Empower Women in Kenya with Job Skills Training

While many of us work to return to our previous routines, I hope you are remaining safe and in good health. As I have shared with you before, you hold a special place in our hearts, so we encourage you to continue to care for your own needs and those of your loved ones before sharing your financial resources in support of our missions. Also, please know that we continue to pray for you, especially during these challenging months.

As we move forward in supporting the work of our Missionaries and those they serve, I want to let you know that a few weeks ago, I received a letter from Sr. Agnes Nduku — a Missionary Sister working in Ruai, a community just outside of Nairobi, Kenya, in East Africa. If you are able to help, I hope you will consider joining us in responding to Sr. Agnes’ letter.

“Ruai is a somewhat rural community about 12 miles from Nairobi,” Sr. Agnes writes, “but many more people are moving here nearly every month. The area is filled with those who cannot afford to live in Nairobi . . . so the majority of the people living here are quite poor — single mothers, children who live on their own, and the elderly.”

“One of the greatest concerns among the poorest individuals is high unemployment,” her letter continues. “Often here, the reason for being unemployed is not due to a lack of jobs, but the lack of job skills and training. Many of the single mothers did not attend school as children so they do not have the skills to work. At the same time, many of the young adults dropped out of school because their parents may have been too poor to pay the school fees. Without jobs, they are left to beg for assistance from anyone who can help.”

“A few years ago, we created a nursery school that provides single mothers with childcare while they are working. This is a big help for many! Unfortunately, there are still a great number of young women as well as other young adults who need job skills training. With that in mind, we purchased a tract of land and have begun constructing two classrooms that will be used for education and training.”

“The local people have donated their time, hands and sweat for labor. They have also provided cement, bricks, lumber, paint and the other materials needed to get the classrooms finished. However, we still need help in purchasing desks, chairs, tables, cupboards and
specific equipment for training. Among the machines still needed are sewing and embroidery machines, equipment for hairdressing and salon work, knitting machines, and desktop computers for the students to learn those skills as well. We are hoping there is some way you can help us.”

You and I both know what a difference a job can make in someone’s life! In an effort to help those out of work, perhaps we can encourage our local civic leaders to host job fairs — especially when so many people cannot travel for interviews. We can also encourage our local schools to provide “adult education evenings” — providing free computer training to older adults trying to re-enter the work force. Every little bit helps!

It would also be an incredible help to Sr. Agnes and the young mothers of Ruai if you could send a donation to help them equip the job skills classrooms! Your donation could provide a sewing machine, a commercial hair drier or one of the other items they need. While I am hoping that we can raise $32,000 for this and other projects of the Missionaries of Africa — any donation you can send will be used to help our Missionaries and the people we serve. Thank you again for your continued kindness.

 

Your Missionary Friend,

Denis P. Pringle
Director of Development