New Uniform Jumpers for Ndii-ini Primary School!

Posted on by Jenn Winter
Students at Ndia-ini Primary School show off their new uniform jumpers!
Students at Ndia-ini Primary School show off their new uniform jumpers!

Imagine the excitement of the the students at Ndii-ini Primary School in Nairobi last month when they arrived at school to find brand new uniform jumpers waiting for them! K.I.D.S. Initiatives of Canada kindly donated the jumpers for the 529 students at Ndii-ini and will continue their support in the future with annual distribution trips.

K.I.D.S. (Kenya Initiative for Development and Sustainability)  is a Canadian organization that promotes development, enrichment and sustainable solutions through educational programs and local fundraising in Canada. VICDA is proud to be an international partner of K.I.D.S. Initiative in Kenya and looks forward to their next visit!

Ndii-ini Primary School is located in the Kahawa area of Nairobi and has been in operation since the 1950’s. VICDA has worked with the school since 2009 and regularly places volunteers there. If you are interested in volunteering with VICDA at Ndii-ini, please refer to the volunteer page. K.I.D.S. Initiatives is always looking at new projects to support in order to meet the schools needs. If you would like to support their efforts, please refer to their website.

Spirulina Project

Posted on by Jenn Winter

DSC00037Spirulina is a blue-green algae that is grown in shallow water and offers numerous nutritional benefits. Since May one of VICDA’s projects has been growing and harvesting this algae in order to help deliver sustainable nutrition to children in VICDA’s many projects. Through this project, VICDA hopes to assist up to 50,000 people this year.

Quick facts about spirulina:

  • Spirulina possesses nutritional qualities of both plant and animal proteins but lacks cellulose so it is easily assimilated into the body.
  • Fresh spirulina contains the most protein of any substance known to man – 20 times more than beef, 20 times more than soy and 40 times more than corn.
  • When harvested spirulina is like a green paste and can either be consumed that way or can be dried and consumed in capsules.
  • Spirulina consumed 5-6 tons of carbon dioxide per hectare and emits over 16 tons of oxygen annually. It also doesn’t require soil to grow, making it an ideal crop for communities with limited resources and increased population.
  • Though spirulina requires water to grow, it uses significantly less water than other crops and once the harvested the water can be collected and reused.

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DSC00035DSC00033VICDA is very excited about this new, self-sustaining project. It will supply quality nutrition to so many hungry, malnourished children. In addition to being a good source of protein and nutrition, spirulina has been shown to boost immune systems, fight common illnesses and ailments such as anemia, acidosis and cataracts and has been shown to lower risks of strokes and cancer.

More information about the health benefits of spirulina can be found here.

Supporting VICDA and Looking Stylish!

Posted on by Jenn Winter

Butterfly BagThe mission of Hidden Baby is simple. They believe that “fashion should be about creating beauty and social change. Every Hidden Baby product has a baby hidden within the design to represent babies hidden from society’s sight.” A portion of the profits from all Hidden Baby sales is, then, donated to an organization that helps abandoned and forgotten children around the world. The Hidden Baby story is one of sisters coming together and merging their talents to create a fashion line that isn’t only unique and beautiful, but also sheds light on real life Hidden Babies. Founders Kelsey the artist and Courtney the activist, the sisters behind the line, were first inspired after visiting Happy Life Orphanage, in Kenya.

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Happy Life Milk

Happy Life Children’s Home is an orphanage located on the outskirts of Nairobi. VICDA has been supporting this incredible project for several years by placing GVN Volunteers at the project, providing food, healthcare, baby clothes and toys. Happy Life’s vision is to provide a caring home for abandoned babies in Kenya with the ultimate goal of adopting these children out to loving new parents. There is a spirit of love and joy at Happy Life and the amazing staff and volunteers work hard to create a feeling of family for the children in residence.

Happy Life

Almost all of the babies at Happy Life Children’s Home were abandoned and rescued and delivered to the orphanage and many of the babies at Happy Life were born premature and abandoned in Nairobi area hospitals. Because of this, several children at Happy Life require special medical treatment and regular doctor visits. This is an added cost to caring for children, and something that VICDA and their partners have assisted with in the past. Read more about the adorable little residents of Happy Life. Also take a moment to read about Niamh’s experience volunteering at Happy Life Children’s Home through VICDA.

Peacock Scarf Hidden Baby

Through the end of February, Hidden Baby has committed to donating 10% of their profits directly to Happy Life Children’s Home. Kelsey explains the reasons behind this decision on the Hidden Baby Blog. Many of the Hidden Baby items would make excellent Valentine’s Day gifts. And remember, every purchase made is also a gift to Happy Life Children’s Home and supports these real life Hidden Babies.

2013 Voluntourism Dates Announced!

Posted on by Jenn Winter

Great news! We’ve just announced the dates and itinerary for the 2013 Voluntourism trip! This is a fantastic opportunity to both see the beautiful land of Kenya and to serve. Be sure to check out trip details and feel free to contact us with any questions!

This trip is perfect for:

  • Families! We intentionally scheduled the trip between Summer Camps and the start of school so that families can participate. This is a fabulous and safe way to show your children another part of the world and for them to make lasting memories!
  • Teachers! Again, the scheduling of this trip allows teachers to be a part of it! More than half of the camp residents are children and we are seeking enthusiastic teachers to be a part of this experience!
  • Second time travelers! You may have gone on a safari in Kenya or another part of Africa, but this is a new experience for most travelers – even seasoned ones.
  • Professionals with limited time off! We pack a lot into this weeklong trip, this is a great way to both see and experience Kenya with just one week off of work.
  • Doctors! It’s a medical camp after all, your skills will certainly be put to use!

Eat So They Can – Kenya Distribution Rundown

Posted on by Jenn Winter

VICDA has worked with GVN (Global Volunteer Network) for several years and their relationship has evolved from a simple volunteer program into so much more.  Eat So They Can is a program that is run by GVN Foundation.  Money is raised from dinner parties that are hosted all around the world.  Teams are then sent to various countries where GVN is active and the funds are distributed in the form of food, medicine, building materials and other supplies.  Take a second to read about the recent distribution in Kenya that helped many of VICDA’s projects including Happy Life Children’s Home, Cheryl’s School, the IDP programs and Shelter Children’s Home.

Eat So They Can in Kenya!

Posted on by Jenn Winter

Contest winner’s from 2011’s Eat So They Can worldwide dinner party are now in Kenya distributing food and supplies with VICDA, GVN’s Kenyan partner.  Want to join them next year?  Host an Eat So They Can dinner to help raise funds for GVN Foundation’s many projects.  VICDA projects have benefitted greatly from this program ranging from school feeding programs to desks and text books.  Visit the Eat So They Can blog to read more!

Niamh, a volunteer at Happy Life

What’s more, GVN Foundation’s focus this month is KENYA!  GVN Foundation is partnering with Happy Life Children’s Home to bring attention to abandoned babies, a serious problem in Nairobi.  Stylish handbags are being sold through their website to benefit this fantastic project.  VICDA has been placing volunteers at Happy Life for several years and has a positive relationship with the organization.

Project Spotlight #1: Early Childhood Education in IDP Resettlement Camps

Posted on by Jenn Winter

In November and December 2011 VICDA helped to establish Early Childhood Education classes in five of the IDP resettlement camps.  These include Giwa Farm, Gitumba Farm, Ndatho Farm, Benjamin and Banita Farms.  Early Childhood Education targets children between the ages of two and a half and eight years old who are not able to walk far distances to the nearest Primary School facilities in their neighborhood.  VICDA also ensured that these established Early Childhood Education Centers in the camps had a feeding program for the first semester of school.  This porridge program will help keep children in school and will provide good nutrition and health.  Children who receive the porridge will be able to better concentrate on their studies.

Children at Giwa learn in their new classroom

The IDP’s who resettled at Giwa Farm first started a school for the young children at the camp.  Classes were held in a makeshift classroom, an old, abandoned structure that also housed goats and chickens. This environment was not a good one for learning.  What is more, the children did not have a toilet to use creating unsanitary conditions.  Through the support of partners and donors, VICDA has been able to successfully renovate one of the old structures into a classroom.  The structure also has an office for the teachers.  A kitchen has been built to assist in the porridge program and two toilets – one girls and one boys – have been constructed.

Children coming to learn at the school are between the ages of 2 and 6 years.  One more partner has generously supplied tables and chairs for the children.  The young children of Giwa will now be able to study comfortably in their new classroom!

The exterior of the renovated classroom at Giwa

If you would like to help VICDA with their Early Childhood projects in the IDP camps, please consider contributing to the feeding program.  VICDA is always looking for generous donors to contribute to their school feeding programs since nutrition and health are so important and, with rising food prices, it’s harder than ever for children in Kenya to eat well.  If you ware interested in the Giwa project specifically, we hope that you will consider the upcoming Voluntourism Trip.