We greet you in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ and we hope you are all fine. This is our February issue and     we hope you will be refreshed as you read through it. We hope our friends and partners would appreciate the news update, so here is the Huruma Newsletter. Enjoy!

 Love,
 Huruma Family.

 FOR PICTURES and donations check our website

Huruma Family - By: Mama Zipporah

Dear Friends and Partners,
Christian Greetings!

This far the Lord has helped us in Home. Kindly accept our sincere thanks and heartfelt appreciation for your prayers and financial support up to this stage. We have witnessed tremendous progress with our dormitories and Church construction. Since we started in January your generous support for the construction has been a great help.  It has come in time and has helped us to put all the walls of the church together and also build the balcony.  Still we thank you for your help to deal with the basic needs and it’s our prayer that you will not be tired with us. God willing we pray that our ministry vehicle our serviceability will be restored back. It was stolen while l attended the funeral of our former Director of Children burial in our Town.  Now its one week since it was taken from us and we are really in need.  But we thank God for Dr and Kay Johnson who have been a great help to us by taking 18 of our children to hospital for their medicine. 

Pray with me that by May God will have come with a solution of how l will be picking up children from the slums for they cannot afford to come without it for our van is not a luxury but it’s a necessity.  Where would we be without the gift of your friendship Can we really now feel healed and restored without lamenting the Loss of our Dad, the sorrow and brokenness of our own souls.  Even Jesus knew the power of lament as he fell to his knees in the garden of Gethsemane. Teach us, O God, how to lament so that we might come within reach of your saving embrace. Now once again we want to request you to stand with us and kindly consider sowing a new seed into this ministry of our children at this time to help us to complete this work God has put in our hearts for the Glory of our God. God Bless you abundantly and I am waiting to hear from you soon. May you have a blessed Easter, May God bless you. 

Mama Zipporah

Medical Report - By: Nurse Mary

I wish to salute our readers who in this case are our supporters and may I commence by saying a word of hey to you all. I am happy to bring to your attention the care and protection that God has given to the entire organization.

The regular clinic activities continued well as usual and there was no major health matters which was reported around our home.

I like to state that the organization has supported me very much in the provision of the needful drugs and this made it easier for me to attend to the minor issues that occurred to some of the children.

The children who have opted to live positively are doing wonderfully well and through the nurse, who organizes their drugs, they were able to take their drugs as expected and no drug withdrawal has been reported.
They also received individual counseling (a few of those who experienced difficulties in feeding well.

Before I conclude may I present a special prayer to our friends and supporters who has tirelessly given to the home and in this case have sacrificed their precious gifts to our children and may the Lord almighty reward you in abundance. Blessed are those who give for their reward is in heaven and may I remind you that it’s more blessed to give than to receive.

Counseling Report - By: Sister Monicah

The month of March has been a very busy one for me as the counselor in charge of the department. Majority of the children turned for individual counseling compared to the previous month where I attended to most children as a group.

Some of the issues that were dealt with include the challenges faced by the youth as they interact with the others who are their peers.

The subject that dominated the month was the topic of SEX and the MODERN WORLD. Though a sensitive topic to deal with; we had to tackle it for the sake of their development and the issues surrounding the matters of sex.

Most of the youths were curious to know more about sex in the modern world as their peers around them talk of sex as being part of their life in the modern world.
As a professional counselor I had to tackle the issue on a Biblical aspect about what God says about Sex. We discovered that sex is sacred and is a gift that should only be treasured in marriage.

It was interesting to discuss the topic with the youth who promised to pray for the gift of the Holy Spirit which is self control and abstinence.

The topic is yet to be concluded and let’s find its conclusion in the April news. God bless you for supporting our children be it in prayer, material support, financial support, God grant you favor in all you intend to do in your life and the lives of our God given children.

Home News - By: Grace (Social Worker)

The month started well and as a home we have a reason to thank God for everything he has done to our precious home. First and foremost the care and protection he has offered to us as Huruma fraternity. There has been no major occurrence in the home and all went smoothly as expected by everyone in the entire organization.

God has been so much faithful to us that even at this time the country is experiencing higher food prices to an extent that it has been declared a national food crisis. The home received foodstuffs from individuals and also from institutions and no single day we have gone without food.

I like to extend my appreciation to the schools that came from outside Kajiado district to visit our children. It’s of great need and they feel appreciated even by the wider community. May the lord sustain your kindness. These learning institutions include schools from Gatanga.

Many special thanks goes to our friends from Rusinga High school who came physically to visit the children in the home and also sacrificed most of their precious time to interact with our children on 1st April 09. They later donated a lot food to the home and may the lord almighty extend their territories as they continue defending the rights of the less fortunate in the society.

I also take this great chance to appreciate the Upper Matasia Sec School who also took their sweet time with the children on 31st March 09.They offered their non-financial support to the home and they spent most of their afternoon working in the school compound. They later interacted with the kids in various games and activities till very late in the evening.

It’s very supporting to feel that we have people out there who think of us in a positive way. Many thanks once again and receive God’s blessing and above all may you receive gratitude’s from our God given children.
I also remember our friends who visited the home as individuals touching the lives of our children in one way or the other.
Last but not least our volunteers from different parts of the country and those who comes from outside the country May God intervene in every way. You have given us material support and to an extent, giving us a shoulder to cry on.

Am so sudden to bring to your attention the loss of our TRUCK (registered KAL 824W) on 31st March 09.Am also delighted to report that God has given us very peaceful moments and I believe everything stands a test of time and all those who are involved God is our shepherd and all we have belongs to him and truly to his words; HE IS THE FATHER OF THE FATHERLESS, AND THE HUSBAND TO THE WIDOWS.

GOD BLESS!

School Report - By: Mr. Kwaka

INTRODUCTION
The school is a single stream composed of eleven classes from the lowest which is baby class to the highest which is standard eight and has a population of 193 of which 65 comes from the community around and 128 resides in the home. The school is divided into four sections namely kindergarten, lower primary middle primary and the upper primary. The school activities start from 7.00am to 4.45pm. Learning activities starts from 7:15am to 3:45pm for the upper primary, 7:15am to 3:10pm for the lower primary and 8:45 to 12:30 for the kindergarten section outdoor activities starting from 3.45am to 4.45pm. During this time we have different activities planned for each day.
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1) KINDERGARTEN
The pre-school is composed of three classes which are baby class, nursery, and pre-unit.
The pre-school activities start from 8.45am to 3.30pm. There are classroom and outdoor activities from 8.45am to12.30pm. During the afternoon, they have a quiet activity or time whereby they sleep.

•  Class four had a mean score of 281.1, with the first pupil scoring 396 out of 500.
•  Class five had a mean score of 301.1 ,with the first pupil scoring 430 out of 500.

Academic: 
Extensive reading and writing is emphasized a lot in these classes. Academically the pupils are good and are serious with their work with just a few problems of which the teacher is handling delicately. Class eight especially is a class that we are preparing for the national exams in November and we are doing our very best to help them attain good grades to be able to progress to good high school.

The end term exams results proved that a lot of work needs to be done so as to achieve good results. We are putting a lot of effort to see that our pupils get to a level of 400 marks and above. Some of the pupils did their best and we hope that within the next few months, great improvement will have been seen as teachers have devoted themselves to nature the pupils into achieving higher grades.

•  Class six had a mean score of 266.2, with the first pupil scoring 379 out of 500.
•  Class seven had a mean score of 245.7, with the first pupil scoring 358 out of 500.
•  Class eight had a mean score of 270.2, with the first pupil scoring 396 out of 500

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Discipline: 
In terms of discipline, the pupils in this section of the school have shown tremendous improvement since the beginning of the term. A few cases of shouting in the classes are being dealt with and this is especially done by pupils from the community in particular pupils from Math are. Through co-operation with Mama Zipporah, fighting has totally been eradicated. No any case of fighting that has been reported of late.

CONCLUSION
We believe that we can do better than this and we are working hard for it. It is our hope against all odds that we will achieve high performances above 400 marks for it is certain that this is a promising year and with the combined effort of the 4 entities i.e. the administration, the teachers, the parents, and the pupils. Hopefully we'll have achieved the objective.

5) STAFFING
Our school has a staff  numbering 23  who work together as a team to see that the pupil are benefiting in all areas of learning. Out of the 23 staff members, 20 are capable teachers who work with the pupils in classes and outdoor activities. Each teacher has got their assigned classes that they teach and lead in the outdoor activities. We also have a library teacher who takes care of the library and attend to the library lessons in the school. Our newest teacher is William who is taking music lessons in all classes. We
Also have 2 support staffs who work so hard to see that the school compound is neat and tidy. Together we do our best for the betterment of our pupils.  

6) CLUBS
The vision of empowering children cannot only be achieved in class work but also with the involvement of the co-curricular activities. By this, talents are noticed and natured to maturity. This is discovered through clubs and that’s the reason of having clubs in our school. The school has a total of six clubs each headed by a club patron who are members of our teaching staff. The club meetings and activities are all done every day from 4:00pm to 4:45pm. The clubs are as follows:-

1) DRAMA CLUB
This is a club of 25 pupils who are all members and are willing to work with their teachers. The club holds their practice sessions on a weekly basis. They are great and have represented our school in different occasions and came back victoriously. The club went to oloolua academy for a presentation and came back victoriously. We are proud of them and we look forward to visiting other schools for drama competitions.  

2) 4-K CLUB
This is a very active club of young farmers with an aim of learning and practicing different farming methods in our school garden. Last year the club managed to plant spinach in the school garden which helped a great deal in the home. This year’s objective is to plant maize and follow every step of growth, nurturing them to maturity. We are proud of their work.   

3) SCOUTS CLUB
This is also a very active club of pupils who are charged with the duty of raising the flag and creating awareness of the H.I.V pandemic and drug abuse. The club holds their drills practice sessions on a weekly basis. In the past, the club has seen one of its members going to Canada together with other scout members in the country to represent our nation in the jamboree.  We are proud of their work.  

3) ART CLUB
This is also a very active club of pupils that are learning the art of drawing and painting. The club holds their drawing practice sessions on a weekly basis and once in a month, they are invited to an art gallery in Nairobi for more practice and exposure. In the past, the club has made very beautiful valentine cards which were given out as gifts. We are proud of their work too.  

4) SPORTS CLUB
This is another very active club of pupils that are learning different skills in the pitches. In this, we have the football club, basket ball club, volleyball club and the athletics with each having its patron. The club holds their practice sessions on a weekly basis. One of the night guards who are good at ball games has volunteered his time during the training sessions to help us improve in dribbling skills. The teams have gone out to represent us in games and came back victorious in the different fields. We are proud of their work too.  

5) GOSPEL DANCERS
This is a club that was introduced in 2001 and since then, it has developed and natured so many talents. The club holds their practice sessions on a weekly basis. They are great and have represented our school and home in different occasions and came back victoriously not only representation but have also been invited to various occasions to entertain guests. The month of February within the term, the group was invited to a weeklong practice and presentation at KIJANI festival. We are proud that they did their best and we were well represented. They also brought us a good name in discipline as commended by the KIJANI festival organizers.   

CONCLUSION
With a team spirit, the school hopes to fulfill the vision of empowering children in need with self reliant skills by working together and tirelessly for the betterment of the child. Thank you so much and God bless you for your generous support.

Dormitories Construction Commences Again

Before our Dad died, he and mama were traveling to Arizona, (USA) as guests of Cornerstone Christian Fellowship Church in Chandler, AZ, to talk about the need of the building of the dormitories... Sad to say; Papa Isaac never made it out of the Country, but Mama had to travel alone. Now I am glad to say that we are constructing the slab. We need a lot of prayers for building materials are expenses.

We are so blessed with volunteers and friends from around the world to join us here at Huruma This is the 19th year of Huruma, happy to share my vision which is clear to see now, although before nobody could understand what mama really wanted for Huruma, we are so proud that she stood firm and believed in God to see her through and now she is reaping rewards for all her visions that she had for her home and her children. Let us stand behind her and I ask that you please join us in praying for her.

Oh Heavenly Father we thank you for believing in our mother, Mama Zipporah vision. We thank you for helping her to feed, educate and care for the children without you we could have been a nobody, we thank you for giving us a reason for living we thank you for the dormitories, that are now in process and know that you will supply us with our needs for 400 children Father we pray that we would employ dorm mother’s to help us with caring for are facility and our children. God I also pray that you keep Mama Zipporah healthy and strong so that she can continue take care of these children has you have put on her heart and have instructed her to do. God we trust in you that you know what we our lacking and you will provide for all our needs

We praise you in Jesus precious name Amen!

Thanksgiving

• We thank God for protecting Mama the day the van was stolen.
• We thank God for giving us a loving Dad and Mum and a reason to smile.
• We thank God for giving us a consistent worldwide family
• We thank God for loving us so much and we believe He will help us even through this year.
• We thank God for helping us start building the dormitories and the church.
• We thank God for helping us to take all the new and old children to their high schools.
• We thank God for helping us organize ourselves and helping us accept that we have to move on.
• We thank God that all the needs of last month were met.
• Thanks to God for being our Friend and Partner.  

Prayer Items

• For the supply food throughout the year.
• That we shall be able to complete the dormitories in time.
• Electricity supply.
• Internet supply.
• Salary for the teachers and support staff.Favor with our Government.
• Pray for our young Pastor Joseph who will be traveling to the States for 3 weeks.
• Pray for our children especially those in adolescence stage.
• High School fees for the next study term.  

Happy Easter                   

When the earth sings in flowers and the sky above feels close
Enough to touch let us take time to give thanks and praise for the
Precious miracle of life

"I am with you always even unto the end of the world"
Matthew 28:20


News press by: Lisa Lopez