Thursday: Nyeri, The Ark and The Ministry of Hauling

They named him Lucky John because he was lucky to be alive.  That’s how the baby was named by the sisters in the St. John’s mission hospital near Nyeri, in the central highlands of Kenya.  His HIV-positive mother had arrived a week earlier, given birth, contracted meningitis, and never recovered, dying at the hospital.  The sisters did their best to care for him, but he was deathly ill and undernourished a year later when Gabriel Ndiritu, with the assistance of the local police, found him and initiated the process that allowed Gabriel to take him to the Nyeri home and may soon lead to his adoption.  So Lucky John’s name continues to ring true.

Natalia Furaha and Lucky John.
Natalia's Swahili name Furaha
means "Celebrate."

 

Nyeri staff includes Veronica Wambui,
Charity Muthoni, Purity Wachuku,
Josline Gicuku,and Charity Gitau.

Lucky John’s was only one of the many stories we heard Thursday night from Nyeri co-directors  Gabriel and Monica Ndiritu when they joined us for dinner.  Gabriel clearly thrives on rescuing babies.  You can see it in his hazel eyes when he talks about it:  He does it because it’s the right thing to do, but he also does if for the thrill of the chase.  In doing so, he plays the roles of social worker, detective, salesman, tech consultant (he’s getting one of the three donated laptops, by the way), and trusted member of the community, all at once.  At any given time he knows how many babies are out there who need to be brought in to the Nyeri home (five as of Thursday night), how many beds he has available (three), and how many beds may free up in the next day or so (one more, if his work Friday on behalf of Grace Pendu’s adoption pays off).  And in the glovebox of his car he keeps letters of release from local police agencies – on their letterhead! – ready for signatures when the time is right to take another baby home.

Gabriel and Monica with the sons Lawrence (left) and Caleb.



Grace Pendu's adoption was
in the works Friday.



Osteen Mwamba



It was hard to leave Nyeri, especially after such a short stay.  The home there has its own character:  small, warm, and intimate, yet charged with the energy of Gabriel’s personality and his young family.  And it’s a small, close staff, easy to get to know, yet laser-focused on the care of their babies .  On top of all that, the landscape surrounding the home is just as striking; the kind of place that makes you want to change your plans and stay a couple more days just to have a chance to take in some more.  I’ll definitely be back.

Eli's coming:  Eli William's first steps.

Simon Mwenda.

It was a long, hot drive back to Nairobi Thursday afternoon.  I rode shotgun to Joseph’s driving and, without realizing it, fried my face to a crisp in the equatorial sun microwaving through the windshield.  When we got back to Nairobi, I took a quick dip in the Natural Oaks pool, and we headed back out to visit the Ark.  This was a little bit of a bonus for me; I had heard great things about the Ark, but hadn’t gotten to visit it on my last trip, and didn’t think we’d be able to squeeze it in on this one. 

The Ark is home to 10 elementary-school-aged kids who grew up in one of the other homes, but whose special needs have left them unadopted.  Like the kids in Nakuru’s Bethel House, they live family-style with three aunties and go to school nearby.  It's located in a nice residential part of Nairobi not far from the Kilimani home.  Their private school is among the best in the city.

Anton and Nigel at The Ark.

Because we dropped by unannounced, and just as the kids were finishing their homework and getting ready for dinner, it was a quick visit, and a little bit crazy.   All the kids know Jane and knew she’d bring them a surprise or two.This time it was brand-new backpacks from Winston-Salem’s Amani office.  They were a huge hit.

A long but fun day ended with packing for our departure the next day, Friday.  Packing at the end of an Amani trip serves as the last rites in a phenomenon Mary Mac dubbed “The Ministry of Hauling”  -- as in hauling all the gifts from the States to Kenya, then separating and hauling gifts to each of the separate homes, then buying beads and goods from the markets and hauling them to the condos, then packing it all again and hauling it home, then packing up the beads and goods and hauling them to the sales.  You get the picture.



Immersed in the Ministry of Hauling.



"It's all about the babies."  That's become our group's theme as our stay in Kenya has unfolded.  Of course the trip was also about the people we met, and the beautiful country we got to know a little better, and the friendships we made.  We kept telling ourselves, though, that it's all about the babies.  As I look at this picture on our final night, I realize the full circle of our adventure.  The photo was taken around 11 pm after a day that started with a prayer of thanks led by five-year-old Lawrence Ndiritu at the Nyeri home, included a blistering but scenic drive along the slopes of Mt. Kenya to Nairobi, and ended playing with a family of 10 kids after homework at The Ark, before dinner with my new friends at the Italian Village and a moonlit walk home to the Natural Oaks.  You can't tell from the photo, but my shirt is soaked with sweat from who knows how many trips up and down the four flights of stairs of the condo, and my suitcase is filled with memories from a great trip:  Kazuri beads, soapstone hearts and hippos, market earrings, wooden bowls and letter openers, and pashmina scarves -- all for sale to friends of Amani, and mixed in with my other gifts and worn clothes grimy with red Kenyan clay.  It has been a full day and a full trip, the kind that makes me wonder if my name isn't Lucky John, too.