I walk the children to school in the morning, what a hoot. They never lack words, excitement or humor. I have loved every minute of these mornings, despite rising daily at 5:00am.
On Monday, Everline and our new social worker, Mercy, went to Everline's first CCI meeting, held at the new Chidlren's Department offices in a remote place called Kisames. Kisames is much easier to get to from WWC - it's out in the bush like we are. I had the compound to myself, with Jonathan and Wilson, our Maasai security. All staff had gone into town to update their annual documentation which keeps us fully in compliance. Food handling and child care certification for the matrons, social security, health insurance and the all important good conduct certificates were renewed. Even I have a good conduct certificate, courtesy of the local police department. When Jonathan, Wilson and I weren't sitting in the shade drinking tea and eating fresh mondazi (flat donuts!) I was trampling around the compound inspecting everything with a fine toothed comb, and chatting with our shamba co-workers. I spent hours in the office pouring over receipts which I had spread over the entire office floor. Incomplete records on our children are now well documented. Silantoi is now sacked, and I enjoyed doing it. Full disclosure:
I didn't enjoy doing it, I loved doing it. I've waited a long time for this moment and covered all my bases. She has zero recourse and knows it.
Granny Karanja, Everline me
"Pastor Pete" as we all know and love Peter Karanja.
Yesterday, Everline, Mercy and I went to visit Mama Loise. I try to visit Mama Loise on each of my trips, but this trip was a must-do. Loise is our most vulnerable child, who has now been with us for three years. Loise came to us as a critical rescue. She was 9 or 10 (we still don't know) and had been violently attacked. Loise had never been to school, and spoke only her tribal language, Maasai. Mama Loise at the time was only 27 and had 6 children. To say she lives in abject poverty is a gross understatement. She lives about 45km from us, half way to Magadi, one of the hottest places on the planet. When we arrived, the heat hit us all like a wall, and finding shade was a challenge.
Loise's brother Samuel
Dan
Sister Presia
Everline, Mercy and the family
These children, in the time I have known them, have grown only slightly. I truly feared for their lives since I left Kenya in March. Life is difficult enough without a pandemic to wipe away any chance of receiving medical care, food or water. By some miracle, this family is in tact.
Mama Loise was so very happy to see us. Her last encounter with Tony was a dreadful one. She had been told, when she called Tony to find out how Loise was doing: "Never bother me again, I will not take your calls." Two weeks ago, Everline finally tracked her down by utilizing our security, who found her through their own contacts in the bush. They invited her to Kiserian to meet, but she was reluctant. When she finally agreed to meet Everline and Jonathan, she was quiet and morose. Everline recounted the moment: Mama Loise thought we called her to tell her that her child had died. She didn't believe us when we told her that Loise is alive, in school and doing very well. So, we brought her to WWC, and she confessed she thought she was being brought to see Loise's burial. When she finally saw her daughter, she fell to the ground."
Mama Loise spent the night at WWC with her daughter. We have a little house in the back of the compound we built over a year ago, specifically for guardians who come from a distance, so that they have a place to sleep. Mama Loise and Loise chose to sleep together in the same bed, in the dorm.
Today, Loise speaks Kiswahili, English, Maasai (she is forgetting her native tongue, however) and now? She and her classmates are learning French in their new school. She has skipped a grade and is number 1 in her class.
This morning, I beat the kids to the kitchen for tea, at 5:30am.
Off we went to school, where we were met by Dr. Miner, the Owner/Headmaster. He and his wife are so lovely and gracious, I love being in their company. After all the hugs, the children bolted through the gates, excited to start their day. Dr, Miner took me aside to tell me how important it is to the children that I drop them off and pick them up each evening. "As long as I am able, I will be doing this, God willing."
I had to get to the Nairobi lab for my last * negative * covid test before my departure on Friday night. Just as we started heading back to WWC, I got notification from KLM that I need a rapid antibody test at JKIA before departure. No problem. Scheduled. This trip has been worth every second. I'll go through multiple tests to do it all over again, and will....as soon as possible. For many moments during the past days, I have forgotten that Covid existed. This is not to say that I have been careless, because I have not. Covid just doesn't exist here, and it has been liberating.
We stopped at the top of our hill to check in with the fundi who is building our new security gates - one on the lot where nyumba yangu is, and the other at the Community Center.
These new gates will be installed on Friday
The biggest news of the day is, the children got their tablets! The excitement was palpable and so loud, that little Kanini was covering her ears with her hands.
Well, not here she wasn't! This child hated the car when she came to us. Now, she sits in the front seat of the bus to go to school.
Everline and I were scrambling like mad women to set up the tablets with the correct settings. We both said they will get no sleep tonight if we don't put the tablets in the office, which we did. They all wrote their names on the boxes and turned them in so we could charge them.
Josie's box has a label on it now: "This is Josie's tablet. Please do not touch." She is so proud, they all are!
On October 14, my attorney returned to court to receive directions on the way forward. We had filed another application on Tony's contempt, the week before. At the hearing, the Judge put the contempt aside, and directed Tony's attorney to provide us with their plan to return the children so that we could initiate this move. Further, they were told to meet with us virtually. Tony's attorney was ill prepared; he hadn't done any of the prerequisite filing with the court, or responded to us on the applications, and was directed to do both. The next hearing would be January 20, 2021. We set up a virtual meeting for October 19th. Tony balked, and refused to show up without Karera, whom he needed to hold his hand. This was all my attorney needed to prove Karera, a government agent, was acting in collusion with Tony and Silantoi (our now ex-social worker). He had to be persuaded to go to his attorney's office and sign in, and speak with me.
Tony and his lawyer had to take a (mental) break. Mine was enjoying this scene, as was I, because I had the upper hand. When they came back to the screen, I said I would restore funding to WWC as soon as the children were returned, glaring at Tony, whose eyes were bigger than saucers: Everline Omenya is to be appointed General Manager, and will receive funds for all expenditures." The other side argued this profusely. Tony agreed to an interim manager, anyone but Everline. "Never. You will direct from the sidelines and I am having none of this. This discussion is over." We simply did exactly as we wanted to. Just as Tony had been doing for the past month, by ignoring the law. We didn't ignore the law, we just bulldozed over Tony's refusal to agree to Everline taking over, and stated that he did, in fact, agree. Everline signed a new contract that night.
That night, Tony showed up to berate the staff and direct them get off the compound. The next day, Everline hired Wilson and Jonathan, two esteemed gentlemen/Tribal Elders and community leaders as our additional security. Two days later, Matron Purity and Tony showed up at WWC with the 10 children Tony had removed to the other rescue center. Tony still didn't get the memo - or maybe he did - that he wasn't to direct anyone, and began a month long nightmare of directing Purity from the sidelines. Everline and I covered our bases according to our HR policies at WWC: two verbal warnings, one written and termination. I was gearing up to sack her, but needed to be 100% in compliance before making this final move. We were just about over the hump.
For now, I must retire. Tomorrow is my last day here at WWC. It's been extraordinary being here in Kenya for the past 10 days. A perfectly timed trip, coming to a rapid close.
Lala salama, tuonane baadaye,
Simmie and Njeri
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