Build a School in Mlolongo, Kenya
Donation protected
Positive Life Kenya (PLK) is a women- and HIV-focused NGO based in Mlolongo, Kenya. We are the Junior Board of Directors of PLK, a group of young, passionate individuals from different parts of the world committed to PLK’s mission in revitalizing the lives of HIV-infected/affected women and children in Mlolongo, an HIV prevalent town outside Nairobi. For the past decade, PLK’s staff, teachers, and volunteers have dedicated enormous efforts to providing educational and employment opportunities, as well as psychosocial services, to more than 500 women and children in seven different poverty-stricken communities and informal settlements around Mlolongo and Athi River.
THE STORY
Kenya is grappling with a burden of 1.6 million HIV infected people rising at a rate of 100,000 new infections annually, the fourth highest infection rate worldwide. Most infections are clustered around transit hubs between major cities. Mlolongo is one of the major hubs and is notorious for it sex trade with truckers making their final stopovers before arriving in Nairobi.
Working with the women who have fallen into this trade due to dire economic circumstances and many other women struggling with other issues, such as domestic violence, single motherhood, rape, and illness, PLK quickly realized the women’s problems are often intertwined with and complicated by children. To help empower Mlolongo women, the difficulties associated with motherhood need to be tackled. In the past eight years, PLK has worked with limited donations to establish a school, Tumaini (“Hope” in Swahili) Primary School, which educates 150 children from HIV-infected/affected families in the community. Some of the children were abandoned or abused. Some of their mothers were assaulted or raped, sold or slaved, judged or insulted. Some of their fathers couldn’t cope with the stress and fled into alcoholism. While their homes fell apart, PLK has worked hard to provide these children a a sanctuary, an education, and a chance of creating better lives for themselves and their own families one day.
And with their children having been given a chance to live positively and happily, Mlolongo mothers are better able to stand up for the first time to fight against domestic violence and seek better opportunities for financial independence.
At Tumaini, we have watched these children working on difficult math problems with pencils worn down to stubs. Through the broken tin ceilings we have heard passionate recitation of English poems. Although English and Swahili are the official languages of Kenya, English has remained a posh tongue acquired through an expensive education. At lunch, the children share inadequate amounts of flour and beans with no vegetables or protein, but for some it will be their only meal for the day. Despite all the struggles, they smile, laugh, and play.
On our last day with them, they held our hands, tears trickling down their cheeks. We promised to be back with more help, resources, and time to spend with them.
THE CAUSE
Tumaini currently rents its establishment for US$200 a month. Under the leaking roof of the rental facility, children play on the uneven dirt and study next to a bathroom with no running toilet. Due to the insufficient number of classrooms, 32 upper-class students had to be combined with lower-class students, hindering their learning progress. Most importantly, the lack of a permanent location creates a sense of instability and insecurity among our student body. Last year, we worked hard to raise US$15,000 through three campaigns to purchase a 2,400 square foot parcel of land. Now, we are asking your help to prepare the site to begin construction of a permanent establishment for our school.
THE ASK
100% of your donations will go to the predevelopment work related to the construction of a 7-classroom school on a 2,400 square foot parcel of land. The cost breakdown includes -
1. Excavation & removal of black cotton soil: US$2,500
2. Casting a foundation wall: US$660
3. Sand (100 bags @ US$7 each): US$700
4. Labour cost: US$1,000
5. Contingency (~10%): US$500
Total Pre-development Work: $5,360
Every dollar and donation will help PLK further build a sanctuary for these children.
THE REWARDS
As thanks for sharing your valuable time and resources, we would love to show gratitude to our generous donors in these ways:
- For anyone who has shown his/her support, we will send a personalized thank-you email
- For any supporter above $35, we will have a call-out section dedicated to you in our monthly newsletters, which we distributed to 500 people
- For any donor above $100, we will mail you cards handwritten by one of our students at Tumaini
- For any influencer above $150, we will ship you a bracelet personalized with your first name and made by one of the mothers we support
We thank you for anything you can share.
OTHER WAYS TO SHOW YOUR SUPPORT
Can’t Donate? You can still help!
A share, a retweet, or a post is just as beneficial to our campaign! Awareness of (1) the struggle that women and children face in Mlolongo, and (2) the mission that Positive Life Kenya supports is just as significant as the campaign. Make an impact. If you have a gap period for as short as two weeks and would like to travel for a cause, please contact us at [email redacted]. We have an abundance of resources available to guide to you to volunteer, intern, and work with us. We believe that the ideas/stories you bring, if you join us in Mlolongo, will make a long-lasting and tremendous impact on these women and children.
On behalf of 150 children at Tumaini, we would like to take this precious opportunity to thank you for your interest and support.
THE STORY
Kenya is grappling with a burden of 1.6 million HIV infected people rising at a rate of 100,000 new infections annually, the fourth highest infection rate worldwide. Most infections are clustered around transit hubs between major cities. Mlolongo is one of the major hubs and is notorious for it sex trade with truckers making their final stopovers before arriving in Nairobi.
Working with the women who have fallen into this trade due to dire economic circumstances and many other women struggling with other issues, such as domestic violence, single motherhood, rape, and illness, PLK quickly realized the women’s problems are often intertwined with and complicated by children. To help empower Mlolongo women, the difficulties associated with motherhood need to be tackled. In the past eight years, PLK has worked with limited donations to establish a school, Tumaini (“Hope” in Swahili) Primary School, which educates 150 children from HIV-infected/affected families in the community. Some of the children were abandoned or abused. Some of their mothers were assaulted or raped, sold or slaved, judged or insulted. Some of their fathers couldn’t cope with the stress and fled into alcoholism. While their homes fell apart, PLK has worked hard to provide these children a a sanctuary, an education, and a chance of creating better lives for themselves and their own families one day.
And with their children having been given a chance to live positively and happily, Mlolongo mothers are better able to stand up for the first time to fight against domestic violence and seek better opportunities for financial independence.
At Tumaini, we have watched these children working on difficult math problems with pencils worn down to stubs. Through the broken tin ceilings we have heard passionate recitation of English poems. Although English and Swahili are the official languages of Kenya, English has remained a posh tongue acquired through an expensive education. At lunch, the children share inadequate amounts of flour and beans with no vegetables or protein, but for some it will be their only meal for the day. Despite all the struggles, they smile, laugh, and play.
On our last day with them, they held our hands, tears trickling down their cheeks. We promised to be back with more help, resources, and time to spend with them.
THE CAUSE
Tumaini currently rents its establishment for US$200 a month. Under the leaking roof of the rental facility, children play on the uneven dirt and study next to a bathroom with no running toilet. Due to the insufficient number of classrooms, 32 upper-class students had to be combined with lower-class students, hindering their learning progress. Most importantly, the lack of a permanent location creates a sense of instability and insecurity among our student body. Last year, we worked hard to raise US$15,000 through three campaigns to purchase a 2,400 square foot parcel of land. Now, we are asking your help to prepare the site to begin construction of a permanent establishment for our school.
THE ASK
100% of your donations will go to the predevelopment work related to the construction of a 7-classroom school on a 2,400 square foot parcel of land. The cost breakdown includes -
1. Excavation & removal of black cotton soil: US$2,500
2. Casting a foundation wall: US$660
3. Sand (100 bags @ US$7 each): US$700
4. Labour cost: US$1,000
5. Contingency (~10%): US$500
Total Pre-development Work: $5,360
Every dollar and donation will help PLK further build a sanctuary for these children.
THE REWARDS
As thanks for sharing your valuable time and resources, we would love to show gratitude to our generous donors in these ways:
- For anyone who has shown his/her support, we will send a personalized thank-you email
- For any supporter above $35, we will have a call-out section dedicated to you in our monthly newsletters, which we distributed to 500 people
- For any donor above $100, we will mail you cards handwritten by one of our students at Tumaini
- For any influencer above $150, we will ship you a bracelet personalized with your first name and made by one of the mothers we support
We thank you for anything you can share.
OTHER WAYS TO SHOW YOUR SUPPORT
Can’t Donate? You can still help!
A share, a retweet, or a post is just as beneficial to our campaign! Awareness of (1) the struggle that women and children face in Mlolongo, and (2) the mission that Positive Life Kenya supports is just as significant as the campaign. Make an impact. If you have a gap period for as short as two weeks and would like to travel for a cause, please contact us at [email redacted]. We have an abundance of resources available to guide to you to volunteer, intern, and work with us. We believe that the ideas/stories you bring, if you join us in Mlolongo, will make a long-lasting and tremendous impact on these women and children.
On behalf of 150 children at Tumaini, we would like to take this precious opportunity to thank you for your interest and support.
Fundraising team: Junior Board of Positive Life Kenya (5)
Junior Board of Directors Positive Life Kenya
Organizer
Los Angeles, CA
Shikha Bharati
Team member
Sophia Langhi
Team member
Clouie Mae Anareta
Team member
Mary Wabwire
Team member