. We also pray for Rachel's safe travels to and from Atlanta!
We pray for safety from harm and danger as we enter into an area of the world that may prove dangerous for travelers, especially two young, blonde American girls. :)
We pray for our leaders at KCF that they may receive guidance and wisdom in order to execute God's plan for the Kinyago Dandora Schools.
We pray for strength and courage to listen and complete God's will throughout the trip, even in the face of difficulty.
Most importantly, we pray for guidance and discernment as we listen to God's instruction while spreading His word in Nairobi and serving the children of the Kinyago Dandora Schools.
We praise God because it is a true blessing to serve Him in such a tangible way, and our team is so grateful that we may leverage our gifts to serve others. "Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in various forms." I Peter 4:10
We also give thanks for God's financial provisions as he has equipped us with the means and generous support of friends and family to travel to Kenya this year.
We truly believe that through God we can make a difference in children's lives in a very challenged area of the world. "Do not withhold good from those who deserve it, when it is in your power to act." Proverbs 3:27.
"I am only one, but I am one. I cannot do everything, but I can do something. What I can do, I should do, and with the help of God, I WILL DO!" -Everett Hale
Whether you pray faithfully morning and night, sporadically, or only in a time of need, we need you! As we embark on our journey across the world, we are praying for several things:
We are praying for a group of people to pray for our team. We believe the power of prayer is unsurmountable and believe spiritual warfare is alive and sadly working to deter our plan. We pray that we will not fall victim to this.
We pray for safe travels for the leadership team as well as the individual teams traveling to Nairobi, Kenya this summer. Rachel and I's travel dates are Friday, June 11-Saturday, June 12 and returning Thursday, June 24-Friday, June 25. We also pray for Rachel's safe travels to and from Atlanta!
We pray for safety from harm and danger as we enter into an area of the world that may prove dangerous for travelers, especially two young, blonde American girls. :)
We pray for our leaders at KCF that they may receive guidance and wisdom in order to execute God's plan for the Kinyago Dandora Schools.
We pray for strength and courage to listen and complete God's will throughout the trip, even in the face of difficulty.
Most importantly, we pray for guidance and discernment as we listen to God's instruction while spreading His word in Nairobi and serving the children of the Kinyago Dandora Schools.
We praise God because it is a true blessing to serve Him in such a tangible way, and our team is so grateful that we may leverage our gifts to serve others. "Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in various forms." I Peter 4:10
We also give thanks for God's financial provisions as he has equipped us with the means and generous support of friends and family to travel to Kenya this year.
We truly believe that through God we can make a difference in children's lives in a very challenged area of the world. "Do not withhold good from those who deserve it, when it is in your power to act." Proverbs 3:27.
"I am only one, but I am one. I cannot do everything, but I can do something. What I can do, I should do, and with the help of God, I WILL DO!" -Everett Hale
Welcome to the 2010 African Adventures of Jen and Rachel
Welcome friends and family! We truly appreciate your support during our preparation and travels this month. We depart from Atlanta on Friday, June 11 and return on June 25.
For friends and family new to our adventures, here is some background information on me and how I became involved with Kenya Children's Fund as well as how Rachel became involved:
God has opened many amazing doors for me in the past year and given me countless opportunities to serve and glorify Him since being baptized in March of 2009. I began serving at Buckhead Church on our Host Team, and more strategically, as a women’s small group leader. I am so blessed to learn and grow with and from the women in my small group while growing in our relationships with Jesus Christ. Additionally, I believe my greatest accomplishment and experience to date has been traveling to Africa in June of 2009. The children of the Kinyago-Dandora community have invaluably enriched my life and forever changed my heart. The love, faith, and hope of these children are insurmountable even in their dire circumstances.
The Kinyago-Dandora School is situated on Nairobi’s city dump in one of the top-ten worst slums in the world according to the United Nations. This school is a home to them when the outside world shuns them as slumdogs, as trash, as inconsequential nothings. However, their faith is in Jesus Christ persists. Their joy and passion for God is an inspiration. This school is their light, their way out. They are empowered through education and motivated to become agents of change within their community. The Kinyago-Dandora School provides education, nutrition, medical attention and a Christ-centered environment to the children of Dandora who desperately need it in a place where education is not compulsory, free or easy to obtain.
I feel so blessed to take part in their story. It is through this powerful connection that I accepted a staff position with Kenya Children’s Fund in October of 2009. I now serve as the Outreach Director of Kenya Children's Fund, a 501(c)(3) non-profit Christian organization, and I work to grow the organization domestically as well as internationally. I also serve on the Education Committee as an Educational Consultant and work to serve as a liaison between the staff of both schools in Kenya and our US office. I cannot express how blessed I am to serve God’s vision in Africa!
This year Rachel Stolz, a great friend whom I met during undergrad at the University of Florida is accompanying me with Kenya Children's Fund to Kenya. Rachel and I spent countless hours preparing for courses and projects, volunteering with children and studying for exams together in undergrad and graduate school. Upon graduation, I moved to Atlanta, Georgia and Rachel moved to Dallas, Texas. In January 2010, after losing contact after college, we re-connected and the rest is history! Rachel felt drawn to God to serve in a another part of the world where His love is desperately needed. This is Rachel's first mission trip and like me last year, this is her first international excursion. We are very blessed that God has brought us back together to serve Him and the wonderful kids at KDS.
For friends and family new to our adventures, here is some background information on me and how I became involved with Kenya Children's Fund as well as how Rachel became involved:
God has opened many amazing doors for me in the past year and given me countless opportunities to serve and glorify Him since being baptized in March of 2009. I began serving at Buckhead Church on our Host Team, and more strategically, as a women’s small group leader. I am so blessed to learn and grow with and from the women in my small group while growing in our relationships with Jesus Christ. Additionally, I believe my greatest accomplishment and experience to date has been traveling to Africa in June of 2009. The children of the Kinyago-Dandora community have invaluably enriched my life and forever changed my heart. The love, faith, and hope of these children are insurmountable even in their dire circumstances.
The Kinyago-Dandora School is situated on Nairobi’s city dump in one of the top-ten worst slums in the world according to the United Nations. This school is a home to them when the outside world shuns them as slumdogs, as trash, as inconsequential nothings. However, their faith is in Jesus Christ persists. Their joy and passion for God is an inspiration. This school is their light, their way out. They are empowered through education and motivated to become agents of change within their community. The Kinyago-Dandora School provides education, nutrition, medical attention and a Christ-centered environment to the children of Dandora who desperately need it in a place where education is not compulsory, free or easy to obtain.
I feel so blessed to take part in their story. It is through this powerful connection that I accepted a staff position with Kenya Children’s Fund in October of 2009. I now serve as the Outreach Director of Kenya Children's Fund, a 501(c)(3) non-profit Christian organization, and I work to grow the organization domestically as well as internationally. I also serve on the Education Committee as an Educational Consultant and work to serve as a liaison between the staff of both schools in Kenya and our US office. I cannot express how blessed I am to serve God’s vision in Africa!
This year Rachel Stolz, a great friend whom I met during undergrad at the University of Florida is accompanying me with Kenya Children's Fund to Kenya. Rachel and I spent countless hours preparing for courses and projects, volunteering with children and studying for exams together in undergrad and graduate school. Upon graduation, I moved to Atlanta, Georgia and Rachel moved to Dallas, Texas. In January 2010, after losing contact after college, we re-connected and the rest is history! Rachel felt drawn to God to serve in a another part of the world where His love is desperately needed. This is Rachel's first mission trip and like me last year, this is her first international excursion. We are very blessed that God has brought us back together to serve Him and the wonderful kids at KDS.
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