News

Jambo everyone! Wow! What a year it has been! I hope it has been a good year for all of you… one with many wonderful blessings and memories! Here at In Step Children’s Home, 2022 was a busy, productive, wonderful year! We have a magnificent team of supporters, including all of you reading this letter, who have made it possible for us to improve day-to-day life at In Step, in so many ways! The girls are now very comfortable in their new houses, which has also made it possible for the boys to spread out! (The boys’ dorm is definitely in need of upgrading, but at least…

Jambo everyone! What a whirlwind the month of October was at In Step Children’s Home! It’s like it came and went before I even got used to writing the word “October” on documents! How time flies! The highlight of the month was definitely a week-long visit from a South Hills Church team! What a wonderful group! Being visited by people from home makes us feel so “normal,” if only for a matter of days! They get us! They think like us! They talk like us! They like the same foods that we like! In short, they bring “home” to us!…

Jambo everyone! I hope you are all doing well and looking forward to fall! Here, the rains are slowing down and dry season is just around the corner. Soon, all of the beautiful green landscape will be various shades of brown, there will be dust everywhere (as opposed to mud), clothes will dry on the line in a matter of a few hours (instead of having to take them down when it rains and rehang them over a period of days), maize will be harvested and dried in the sun and everyone will be looking forward to the hot, dry…

Jambo everyone! I’m back in Kenya! I arrived to cold, wet weather! Coming from Tri-Cities, WA, which had been in the low 100’s Fahrenheit, I have been bundling up in sweaters and wearing my house slippers whenever I can get away with it! But still, I’m glad to be back! I arrived two days before the Kenyan presidential elections, which took place as scheduled. Many people in the country didn’t venture out beyond their local voting center, to perform their civic duty. From there, people just stayed home, waiting for the President Elect to be announced and praying for peace…

Jambo everyone! I usually start my update by filling you in on the weather in Kenya. This time, I won’t do that since I’m not there! LOL! I have been visiting family in the states for several weeks now and was supposed to fly back to Kenya last Tuesday, but due to passport renewal delays, I wasn’t able to. Actually, the renewal of my passport wasn’t delayed. However, I still have not received my old passport, which contains my Kenyan entry visa. So, I have a passport but no visa. I mistakenly assumed that expediting a passport renewal would include…

Jambo everyone! The rains have come! While most of you are gearing up for summertime, here in Kenya it’s our coldest time of year! Granted, the temperature isn’t really cold, but the rain and clouds makes it feel pretty chilly! As I mentioned in my previous update, it’s time for the new school year to start! In Step Academy, along with every other primary school in Kenya, opened on April 25th. Students from the surrounding community are still registering, so I don’t yet have a final count, but we are excited for the year! This will be our first full…

Jambo everyone! Another month gone by! Oh, how time flies!This was a very busy month for our school kids! Our kindergarteners graduated to “big kids school” (first grade) in a fun ceremony including caps and gowns, entertainment, snacks and a guest speaker from the Ministry of Education. In normal Kenyan fashion, there were lots of ceremonial aspects to the event; lighting “candles of knowledge,” receiving diplomas, colorful garland, speeches, poems, songs and marching around the room until I thought their little legs were going to give out! Honestly, I think the adults enjoyed it more than the graduates, who were…