This journey started in 2008 with 35 people from St Paul's church in Dorking visiting Kisumu in western Kenya, led by the then associate vicar Amanda Johnson. From our family, Jonathan, Lynn and Abbie went, and whilst it only lasted 2 weeks, it changed our lives.
There are three parties in Kisumu that we are involved in:
During the visit the group ran a holiday club for the orphanage and the first Alpha course in Kenya, focused on the youth, as well as some hands on work for the Bishop's compound.
As a result of this visit, a Kisumu focus group was set-up, and this in turn set-up a charity called Springs Ministries UK to support the orphanage of Springs Ministries. Jonathan and Lynn are both international trustees of Springs Ministries, and Jonathan is one of the trustees of Springs Ministries UK. In August 2011 a small group of 4, including Jonathan, revisited Kisumu with the objective to help the diocese implement Umoja, as well as building the links with the youth leaders and Springs Ministries.
Our support for Kisumu currently involves prayer support, as well as financial support for the orphanage. We are aiming to provide financial support for Joshua Opondo as he has no guaranteed income for the wonderful work he does, and we are also aiming to provide support for the Umoja project as well as take a working party out in the future to do some hands on building work.