There is truly no substitution for “going to the field” to understand the importance of the work, the impact the donors have made and the commitment of the PFC staff.
Today I am in Migori which is very close to Lake Victoria. We are here to attend tomorrow’s graduation of the first class of the PFC/Bob Okello computer school. This is our 5th computer school in Kenya opening in January with 7 computers donated by our wonderful partners ITT Tech. With only 7 computers and one teacher they are graduating 50 students tomorrow. They run 4 sessions a day with sometimes four students to one computer.
The school and the staff really touched me. They have taken what we have shared with them and done such amazing work! The classroom was clean, organized and so humble. They take good care of the computers covering them at night with pillow cases to protect them from dust.
And, the gratitude they show our staff is humbling. They are so appreciative of everything big or small that the PFC staff do to help them.
The ceremony for graduation is from 9-4:30. When we commented it seemed long they told us that they understood we had other things to do and they could shorten it – but they said to them and the graduates this is a big day of celebration!
In a place of extreme poverty, high unemployment, illiteracy you sometimes feel hopeless – but this small computer school with its 7 computers is providing hope to their 50 graduates – hope for jobs, hope to change their lives and the lives of their children. And, they already have filled the classes for this next session.
I hope we can bring them more computers….imagine how many more they can help.
From western Kenya,
Connie Sent via BlackBerry by AT&T
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