Kikuyu and Kitalale: The Homes That Love Built

06 Feb Kikuyu and Kitalale: The Homes That Love Built

“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.”
1 Corinthians 13:4-5

Love takes many forms, and the love shared between a family is the foundation for a bright future. Our homes provide a nurturing family environment for 100 orphaned and abandoned children, to show them the love God has for them.

This February, we’re honouring Valentine’s Day with stories of love from our Children of Hope homes to yours. Witnessing the joy and love as the children experience it every day is infectious and lifts us up. We hope you’ll share these stories of love with your network!

The kid’s recorded a Valentine’s Day message for you.

Siblings Are Forever Friends

Our kids of the same age, lovingly referred to as ‘age mates’, share special bonds and tend to stick together. Michelle, Abraham and Triza are the three youngest at Kitalale, and have been together for as long as they can remember. These three travel in a group and, once they’re old enough for school, will be in the same class.

Triza, Abraham and Michelle love to dance

Jacob is particularly close to his ‘brother’ Isaac, who joined Kikuyu home in the same year. He helps our house father Uncle Sam with Isaac’s physical therapy and always ensures Isaac is included in games and fun.

The older kids show a lot of love to their younger ‘siblings’, whether it’s through cuddles for the new babies who they rush home to see or by helping the younger kids with their homework.

Our transitioned kids, who have gained independence and adulthood outside of the home, have a group chat to update each other on everything from expecting new babies to how their day was. Their ‘siblings’ are always happy to greet them when they stop by the homes to say hello to their ‘aunties and uncles’.

Love, Laughter and Learning from Our Staff

Our staff are caregivers who see what they do as a calling, loving and raising each of our kids as they would their own. Looking around the homes, you can see love everywhere as Aunties and Uncles take time from their busy schedules to play games with the kids and teach them new skills, from chess to dance routines. Uncle Sam is a talented musician and uses his gifts to connect with the older kids through dance and music.

Uncle Sam and the teenagers choreographed this dance together.

Our homes celebrate Kenyan traditions, from Rites of Passage to the tradition of being “washed” on your birthday (having water thrown on you). Last year, Uncle Sam was washed twice – once by the first group of kids returning home, and then again after he had showered and dried off by another group of kids arriving home. You can see from the video what a good sport he was and how much fun was had.

Uncle Sam’s birthday wash – which happened twice!

This Christmas, Wilson, one of our drivers, took Daniel and Isaac home to spend the holidays with his family. Both Daniel and Isaac have medical conditions which require special care, but that didn’t stop Wilson from taking them out to parks to play with his own children (which is no small undertaking). Both boys were positively beaming when they returned from their vacation, and it was clear that an extra special connection was made during their time together.

When they’re not teaching new skills, the Aunties and Uncles can often be found inspiring fits of laughter.

Auntie Rose knows how to make the kids giggle.

Love Thy Neighbour As Thyself

It was thanks to a neighbor that Sammy came into our homes. At the time we crossed Sammy, he had gone through a period of neglect where neither of his divorced parents or uncle could provide for him physically or emotionally. It was his concerned neighbor that brought him to a free medical clinic we held for the people of Kitalale to be treated. Not only was Sammy given physical therapy, nutrients, and loving care but our social worker and the local Children’s Department also proceeded with an investigation into his home situation. It was determined that Sammy was at risk and would be best for him to join our family the following week since he had been abandoned by his parents, and his uncle was unable to care for him.

A couple christmases ago, a local hotel also hosted a party for our Kikuyu kids. The kids were wowed by the fancy table settings, full buffet, bouncy castle, DJ, music and dancing. They had a blast!

Love from Overseas

Much of what we do with and for our kids would not be possible without the love and support from all of our volunteers, donors and champions. You show us just how much goodness and love there is out there.

The Valor High School hosts an annual Vacation Bible School in Kenya. Last year, 1,365 Kitalale children joined us to share love and praise the Lord! Our volunteers in Colorado dedicate their time annually to gather resources, sew and put together backpacks and handwritten messages to send to the children and staff.

Last year, we started engaging fundraising Champions to sponsor a kid with the help of their network. The response to this peer-to-peer fundraising has been incredible and is a true testament to the power of community and how together we can ignite change.

Spread the Love: Become A Champion

This Valentine’s Day, we hope you’ll share this story with your network, to help us spread joy and love. We’re reminded every day just how precious life is and how blessed we really are.

You can also spread the love to our children by becoming, or encouraging your friends, church, choir or book club to become a fundraising champion. We have 22 kids in need of someone like you. Becoming a champion is easy and we provide everything you need to collect donations, including a dedicated online fundraising page.

Meet Our Kids