Sixteen year-old Lydia knows she is really lucky, being one of only 22% of Kenyan girls currently enrolled in secondary school. As can be imagined this figure is significantly lower for both boys and girls from the Nairobi slums.
Like the other Waddington students Lydia would
not be in school today if it weren't for the phenomenal effort made by the friends of Galilee to build a high school for Galilee Primary Schools graduating class of 2004.
A boy's dream of a high school...
Sponsors and friends joined together to make Ismael's dream a reality. First off money was needed to purchase land. It was a long and painstaking process but cent by cent, dollar by dollar funds were raised and the land obtained. Next the building had to be constructed. Again cent by cent, dollar by dollar we managed to build the first two classrooms. Waddington High opened with one class (Form 1) and each year additional rooms were built and classes added. Currently, the school serves approximately 300 students in Forms 1-4.
You may wonder what happened to Ismael? He had struggled for years, on and off, to finish primary school and sadly felt that at the age of 22 he could not afford the "luxury" of a high school education. Ismael felt he had no choice but to leave to provide support for his younger siblings. Ismael will not be forgotten and one of the aims of both Galilee and WHS is to provide education to the children when they are indeed children.
Despite these wonderful steps forward, there is still a lot of work to be done. In 2005 we built another FOUR classrooms which was a wonderful boost to the school and in 2006 we completed the remaining classrooms so all four years of secondary education are now offered. 
At the completion of Form 4 all students sit for the Kenyan Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE). The results of these exams determine who is eligible to go on to university and also heavily impact decisions regarding any future career choices. It costs approximately 100 dollar for a student to take the exam. This is an exhorbitant fee for families living on a dollar day and often times students who have worked hard to complete their education are held back because they can't afford to pay to take the KCSE.
If you would like to help a child sit for the KCSE please make a donation toward exam fees.
Around the world our patrons are working together to create a school that will give the children of Kayole-Soweto a high school education. This is their dream which only five years ago seemed impossible, and YOU can help them achieve it.
A boy's dream of a high school...
How did WHS start? When he was in class 7 Ismael explained how he had to work to afford basic school supplies. As he wrote, with obvious pride, of being able to go without food for two days so his younger sisters could eat, he also shared with us his dream that when he passed the KCPE with "flying colours" there would be a high school to accept him. Even though he was poor, and even though he couldn't afford a fancy uniform, such a school, he hoped, would want him and his fellow classmates. Ismael's dream was the start of WHS.
Sponsors and friends joined together to make Ismael's dream a reality. First off money was needed to purchase land. It was a long and painstaking process but cent by cent, dollar by dollar funds were raised and the land obtained. Next the building had to be constructed. Again cent by cent, dollar by dollar we managed to build the first two classrooms. Waddington High opened with one class (Form 1) and each year additional rooms were built and classes added. Currently, the school serves approximately 300 students in Forms 1-4.After the school opened Lydia wrote to her sponsor: "I never dreamed that one day I Lydia would be able to attend a high school. My mother and father in heaven would be so proud of me to know that I have achieved this that no-one in my family has done before. I say again and again and again thank you for giving me this chance. Thank you for having faith in me. I will not let you down but will work to make myself good so that I too can help others..."
You may wonder what happened to Ismael? He had struggled for years, on and off, to finish primary school and sadly felt that at the age of 22 he could not afford the "luxury" of a high school education. Ismael felt he had no choice but to leave to provide support for his younger siblings. Ismael will not be forgotten and one of the aims of both Galilee and WHS is to provide education to the children when they are indeed children.
Despite these wonderful steps forward, there is still a lot of work to be done. In 2005 we built another FOUR classrooms which was a wonderful boost to the school and in 2006 we completed the remaining classrooms so all four years of secondary education are now offered.
At the completion of Form 4 all students sit for the Kenyan Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE). The results of these exams determine who is eligible to go on to university and also heavily impact decisions regarding any future career choices. It costs approximately 100 dollar for a student to take the exam. This is an exhorbitant fee for families living on a dollar day and often times students who have worked hard to complete their education are held back because they can't afford to pay to take the KCSE. If you would like to help a child sit for the KCSE please make a donation toward exam fees.
Around the world our patrons are working together to create a school that will give the children of Kayole-Soweto a high school education. This is their dream which only five years ago seemed impossible, and YOU can help them achieve it. Please help be a dream maker by sponsoring one of our dreamers or making a donation today.
No comments:
Post a Comment