Dear readers,
Time for more news to share! We’ll start with the great news that we finally have our van! After some hiccups we got everything sorted and received it with lots of enthousiasm! The long wait had us extra excited, so a celebratory nyama choma (roasted goat) evening was organized to commemorate this big step and baptize the vehicle.
The first trip was to Lokichar, a real road trip that took us 12 hours with a few stops included. A very good test for the brand new van, as we drove on tarmac, off road, in the bush… and the van performed well! It was also able to accommodate the team from the centre in Lokichar when we went for home visits, and to Lodwar.
We continued with peer workshops in 4 schools, explaining Learning Disabilities (with a main focus on Dyslexia) to children from pre-primary 2 (PP2) till grade 3. The primary school children really impressed us with how well they remembered the previous conditions we talked about.
We also welcomed our donors who visited SEP to elaborate on our activities and programmes. In March eRko Slovakia came to visit, and in June Misereor and Miva representatives were in Nairobi. It was nice to finally meet them in person!
We had a great fundraiser theatre performance in Nairobi, all people who joined really appreciated the show! Kolabo was active in Belgium with a lively music performance and market stalls with products from Kenya.
Despite all this positive news, the situation in Kenya is very challenging for the moment. There is drought, harvests have failed, prices of the basic food and transport have shot up. During our visits to the communities we are confronted by the harsh living conditions as food is scarce and very expensive. The political climate is heating up with the two main parties campaigning in different parts of Kenya. We hope for a peaceful outcome of the elections in August, and most of all that we are able to continue our activities throughout the coming months.
A big thank you to all friends of SEP. We are making a difference with your continued support!
Enjoy the reading,
Karolien Remmerie
Director SEP |
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The SEP van is finally with us! We baptised and blessed it with a great goat eating party. The van immediately experienced a great challenge… take the team to the desert 12 hours away from Nairobi. It is comfortable, has good acoustics and takes climbing lanes with ease. It does not like short bumps and sand terrain. We are looking forward to many more trips. We want to thank Miva Switzerland and Provincie West-Vlaanderen Belgium for their donation towards this van!
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The first trip for the van ‘Tembo’ (elephant in Swahili) was a real road trip! Almost 12 hours of driving to reach the centre in Lokichar where we were welcomed by the children. SEP had 2 days of consultations and workshops. The home visits confirmed again that grandmothers play a crucial role in the development of children with disabilities. We continued our journey to Lodwar where we facilitated practical workshops for the caregivers and parents of Ewoi centre, together with our partners from John Paul II centre Lokichar.
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SEP and Kolabo engaged in fundraising activities. In Nairobi we watched a fabulous theatre performance “Supernova” by actor Martin Kigondu.
In Kortrijk Belgium the audience enjoyed an amazing performance by the band “t Amalou”.
Kolabo also took part in a market sale where Kenyan craftwork was presented in a very attractive way. Thanks to the organizers and the audiences for the successful events!
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SEP wants to thank all our long-term partners Comundo, eRko, Misereor, COTRR and the partner organisations where SEP runs the activities. We continuously engage in evaluating our activities and the impact we have on the lives of children with disabilities.
A big thank you to the SEP staff who runs the activities for their input and their belief in the work that they are doing! It is not always easy to be confronted with challenges that we as SEP cannot tackle.
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The next phase for SEP is to build a training centre. This was very clear during our court case exercise during the strategic planning weekend. The team unanimously voted for a centre! SEP has grown into a training body working on many different levels and with a variety of target groups. It is time to make this visible to the larger community!
The Appropriate Paper Based Technology workshop is in full gear! New designs and different materials are tried out.
We have found the right material to make "gaiters", so very soon they will be ready for distribution! |
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