A new group of kids
ready to start the Maisha Mema Clubhouse program in the
Soweto slums. They were identified in November,
and formally joined the program in January 2008. And
with this group, we have passed 200 kids in the program,
standing now at 209. We welcome these new boys and
girls, and are happy that more kids can have a Better
Life!
Some
of the activities going on in Clubhouse:
Sports.
We have
three boys' team who are playing in a league there, a small boys' football team, and
two girls' team - all in Soweto. We also hope to have some light athletic activities
running, and a volleyball team. See
the article Shooting
Goals!
Choir.
In Soweto, we have a choir consisting of children
from the slums. They are occasionally performing in churches,
and have been a great success.
Dancing.
A team in Soweto is performing several places.
They rehearse in Clubhouse with great
enthusiasm.
Acrobatics.
We
both have a boys' acrobatic team and a girls'
acrobatic team. They are performing in
functions in Clubhouse, but will soon take their
performance outside also. It is quite
spectacuklar!
Drama.
When the children are playing a drama, it is
much easier to understand - and pass on - a message.
Popular
topics may be about alcoholism, drugs, HIV, family-life
and so on.
Art and Craft.
In
Clubhouse, the children are encouraged to do art
and crafts. In this way, they get a better self-image
when they see they can master this, and also get some
skills for the future. All of them are talented!
Bible Studies.
Through
down-to-earth-level Bible-studies coupled with singing
and other activities, we want the children to know the
Bible in order for them to take a stand for Jesus and achieve
good moral standards.
Outdoor Activities.
Camping and other outings are on the program!
These
activities mainly go on during the school holidays, and
are partly depending on donors to make a contribution
towards this.
Environmental Care.
Clean-ups in the slums are regularly exercised.
The children - but also their parents - are made to be
aware of their environment and develop good attitudes.
Ultimately, this is benefiting the whole community.
Blue
Cross Clubs.
Please
check out the Blue Cross
page for information about these!
Article by Fredrick Oguttu where he reflects on "TEARS".
Well worth reading!
The
Clubhouse
in Soweto and the activities around this,
is our main outreach work, and started late
1999. The Clubhouse
is first of all a
social meeting-place for the children in our
program. They get some help with homework, some simple
tuition, participate in sports
and games, and do some art and craft.
As
many of these children are seriously affected by
the poor sanitary conditions in the slums, we often
have to treat them for ringworms or internal worms
in addition to dressing wounds and exercising first
aid. All the children - either they go to school
or not - are covered by this medical security. The
children are also participating in singing, arts
and crafts and sports
The team in Soweto consists of Florence, who is also the
overall social worker in Maisha Mema, Florence, Maria, Julius, Kwame and Fred.
We support
altogether
around 100 children from the Soweto slums - all of whom
are in school!
Football and other sports activities
make sure they use their bodies in a healthy and friendship
building way. Especially some of the girls, who otherwise
are more or less treated like dirt according to the customs
in the slums, have seen their self-image grow considerably
through these activities!
And as the same activities also run in the school holidays,
we hinder the kids in falling back to destructive habits
like drugs, casual sex and roaming around. This way, the
Clubhouse activities are definitely also a social rehabilitation
program.
CLUBHOUSE is also meant to be lots of
fun!
We want the children to enjoy being
there. Serious school work must be as natural as
laughter! We all need this! One of the means
in achieving this is to invite people to come and
perform and interact with the children. Like
Ambassada (right) in March 2005.
Nation didn't get all the facts
right, though. We don't have a children's home in Kayole and
Miss Kenya didn't show up... But the children - and
grownups too! - had a great time with Ambassada.
In 2004 Kayamba Africa (see right
below) visited
us and performed in Clubhouse, and the year before Miss
Kenya visited the children in Doonholm together with a
delegation from Nairobi Chapel.
All for free, of course!
Thank you for giving us great joy!
Informal
Adult Education!
Although
we in a small scale always have considered the parents
of the children, we now
offer Informal Adult Education to interested parents.
In addition to literacy classes
where parents can learn how to read and write, we
also offer monthly workshops to the parents.
Here
they are taught different topics like
family planning, children’s rights, self esteem, abuse,
discipline, Aids, etc.
Some
of the parents have expressed that they really
appreciate the initiative!
A
group from Randaberg (close to Stavanger) visited us in
the Spring of 2006. A number of people in Randaberg are
sponsors for children in Maisha Mama. Two of
the girls in Clubhouse here get presents sent with the group
for them.
It looks quite
impressing when our footballboys and -girls are all dressed up! Pål (see
Who We Are) came in October
2006 with a lot
of new clothes from Norway, and the kids in Soweto
surely appreciated! Thank you to the kind
sponsors!
Brian
Munene became best Maisha Mema student in the Kenya
Certificate of Primary Education 2006, scoring 403
out of a possible 500! He was the "star" in our
Prize Giving ceremony in Clubhouse, Soweto 5th
January.
Just a smile away!
"Life happens, life is so busy and life
goes on. Yet it’s a child’s right to receive
attention and guidance in every little thing, but is
this true in the ghetto? ... Feelings are repressed,
questions unasked, any sign of weakness loathed ... If I
can get a kid to smile, just a smile, my day is well
spent. A hearty laugh the better, but just a smile
is my bargain - a smile that says someone is there
for me, someone cares and life can be
good! That is what makes my day" (Fred
Oguttu, coordinator of the Maisha Mema Clubhouse program
in the Soweto slums, Nairobi).
Just a smile away!
When John got
a new sister,
he was visibly proud of her, and told everybody that "this is
my sister!"
The world
would be a better place to live for us all if
we were proud of each other, and
treated each other like loving brothers and sisters!
Thanks!
- to all who are
supporting us!
Below you'll
find some pictures from the first page we made about
Clubhouse. We were then in very different
buildings, and we have come a long way since then!
But anyway, they have kind of sentimental value, so we
include them still:
(the old Clubhouse...)
If you want to read some
stories about some of these children, look here:
Case
Studies
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.jpg)
(the old Clubhouse...)
