Confrontation with the "Pastors"

Saturday night my second last night here and the Pastor and his wife came to the host family's house at 10pm and wanted to "talk" about the things I had said regarding how dishonest and cruel and self-serving they are... well , It took all of five minutes for the wife Beatrice to show her real colours !

I went through the way they treat the children and spelled out in no uncertain words how they are in contravention of the Human rights, Geneva convention and plain old Christian treatment of the children.

She went balistic and I thought the big fat bitch was going to hit me !!!!

The end result was she could not deny anything I said and her excuses were weak...I asked five times in a row when she last took the sick kids to the doctor....she couldnt answer...as she hasnt taken them in the month I have been there , then I started on the 13 yo girls who come from school after 12 hours away , who walk to the Pastors house and clean and cook until 10pm at night....what does she do ? bugger all and I told her she treats the children like slaves while she sits on her fat arse getting fatter...then I started on what she eats as opposed to the crappy Ugali the kids live on...then I went onto the stolen toys and the SOCKS.... which they bought to the house saying they were saving them...saving them for what I asked , isnt it cold NOW ? Isnt it winter NOW , why are the kids freezing with their toes hanging out of broken plastic sandals NOW ....on and on I went , In all honesty it was like talking to a pair of delinquent children who had been caught with their hands in the cookie jar ... then I spoke (more like roared) about the filth and stench in the babies orphanage, why doesnt she get the workers to wash and clean it and keep the babies and their cots at the very least clean...because she doesnt go near the place !!!

But I saved the best till last , I asked how dare she get two weak and spindly little boys to have to carry the burden of her heavy weight when she is standing up , she leans on them and they rock under her weight,,,,all because she is too lazy to stand up ,,,the lazy cow !!!

Her husband sat there like a stunned mullet and hung his head like the weak person he is.

I spent two hours in a meeting with staff from VIDCA and they made it clear they are aware of nearly all volunteers sent to orphanages in Kenya seeing the same issues and corruption as I have seen. But they fear for their jobs and blame GVN for sending volunteers to "work" here especially El-Shaddai , as it is all a sham..

On a light note , after Stephen and Beatrice left we all had a laugh about how funny it was when Beatrice was trying to shout me down and eye-balling me...she didnt stand a chance against my rage towards them.... George said he was "scared" of me (laughing)...It was a relief to have these lovely peoples support and to hear them say God had sent me to this place as it took great courage to speak up against these people....and how brave I am...Lillian blessed me for speaking up for the children !

I cant wait to return to Australia and take up these issues with GVN and the proper authorities.

And I look forward to hearing from past volunteers who have experienced the same things.

Today I am taking the socks and personally giving a pair to the kids and will insist they wear them today....

Cheers........ Carolina

Of all the things I have seen.

I have seen some very sad things here yet at the same time have experienced such love from these amazing children.

My favourite little boy is Patrick , he has HIV and suffers from a dreadful skin condition, he is always sick and at times cant even manage a smile. On the walk home from seven hours at the hospital he was holding my hand softly when he heard a car coming around the corner...this precious boy tightened his grip and steered me off the dirt road. he was "looking after me" and did this again as a crazy bike rider hurtled around another corner. The tightening of his hand on mine is one of the sweetest memories I have of my time here.

Today he was feeling better and when I took him a new warm jacket he was smiling so brightly I thought I would cry....but then , one of the lowest moments here occurred.

I had prepared an African meal for my host family as Lillian was attending a funeral all day, I dont think I have mentioned the poor, tormented "goat" at the orphanage ( he is really a sheep)... he lives on virtually nothing , is tormented with sticks by the kids and has hooves about ten inches long...he is one sorry looking animal who lives only so it can be slaughtered and eaten when (more like if) he ever fattens up. So today I took the following scraps for him. Maise husks , potato peels, onion skins and one tough old cob of maise .

The little grade one kids got home at the same time as I got there and watched transfixed as I emptied my bag of scraps for the "goat" in his pit..... I went to organise some games and looked up to see what the commotion was around the pit , here were five or six little children fighting and sratching around getting the food scraps amongst the stinking rotting old grass and rubbish which is in the pit.

Some of the kids had gotten onion peels and were sucking on them whilst the lucky ones shared the raw tough old corn cob !!!! As for the potato peels they just disappeared .

This absolutely broke my heart , but can you imagine that these kids were smiling as if they were eating hot dogs and fairy floss at the show !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I had arranged a local lady to buy 200 bananas on my behalf from the local growers as the "Pastor" didnt come to collect the fruit from the market as we arranged, so I had no way of transporting anything back , so typical of the bastard to not care about the kids needing food , not to mention that they know what day I bring it for them

.

Well , where there is a will there is a way , and I think I have just introduced the concept of "home delivery" to Kenya.

A lady carried them on her head and bought them to the Orphanage.

So , as is probably fitting , in a space of a few days I have felt elated and loved and then helpless and distraught............................. as my good friend Denise would say ...THIS IS AFRICA ...........

I will be heading home next week to my family and whilst I expected to stay here another two months , I can see that I will be able to work on fixing the disaster that these so called Orphanages present , better from Australia.

It is my intention to gain as much media attention to tell people just what happens ( or doesnt happen) to the things we donate. I hope to blow the lid off the industry which hides under the guise of "charity"... These children and the workers in the Orphanages are no more than money making tools for evil and corrupt people.

My Idea is to raise not only awareness but funds to return and start some sort of "watch-dog" organisation that protects children from such abuse as is seen daily by many people who are helpless to do anything.

My dream is to start an Orphange where children are assessed and healed then sent to a more permanent "Home" which is over-seen by other honest and caring people.

Pictures of this horror Orphange will be posted on this site with in two weeks and you will see exactly what it is I hope to change.

Thanks for taking this journey with me and hopefully we can do something to end the suffering of these beautiful children.

Carolina

Images Taken By Me...

Small steps....

Hi everyone,

Here is the latest update... Things seem to have settled down a bit at the Orphanage, Stephen had words with me about telling VICDA what was going on with the food etc... obviously it has been a bit tense and communication is forced between us. But , I am not there to make friends I am there to feed and nurture the kids to the best of my abilities and thats EXACTLY what I am doing !

I was stunned on Tuesday when he told me to go to the Hospital ( I use that term very lightly) with a teacher and five sick children, the other volunteer came along... I was thrilled to be helping at his request , but it took only minutes once there to realise he sent me so I had to pay all the costs as he did not give the teacher any money at all for treatment or medications !! He is such a devious man !!! Let me say the cost was negligable and Id have paid any way , but it was pointed out to me he ALWAYS does that to the volunteers...

We were there all day but had a great time watching the sick kids eating chips and a sausage in a restaurant...they loved it ! Oh , and how well behaved they were. Obviously The meal was paid for by me as once again no provision was made for lunch by the Pastor"...

Wednesday was spent sorting through a mountain of clothes , more like rags, which the kids wear and this was very rewarding as I mended everything I could and threw out the mouldy ragged things they usually wear. This prompted new clothes to be bought in.

Thursday I went to the market to buy the weeks supply of fruit , bread and jam , Stephen showed no interest , nor did he thank me for the food , instead it was as if he resented me spending the money on food instead of being his puppet and buying what it is that he wanted !!!

Friday I met with my lovely new friend Denise and we had a day in Nairobi , she too, has started to see the very corruption and mis-use of donated goods first hand ! There is little doubt this is a wide spread problem here. One thing is for sure , the children and workers where I am, are starting to benefit , even if only in small ways due to my standing up for what is morally right.

Thats all for this week.....

Cheers.

Moving ahead with a positive out-look

One week in and so much to share.

It is obvious that these children are in so much need , everything from food , adequate shelter , shoes , education , and most of all love and compassion.

Today I purchased plates for them to eat off instead of plastic lids and bits of cardboard , they go to school shivering when there are bales of warm clothes locked up ( where they hide the toys and socks and fruit i bought !

It is beyond me why the owners lock everything up as no-one has a key.

The children have started calling me nanna and line up for their little faces to be gently washed and dried. I have not seen the owners for two days now and will ask for a key.

The workers do what they can but it simply is like an animal shelter in the so called Orphanage.

Today I had a breakthrough with Dennis who is about seven who is physically and mentally disabled...first he came to me for a wash and loved it , if his smile was worth money it was a billion dollars , then this afternoon he stood near me while i was playing skippy with other kids...I put the rope in his hand and he didnt take his eyes off me as he turn the rope , the other kids were agitated as they tried to tell me he couldnt do it ...well he was FANTASTIC at it,,,, even the workers came to watch him !!!

You see , nothing is impossible..... despite the filth and disease and harsh conditions I am surrounded by I feel my heart soaring every time I walk into the Orphanage.

Must go as Beautiful Gillian an English girl who is with me at ElShaddai has just been told that Anne one of the workers has been diagnosed as having Typhoid so we must look it up to see how we can prevent the kids getting it .... thank goodness for my Vaccinations.

Cheers Carolina

setting up the basics

Today I am setting up a basic washing house for the children as they dont have a wash tub or bath.

All of the children suffer from ringworm , scabies and chicken pox. Not to mention several have AIDS , so it is an urgent requirement that the workers and volunteers learn basic hygiene and infection control.

Later in the day I am going to market to arrange a weekly delivery of fresh oranges and carrots and bananas to add to their diet of maize flour mixed with water which fills their tummies but has NO nutritional value at all.

To say these children live in absolute squalor is an understatement, but still they open their arms and smile as though they are not hungry or sick. They even fight with each other to push into the front of the queue to get a hug or food etc...

The owners of the orphanage seem to concentrate on the big things such as buying land and building a bigger orphanage and educating the kids, but the most basics are forgotten , not even a band-aid or antiseptic cream in the place , nor milk for the children...these food products and milk are cheap as the farmers around them are selling at the smallest of prices...not sure what the "owners" do with the donations they DO get , however they own three orphanages and as time goes on I will see what is what.

I will ask anyone who cares to donate towards the new bathroom and weekly food bill etc , to pledge an amount on my face-book and when there is a sufficient amount I will post a bank account in which you can deposit it.

Please give as much as you can , I will keep you posted.

Cheers Carolina