Tuesday, December 02, 2008

Kids for Kenya Update

29 November 2008

Dear Kids for Kenya parents,
Happy holidays to you all. This is an update on our preparations for the trip to Nairobi coming up in March. The Kenya morning class has been going relatively smoothly. Aside from some early morning struggles with tardiness, students have been engaging in learning about history and cultures of Africa. We have been looking at ancient history and are transitioning into learning about colonialism.
We were greatly pleased and honored to have hosted Beatrice Anunda, founder and director of our sister school in Nairobi, Humble Hearts. Beatrice was able to meet with the Kids for Kenya and lead a few of our classes. We are sincerely grateful for her lessons in pronunciation of Kiswahili words which far outshined our own bumbling attempts. As part of Beatrice’s visit, and as regular parts of the class, we offer a “Trip Reality” time in which we focus on the logistics, the questions, and the emotions surrounding the trip.
Polly and I were able to conference with most students individually to address concerns or questions about the trip. Many students expressed anxiety about the pending deadline for the initial payment. We have moved back the deadline for the first payment to January 10th. Parents or students should feel free to contact Polly or myself about any concerns associated with the trip, financial or otherwise. Most students have begun personal fundraising efforts, doing odd jobs, babysitting, hosting musical performances, writing letters of support to family and friends, creating online sites at which to donate money, or making crafts to sell for the holidays. We are happy to help students brainstorm and carry out fund raising schemes. Let us know if we can help.
We are about to launch this year’s Shop Africa drive in which we sell hand-made Kenyan crafts, cards, and jewelry at the display case in the lobby at Trillium in order to send money directly to Humble Hearts. We also are pleased to be offering again gift certificates for a variety of much needed items, such as food, clothing, and basic health care supplies. Items may be purchased in the name of a friend or relative and given as a holiday present.
Again, please let us know if we can answer any questions or address concerns about the trip. We are thrilled to have this terrific opportunity.

Best,
Ken and Polly
Ken@TrilliumCharterSchool.org, Polly@TrilliumCharterSchool.org