Good Things Happening at Joytown

My trip to Joytown today was highly anticipated because I was so interested to see what has been happening since the last time I was here two years ago. As I revealed with my photos and stories from the last trip, the neglect at the school was incredible and situation the children were in was appalling. It was obvious something needed to be done. However, getting things done does not always happen easily here in Africa as we have to be very careful about how our funds, time, and materials are used. In order to support the children at Joytown, Bethany entered into partnership with them at the beginning of this academic year which, here in Kenya, starts in January. This commitment from Bethany was intended not only to provide support for the school and children financially and medically from a rehab perspective, but also from an accountability perspective. All funding from Bethany is closely monitored and scrutinized and the expectation is that change will result - no matter how slowly. The needs remain as we all know Rome was not built in a day. However, there are some exciting improvements at Joytown which are a direct result of the intervention of Bethany Kids and you - staff, students, and parents at St. Vincent - as your encouragement and support over these past few years lead to Bethany moving quickly into partnership with Joytown.

So what's new at Joytown? When I was here two years ago there was only one physiotherapist at Joytown responsible for over 300 students! The needs were enormous and the challenge was overwhelming for her. She quit leaving Joytown without a physiotherapist and any therapy for the children for an entire year! When Bethany became involved at the beginning of January this year, the hiring of therapists became a most important priority. Now, just over 10 months later, there are 5 therapists working at Joytown - 3 PT and 2 OT -plus the assistance of 3 assistant therapists, and Francisca as a counselor and mentor I mentioned in my last post. Moving from 1 therapist to none to 9 directly involved in the therapy for the students is incredible. Children are being seen regularly and physiotherapy is a large part of their program now. I spoke with some of the therapists anecdotally and the gains the children are making as a result are amazing. Students were pointed out to me who were in wheelchairs months ago and were now walking with the assistance of walkers, canes, and braces. The treatment the children are receiving is making a difference in their physical development but also in the social development as well. It is amazing (and sad) to think that the most needy in perhaps all of Kenya were without such a vital support for an entire year. The physio tent has some improved equipment and the conditions are cleaner than the last time I was here. Two photos from inside the therapy room are above of Dr. Bransford adjusting the brace on Daniel who you see the first photo as well. Daniel was in the physio tent working on his walking when we came in for a visit.

Another amazing addition to the school is the refurbishment of the library. A team was here in June (one team member being my mother-in-law!) working on the library - cleaning the facility, painting the walls and chairs and book cases, stocking the shelves with books, and making the library a more welcoming place to be. I was looking forward to seeing the changes in the library on this visit and I must say that it exceeded my expectations. There are books on the shelves - though more are needed - and a great table for gathering, teaching, and reading. The library is only one building on a large campus of buildings housing classes and dormatories, but the care and attention to detail in the library reveals a new pride in the facility which will hopefully continue to spread. I have included two photos here of the library for your perusal. I will be sharing some of the books you sent with me to the library at Joytown when I return on Monday. I will be writing "From your friends at St. Vincent School, Oakville, Ontario, Canada" on the inside cover. I also look forward to sharing some bibles which were generously donated as well as a bible in Swahili that was another parent donation. I have two bibles in Swahili - one will go to Mercy at Bethany and the other to the library at Joytown.

As I said in a blog post from 2008, with the right vision, people, and support, amazing things can be accomplished. Is there more to do? Absolutely. In fact, I will post more tomorrow about my time with the children in the classes and around the school. However, this visit today was an encouraging step toward improving the lives of the children at Joytown. We have more to accomplish together, but I am optimistic that we will get there. I posted twice again this evening so please read on below about Francisca - her amazing story of faith, persistence, and optimism that began at Bethany and continues now at Joytown. Read on...