Manna from Heaven

We never cease to be amazed by spontaneous acts of kindness. Recently, FDC was the recipient of the most astonishing, varied and extremely generous gift. The delivery came from a group of people from “Xapo” in Switzerland who had been visiting Kenya as part of an offsite company event. They wished to give something to needy people here and had been supplied with an MPESA account through which to purchase these articles. They'd been advised as to what would be most welcome and useful and you would be amazed to see what we, as just one of several recipients, have received. The items were grouped under the following categories: clothing, foodstuffs, household, linen, school equipment and toiletries.

On behalf of the entire student body, the committee and numerous thankful parents  – thank you to all those at "Xapo" in Switzerland! 

Committee members sorting through all the goodies

Notice of AGM – Tuesday 8th May 2018 at 2.30pm

We would like to announce that the Friends of Dagoretti Children AGM will be held on Tuesday 8th May at Mahali Pa Watoto School, Karinde (off Dagoretti Road) at 2.30pm. Refreshments will be served afterwards.

We do hope that those of you in Nairobi will be able to attend. 

RSVP by email to frodach@gmail.com by 1st May and we will send out directions, if required, and the agenda.

This will be an excellent opportunity to meet the committee and to find out more about us and our students! Do join us if you can! 

One good turn deserves another

This week we had a visit from John Chege, one of a group of young men sponsored by FDC in the early days. As, happily, they are all working, only John was able to get time off work to bring a donation of Ksh 8,000 to FDC - on behalf of all the group. It was wonderful to hear about his life and family and where he is today - working for Britam Insurance, who took over Real Insurance. The others in the group are Aaron Njoroge, Bernaud Wanjau, Daniel Muiruri and Joseph Kamau, all of whom went to Mutuini High School. Given that all of them, apart from John, are now married and some have begun their own families, this really is an extremely generous gesture. 

We have always been hugely proud of these young people and this kind thought and action on their part, gives us even greater reason to smile and continue doing what we do! 
Thank you! 

John Chege hands over the group's donation to Catherine and Pop.

First of February round-up of FDC news 

As ever, our year has started on a busy note. We have taken on seven new Form 1 students who have all now started at school. It is very difficult deciding who to support out of a wonderful and worthy group of candidates who present themselves at our door in late December to early January, hoping to be taken on. We wish this fortunate group all the best as they start out at secondary school. May they continue to work hard and make the most of every opportunity.

Our year ended in equally busy mode, with the Christmas party and prize-giving. Many thanks again to all who attended – committee members, visitors, sponsors, parents and students alike. Our huge thanks must also go to KPS who once again kindly donated food for the party.

Our guest speaker, Anthony Muriithi, was such an inspiration to all our students and had a captivated audience. Despite being disabled by polio at the age of two, he has not let this disability stand in his way. He managed to attend Alliance High School and then Nairobi University. Not only has he found a fulfilling and interesting job at Safaricom, where he is a Team Leader, he has also married, has a baby boy, and has set up and runs his own business together with his lovely wife. With great humour and honesty he mapped out the challenges of his life and the great pleasure he derives from it. His main message was that in order to succeed in life one has to first want success and then be consistently determined and hard working to achieve it. He also spoke about self-esteem and insisted on the benefits  of staying strong and believing in yourself through good and bad. His famous phrase is that “You cannot control what people say and think about you, but you have control on how to react. What is important is, what do you think about yourself?”

He also shared what he referred to as his ‘five power points’ to start each day:

1.      I am the best

2.      I am a winner

3.      God is always with me

4.      I can do it

5.      Today is my day.

Everyone left at the end of the day wiser, inspired and possibly a little humbled by his positive attitude to life.

The party was also the occasion to recognise our prize winners. Below we see Solomon Murithi receiving his prize from Pop Gunson as top Form Three student and next is Jackson Kanyua receiving the prize for top Form Two student:

Solomon receives his prize from Pop Gunson

Jackson receives his prize from Pop Gunson

Proud parents and guests enjoy food provided by KPS

The full list of prize winners is below:

Form 1-3 best academic prizes:

Form 1             Grace Wambui

Form 2             Jackson Kanyua

Form 3             Solomon Murithi

Top in class prize:

John Kibue

Effort and participation prize – Karen PCEA Church luncheon:

Emily Ngina

Chairman’s Prize:

Jane Wanjiku

We wish you all the best for 2018 and hope that you will enjoy following FDC throughout the year. Thanks for your continuing support and generousity.

A Great Meeting - Our AGM 2017

On Tuesday 16th May we held our AGM - which proved to be a very lively and informative meeting. Many thanks to those donors and visitors who attended and to our tertiary students, James, Grace, Monicah and Peter who came to present to us at the end - telling us what courses they are doing, why they chose them and what part they particularly enjoy.

Before the meeting started we were able to hand over to Dennis Chomba's mother, one of the laptops that have kindly been donated to us. This will help Dennis enormously with his studies at Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology - studying Control and Instrumentation Engineering. We are always on the lookout for laptops and printers - so please do think of us if you have any old ones, in working condition, that you no longer need. At the end of the meeting we were able to give our visitors a tour of our new "Resource Centre" - a refurbished container, bought with money donated by the Kenya Charity Sweepstake; giving us an invaluable space for report reading, holiday tuition, study and the storage of books etc.

It is always interesting to hear more about the FDC programme and this year we were so thrilled to announce that during the academic year of 2016/17 we admitted our 100th student! These young people's lives are so enhanced by the education they receive, and it is wonderful to see many of them 'popping out the top' now with a good number in full time employment, able to support others in their family and encourage other family members to stay in education! It is not always a smooth ride, but it is always fulfilling to see a student succeed - often against the odds. Thank you once more to our students, supporters, friends, social worker, auditor, committee members and office holders. The success of FDC is all in the team work! 

From left to right: James, Grace, Lydiah, Gerry, Monicah, Peter and Catherine.

Dennis Chomba's mother receives a donated laptop for Dennis.

From left to right: James, Grace, Monicah and Peter

Taking a tour of our new "Resource Centre"

The FDC "Resource Centre" 

MAY NEWSLETTER - HOT OFF THE PRESS

We hope that you will all enjoy reading our May newsletter. This issue highlights the achievements of three students who are now out in the workplace - two on internships and one on a contract basis.

You will note that our AGM is on Tuesday 16th May at 2.30pm at Mahalai Pa Watoto School and we would encourage any of you who are free, to come along and meet us. Tea and refreshments will be served afterwards and if you need directions, please drop us an email on: frodach@gmail.com

Another date for the diary is the SAWA "Blue Moon Ball" on Saturday 24th June at Muthaiga Country Club. Contact details are on page two of our newsletter - we are hugely appreciative that they are donating the funds raised at the Ball this year to FDC. 

Friends of Dagoretti Children - Notice of AGM - Tuesday 16th May at 2.30pm

We would like to announce that our AGM will be held on Tuesday 16th May at Mahali Pa Watoto School, Karinde (off Dagoretti Road) at 2.30pm. Refreshments will be served afterwards.

We do hope that those of you in Nairobi will be able to attend. RSVP by email to frodach@gmail.com by 1st May and we will send out directions, if required, and the agenda. This will be an excellent opportunity to meet the committee and to find out more about us and our students!

Wishing you all a very Happy Easter

The FDC committee

Aiming for the top with Summit Recruitment and Search

Last week, two of our post-tertiary students, Festus Wachira and Nixon Lihanda, who are now both looking for permanent positions, were lucky enough to attend a Careers Advisory Clinic at our sponsor Summit Recruitment and Search. Here, they were able to access help from Summit consultants and received a great deal of advice on possible jobs and careers. The day started off with some tests, as shown below. We would like to thank Summit for their support - not only as a financial sponsor, but in giving valuable time and advice as well. Next up will be an Interview Techniques training half day course. Thank you to Sue and the Summit team! This type of help is immeasurable and vital in helping our students find the right jobs for the future.

Festus, left, and Nixon work on a number of tests at Summit Recruitment and Search

Prizes, Peter and Principles

A great believer in the adage "better late than never" it is a huge pleasure to now be able to put up a few photos to go with our list of 2016 prize winners, who were announced and congratulated at our end of year party. Our congratulations went to:

John Kibue receives the top academic prize

Academic - No. 1
John Kibue: John, despite missing school for a month and then transferring to a new school, managed to achieve an overall B+ grade and was among the top ten students in his new school.
Academic - No. 2
Solomon Muriithi: Solomon achieved a B grade and is mentioned again below.
Academic - No. 3
Centrine Wairimu: Centrine achieved a C+ grade. 
Most Improved Student
David Maina
Most Helpful Student
Solomon Murithi: Solomon coordinated holiday activities during the year, took charge of the kitchen and always volunteered to do the jobs that no-one else was prepared to do!
Recognition for Hard Work
Esther Wahu had promised us that she would catch up having missed quite a large chunk of the school year due to poor health. She did just that and managed a respectable C+ grade and came top in History! 

Well done to them all! 

Centrine receives third prize for academics

Esther receives her prize from Pop

Gerry Downes gives Solomon one of his two prizes

FDC prize winners at the 2016 Christmas party

FDC tertiary student, Duncan Wataka, addresses the guests

Apart from the giving and receiving of prizes, all of our students were able to mingle, and share experiences at the end of year Christmas party. A highlight was having Peter Ouko come to speak. Peter Ouko was released from Kenya’s notorious Kamiti Prison in October 2016, having served 18 years there for a crime he did not commit. He cautioned that a large percentage of prisoners are young people and most of the crimes that they commit are as a result of intoxication. He warned about the dangers of drug abuse and peer pressure and spoke of the importance of honesty, integrity and good principles. Boys, he mentioned, are particularly at risk as they are often overlooked during their childhood and he kindly offered to return at some point to counsel our cohort of boys. His talk was inspiring and we hope that his first hand experience and cautionary words will have made each and every student sit up and think! 

The Senior Chief of Mutuini also came to speak and was particularly interested in meeting students from his area. He counseled the students on the importance of good discipline and of conducting themselves well in their holidays, not just when they are under the eye of school authorities.

The party definitely served up 'food for thought' as well as for normal enjoyment!

Peter Ouko

The Senior Chief - Mutuiini

Happy New Year and Many Congratulations!

FDC would like to wish everyone a very Happy New Year!

The new year has started on such a happy note for all of us with the wonderful news that Catherine, our social worker, and her husband Nick are now the parents of three - with the safe and happy arrival of Elsa! Catherine is now home from hospital and we wish her and Nick, and siblings - Adrian and Tessy - much love, as their new year starts with such a precious gift!

We have also been assessing prospective Form 1 students and look forward to announcing which lucky individuals will be joining our cohort in the next week or so, once home visits have been undertaken and needs assessed and prioritised. This is never an easy process as there are so many worthy individuals to choose from. 

We look forward to the year ahead and thank all of you whose loyal support and interest keeps us going year in, year out! 

Flying high at FDC

Thursday brought great excitement at Mahali Pa Watoto School, where we have our office, as it was installation day for the 40ft container, kindly donated to us by Kenya Charity Sweepstake. The container will be used as a 'resource centre' - library, IT/study area and store - helping us find more space for the future. 

The exercise was carried out with great professionalism and provided huge excitement for both children and adult spectators alike as the crane driver first had to lift the container into the compound and then swing it round and raise it up again in order for it to land safely on a support carefully measured out and built for the new container to sit atop an existing smaller container - providing valuable parking space and shade below. All we need now is a set of steps to access our wonderful new space and we look forward to branding the container with the team from Kenya Charity Sweepstake, in the near future! 

The photographs say it all. We would particularly like to thank Kenya Charity Sweepstake, Mahali Pa Watoto School, the expert crane driver and Patrick our 'fundi' who has built the supports and will be finishing the steps, paint work and internal refurbishment of the container! We can't wait to get in and get working! 

Book your tickets/table now for FDC's festive fundraiser!

Tickets are selling fast already for our annual fundraiser, to be held at Karen Country Club on Friday 25th November at 7.30pm by the pool, and the event promises to be another spectacular evening to kick start the festive season!

Thanks to some very generous donors we can once again offer some amazing auction and raffle prizes!

So please continue to help us educate the bright and needy in the Dagoretti area by buying a ticket or better still, booking a table through Linda, Charlie, Wendy or Louise. You can email us by reply (frodach@gmail.com) or do call us!

Tickets – 5,000 ksh per person, including dinner, a welcome drink and an evening of lively entertainment, featuring Mojo! You can pay by cash, cheque or Mpesa us on: 0727 409378.

Cash bar available. Dress Smart.

Thank You.

Linda – 0733 718599

Louise – 0733 479372

Charlie – 0733 614796

Wendy - 0701 166017

Inspired by Iggy

By very popular demand Brett Sievwright (Platinum Credit), very kindly returned to give our students another inspirational talk on 22^nd April.  Brett brought with him his right hand man and Financial Director, Ignatius O’Bara – or Iggy to his friends and colleagues.

Both Brett and Iggy spoke.  Brett talked to the students about the ‘VUKA Revolution’ which, in brief, captures the principal pillars for development and success, which we think are worth listing:

Discipline          Honesty                   Hard work

Consistency      Persistence             Excellence

Planning            Consequences       Relationships

Objectives                Gratitude

Ignatius spoke to the students of his own life experiences and challenges.  Iggy was brought up in Kibera with his family and was 1 of 23 children! Life was very difficult and he grew up surrounded by bad influences, gang mentalities and the effects of drugs. Many of his friends have fallen but Iggy had decided himself, without the help that is now available, to adopt the principles of VUKA. Had Iggy accepted his father’s advice he may have been an ‘askari’.  Iggy’s decision to walk to the library every day, work hard and never give up is an inspiration to us all. 

Notice of AGM - Wednesday 18th May at 2.30pm

We would like to announce that our AGM will be held on Wednesday 18th May at Mahali Pa Watoto School, Karinde (off Dagoretti Road) at 2.30pm. Refreshments will be served afterwards.

We do hope that those of you in Nairobi will be able to attend. RSVP by email to frodach@gmail.com by 1st May and we will send out directions, if required, and the agenda. This will be an excellent opportunity to meet the committee and to find out more about us and our students!

Spring Newsletter

Read our latest newsletter (Issue 12 - May 2016) which is hot off the press! In it you will find articles on our latest in-house training course, KCSE results and exam issues, fundraising, our latest range of notelets and what it costs to support a student through secondary education if you or a group of friends or family are looking for a worthy cause to support! Our AGM will be on Wednesday 18th May at 2.30pm at Mahali Pa Watoto School - please email us if you are able to attend. 

Training and guidance for the future

This week was another busy one with 13 post-KCSE students from both Friends of Dagoretti Children and Karen Street Children's Trust coming to Mahali Pa Watoto School for some in-house training to 'make the most of themselves' in the years to come.

As in previous years, there was a great deal of laughter in the mix - with great emphasis placed on role playing and presenting. This not only breaks the ice, but ensures the students really enjoy the course - stretching some 'comfort zones' in the process, but we think Daniel recovered fairly quickly after playing a pregnant lady trying to get on to a packed matatu! Francis, too, must be commended on his fabulous portrayal of a grandmother!

We covered the usual material - making the right impression; the importance of style and good grammar; text messaging and emails; letter writing and how to write a good cv; time management; good etiquette; financial planning and the appropriate use of social media. This year, we also added an extra section on 'contemporary problems and dangers', to what, previously, has been more a course on good communication skills.

I have to say, it is a sobering thought to think that these students whom we have seen grow up into such fabulous young adults, could now be faced with the threat of radicalisation and crime. But the area that many of them come from, Dagoretti, is not a 'stranger' to such ominous forces and this is the second time, in a very short space of time, that we have counselled the students on being aware of, and resistant to, possible approaches. 

Our students are incredibly fortunate in that they are part of a family and their well-being is a priority for both FDC and KSCT. They are not alone in the process and we will now be guiding them onto the next stage of their education - university/college or vocational courses. That they will 'make the most of themselves' is a given and we look forward to following and supporting them, onwards and upwards!

Louise Roest

Daniel, Catherine and Francis

Anthony and Joyce

Alfred

Catherine and Faith

 

Catherine

Chilling between sessions

Christine making an appointment by phone

Christine

Daniel role-playing

Faith and the others look and learn

Faith, Mercy and Daniel

Rosemary and Alfred

Class scenes follow: