e-news25 Mar 2013 Back to newsletter | to TOS website
Bringing smiles to children’s faces in Nairobi
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On Saturday 22 December 2012 Christmas festivities had already begun – but not for many in Nairobi, especially the ones living in the impoverished, ill-reputed northern suburb of Gachie. On this eve of the outdoor Christmas Party the TOS in Kenya had planned in cooperation with its fellow organisation, the Karuna Charitable Trust, the sky was overcast and the rain soon came down in buckets. The weather cast a few frowns on the faces of the organisers but when Sunday came the grey clouds dispersed. The sun made its appearance and warmed the hearts of our volunteers and of the 16 children who were looking forward to their party. These are the children who come to read books, be read to, and taught reading by volunteers every second Saturday. The party was to start at 11 a.m. but the children and Mary, their supervisor arrived well before that. So did Mitesh, Payal and Diya from TOS and Panna, Brij, Gideon, Sheela and Keirav from Karuna. The children were gathered together and started singing a welcome song to the organisers. It brought tears to my eyes to see the effort some of them had made to dress up for the event. Their clothes were worn out but clean, the shoes some of them had on were just being held together by luck, worn to the bare soles, but the happiness, dedication and warmth they displayed in singing Christmas carols and saying their prayers were enough to bring in the party spirit. |
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We started by playing ‘pass the parcel’ and what fun we had. Everyone joined in with gusto. It took a while for each of them to get a turn. By now the number had increased to 21 as some children passing by had asked if they could join in. Now face painting started. The queue for Keiya was much longer than for Usha as Keiya knew exactly what faces the children wanted, but it was a huge success. Spiderman, Batman, butterflies, etc. were now ready for lunch: chapatis, beans and green lentils. This is a special Kenyan Christmas meal. The children ate with relish till they were full. I noticed a child putting a packet of beans in his pocket and chapatis in his sachet and when I asked him why, he said it was for his sibling at home – a true Christmas spirit of sharing and caring. |
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Now came the time for parcels of gifts. The TOS and Karuna had received articles from friends and well-wishers, so each child received some Christmas presents: the famous Rome teddy bears, extra soft toys from a well-wisher in London, a satchel, sweets, chocolates, pencils, coloured pencils, a packet of maize meal, erasers and, to top it all, a pair of tennis shoes and a pair of slippers. The children could not believe their eyes. The look of bliss on their faces was heart-warming! What a great start to their Christmas and what a great start to the Christmas of our TOS and Karuna volunteers. |
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By 2.30 p.m. the party was over. The time had simply flown by. The children and Mary left waving their hands saying “thanks” and “’bye” till the last minute when they could not be seen any more. There were some toys left in the car so as I drove along, I stopped whenever I saw a small child and gave him or her one. It is so rewarding to bring a smile to a person’s face, especially a child’s. Yes! Yes! TOS and KCT brought smiles to the faces of all those 21 children and felt greatly blessed. TOS Italy: your teddies have made us do things we never thought we would do. Blessings on all your members and friends who knitted the toys. Blessings to all gift donors and to all in TOS and Karuna, Kenya. |
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