This campaign is raising funds on behalf of Frank Educational Centre, a community school located in the Ngando slum, Nairobi, Kenya. The aim of this fundraising is to secure a new plot of land for the school, which is currently facing eviction from its current premises, and to rebuild it, as well as to take steps towards ensuring the future sustainability of the school and give the children a secure place to reach for their dreams.

- THE PICTURE -

Picture this:

60% are orphans; 10% are raised by a single parent; 10% are ‘street kids’, young boys and girls who have no home to call their own; 20% are from HIV/AIDS affected families.

       These are the demographics of the student population at Frank Educational Centre. Sobering as these statistics are, they do not tell the whole story. 

       They do not tell the story of a boy who watched his family members slaughtered and carved up before his very eyes in the post-election ethnic violence of ’07 –’08. He stopped his schooling for some years, and is now of an age where others are attending college, while he still receives instruction at a primary school.

       They do not tell the story of two siblings, aged 7 and 5, who wandered around the streets daily in search of alms until Joseph, the headmaster chanced upon them and brought them to the school. 

       They do not tell the story of a girl who was greeted on the streets by a stranger, only to find herself waking up and realizing that she had been raped. 

    They do not tell the story of many of the children, whose only bit of daily sustenance come in the form of ugali (starch cake made of cornmeal) and sukuma wiki (collard greens) which they get at lunch time, courtesy of the generosity of friends of the school. 

       They do not tell the story of how most of the children are infected with intestinal parasites that leech from them what little nutrients that they are already ingesting because until just recently, the school was unable to afford the most basic of hygiene amenities like clean water and soap.

     Neither do these demographics tell of the dreams and aspirations of these children. Some want to be doctors, some pilots, some lawyers, some artists, and some teachers.  

       They do not tell of a team of volunteer teachers who dedicate 12 hours of their lives each day to build a future for these children. 

       They do not tell of the sparkle in the eye of children as they learn of nouns and verbs, addition and subtraction, mountains and rivers, and of faraway places. 

       They do not tell of the songs sung in classes, or of hands extended to a child who fell, nor of other magical moments woven into the daily routine.

- THE SCHOOL -

       Frank Education Centre is a community school that was established in 2005 by a young Joseph Oballah, who still heads the school today. It began with 3 children Joseph found wandering on the streets and is now a school attended to by over 200 students from nursery level up to class 8.

       Originally located in the Kibera slum, it was forcibly relocated to its current location during the post-election violence of '07 – '08, when the school was burnt down. The goal of the school has always been to empower the community by keeping kids off the streets and to provide for them, as much as possible, a meaningful education. The school's motto, "The past has no authority to dictate our future" reflects the school's desire to teach its students the value of self-empowerment, of resilience and imbue in them an audacity to reach for a future that carries hope.

       The school is run by Joseph and a group of teachers who teach on a fully voluntary basis. Yes, you saw that right. These teachers, some receiving tertiary education, some struggling to make their own ends meet, work 12 hours a day, 6 days a week without pay. But even this does little justice in illustrating the dedication and care that they show to their students. In another world, in another reality, led by this amazing team of teachers, it might be that the majority of Frank's students would go on and succeed in life. But, such is not the case.

       Unfortunately, situated in the Ngando slum where extreme poverty makes its presence keenly felt, Frank never had the ability to be self-sustaining. Its only sources of income are the school fees paid by families who can afford to, the generosity of past international volunteers, and whatever small-scale economic activities it manages to carry out during the school holidays, a collective effort by the teachers and students.

       Since January this year, Frank has been fortunate enough to work with and receive the support of a local NGO, AHI, which, amongst other initiatives, launched drives to provide the children with textbooks and new uniforms, as well as connect international volunteers with the school. But, the meager amount of money trickling through is simply not enough to support the needs of Frank. There were many situations where we sat down with Joseph and had lengthy discussions about how to pay the next month’s rent, or restock the food supply which runs out in a week, or to cover the medical expenses of a child in need of emergency medical treatment and whose parents are conspicuously absent. To make matters worse, the school has just been served an eviction notice, and has to vacate its current premises by this December.

       But there could be a silver lining to this unfortunate turn of events. This might be an opportunity for Frank to establish itself in a new home and begin a fresh start. The road to self-sustainability begins here.

       For that to happen, Frank needs your help.