Carrie and Cheryl share about our day… Same day, same activities, different perspectives…
Today's visit gave us a glimpse into two very different realities.
This morning we visited a local public government school, and the contrast with the schools supported by Fox River was impossible to miss. The public school is doing the best it can with very limited resources. Many of the children don't have desks and instead sit on the floor for class. Imagine trying to learn in a classroom of around 80 students with just one teacher!
Despite the challenges, the students were incredibly respectful, attentive, and well behaved. They wear uniforms, although many are well worn from years of use. One thing that especially stayed with me was learning that the children are not provided lunch at school. They go home during the lunch break, but the head teacher shared that many of them don't have regular access to food. It's heartbreaking to hear, but it also made me appreciate even more the incredible work Fox River is doing in this community. Seeing the difference firsthand between the public school and the Fox River-supported schools put everything into perspective. The impact they're making isn't just visible—it's life changing. I was also encouraged to see that even at the public school, prayer was welcomed and the message of Jesus was received with open hearts.
In the afternoon, we traded classrooms for construction sites and helped build a mud house for a newly married couple. I never imagined I'd be excited about stomping around in mud, but here we are! The older students patiently showed us what to do, and before long we were mixing, hauling, and building right alongside them. It was messy, surprisingly fun, and definitely one of my favorite experiences of the trip.
Watching the school, Fox River, and the local community come together to build a home for a young couple was something truly special. It was a beautiful reminder that sometimes the greatest acts of love are the simplest ones—showing up, getting your hands dirty, and serving others together. It's a day I'll never forget!
~Carrie
This was our fifth day in Kenya and the time has gone very fast. We started the day by going to the public school in Bomani which is very close to New Life Academy.
This visit was an emotionally different visit, as we observed the conditions our students would be getting educated under if Fox River wasn't present. 80 children to each small classroom - from pre-kindergarten thru grade 12, most sitting on the floor. Teachers doing their best with VERY limited resources. Fox River gifted the school with 15 desks, which means 60 kids will no longer need to sit on the floor. The contrast was startling and it was very sad.
Then we went to help build a mud hut for a couple getting married next month. It was fun, a little dirty, but fulfilling. The older boys from New Life Academy joined us and we had a lot of fun working side by side with them.
Then something so unexpected occurred, that reinforced that I was meant to be on this trip. We returned to New Life after the mud hut, and as I walked through the campus on my way to clean up, I experienced a sense of overwhelming peace come over me - it stopped me as I walked. I observed the beautiful trees, the campus and learning environment Fox River has created, reflected on the children I have met with, talked with, prayed with, loved, hugged - and I felt like I had come home, that I belonged here, and I knew I was supposed to be here. It was such an unexpected gift. As I write this tonight, that feeling is still with me, and I am ever so grateful for this opportunity to serve here.
I know it is going to be so hard to say goodbye in a week to all these children we have grown to love so much in such a short time.
We ended the day at Mercys Light where they serve, train and educate underaged girls who have been abused and their children. A very sobering experience.
God Bless everyone who has supported these schools, you truly have made an almost unimaginable difference in the lives of the children and their families. A reasonable chance to pull their families out of poverty. Education can change everything.
~Cheryl
