January 24, 2007

Dear Friends of St. Gerard's Church, Bowen Island,

A very happy New Year to you all!

I feel humbled when I see your generosity in helping many children here in East Africa to be in school. Some of you I may have never met, but you know of me and send donations. Thank you so much. God willing, some day we may meet. I will be in Canada this summer, including home leave in Vancouver and Bowen Island for parts of July and August, and I look forward to talking with many of you then. I don’t know how, on behalf of the children and young people you help, to thank you enough. I do bring you before the Lord and ask Him to bless you as He knows best.

There are more stories that I would like to share with you about the children and young people whom we are assisting so that they can be in school. Many of them are orphans whose parents have died from HIV/AIDs. I have written up some of their stories and am trying to get some photos to illustrate them. They could go on the St. Gerard’s website, or I could include them in a presentation during my summer visit.
                                                                                 With love and gratitude,
                                                                                 Sr. Jo Wright, rscj

P.S. If you have e-mail, I would be grateful for your e-mail address, as this will enable a big saving on postage. I’m at rscjeld[at]africaonline.co[dot]ke
with @ for the [at] and a period for the [dot]. Please always begin the subject line with “For Sr. Jo” because many of us share one e-mail address. My postal address remains Sr. Jo Wright, Sacred Heart Sisters, P.O. Box 2121, Eldoret, Kenya. Note that I receive my email and mail only when I am in Eldoret, and sometimes my work takes me away from here for several weeks at a time.

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December 19, 2006

Dear Friends of St. Gerard’s Church, Bowen Island,

Greetings and best wishes to you at Christmas!

Thanks to each of you who so generously are sharing what you have to enable others in this part of the world of Uganda and Kenya to live a fully human life. Perhaps this year I could share with you a little bit more about the youth training centre that our Sisters are administering in Koromaiti, Chekalini, a rural village in Western Kenya. We have been blessed by receiving generous grants so that this polytechnic is now well equipped.

The fees are minimal and yet some parents are unable to raise the needed money. One way we have tried to help parents is by having them bring farm produce in lieu of fees. We value the produce they bring and give them credit for this. The food is used in the lunch program. Even with this, some parents cannot manage. Where there is a genuine need, we are assisting with the fees and it is for this that we in particular thank you.

The goal for this polytechnic was to create a vocational centre to promote the development and self-reliance of young women by providing them with skills of tailoring, dressmaking, knitting and embroidery. We are happy to see that our goal is being realized.

In November of this year, the centre was registered as a Grade III testing centre. This means that the centre has been recognized as being well equipped with qualified staff, with adequate space for classes and practical work. The villagers are very much encouraged that what we are offering is of great importance and has been recognized by the Government under Industrial Training.

During the holidays, the students go for attachment to a tailor. It is part of their course, but they earn some money, which helps them pay for program materials such as knitting wool, threads, and material for tailoring. The experience of getting some work even as they are studying is also good for their self-esteem.

Three young women graduated at the end of November from their course in  tailoring, dressmaking and embroidery, and they have already found employment. Two will go to Kakamega, one to do tailoring and the other to do embroidery. Both of these young women have been employed by one of the Christians of Chekalini Parish in his shops in Kakamega. The third young woman will work in a shop in Lugari trading centre.

Due to the poverty of the area, it has not been easy to get a market for the work of the students. However, we are happy that this year we have succeeded in forming a good relationship with the head teacher of the nearby primary school, and he is sending the parents to us to get the school uniforms made for their children. We have made uniforms for about 90 pupils this year. The income is helping us with our expenses and is an excellent incentive for our students.

I hope that what I have shared in this letter encourages you and enables you to recognize the good you have brought about through your donations.

I will be on home leave in 2007 — probably the months of July and August — and look forward to meeting with you once again at that time. May God bless your generosity abundantly.

Sister Jo Wright, rscj