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History and Founders

Our program is based on a vision.  Peter Ndungu grew up in the Kibera slums of Nairobi and was orphaned at age 11.  Through hard work and determination, as well as support from Kibera Lutheran Church Peter not only graduated from primary and secondary school, he went on to become a pastor.  Throughout his years of service in Nairobi, he nurtured a dream of helping children living in poverty so they could prosper through education.

In 2006, Peter met Paula Meyer while she was traveling in Kenya with her family.  Peter asked Paula whether she knew people who would sponsor children so they could have hope for their future.  In early 2007, the pair co-founded two organizations - Friends of Ngong Road in the U.S. and Ngong Road Children Association in Kenya. Today they remain focused on delivering on their shared mission to educate children living in Nairobi’s impoverished urban communities. For more information on NRCA and our operations in Kenya click here.

The program grew quickly.  By the time school opened in January of 2007, 60 children had been recruited and school uniforms, books, and supplies had been purchased.  Initially, the program accepted any child who applied whose family was affected by the HIV/AIDS epidemic.  We let them attend whichever school they chose.  Later more rigorous criteria for acceptance and a more disciplined approach to school selection was developed.  The program now supports over 350 children.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Paula Meyer, President and Founder, Friends of Ngong Road

Paula Meyer left a successful career as President of the mutual fund business at Ameriprise (formerly American Express) in 2006 and has since focused on building Friends of Ngong Road.  She has dedicated her efforts to building the organization from an idea to a metric-based, results-oriented organization delivering improved health and education for over 300 children in Nairobi.

Meyer received her B.A. from Luther College in Decorah, Iowa and an MBA from the Wharton School of Business in 1982.  After many years as a corporate executive she believes that the skills she and the organization's board of directors have learned in business can be applied successfully to deliver results in a different context.

A full biography is available here.

 

Peter Ndungu, Executive Director and Founder, Ngong Road Children Association

Peter Ndungu is the Executive Director of Ngong Road Children Association.  He leads the Kenya-based operations supervising a full-time staff of eight plus four part-time “ employees. 

Peter graduated from seminary in Kenya and was a pastor for several years in Nairobi. In 2003 Peter was selected by Bishop Kahuthu of Nairobi to attend graduate school in the US.  In 2005 he completed a Masters of Arts at Luther Seminary and returned to Kenya to become pastor at Nairobi Lutheran International Church.  After the founding of Friends of Ngong Road and Ngong Road Children Association, Peter began to shift from congregational ministry to focus on his work with the children of Nairobi who have been affected by the HIV/AIDS epidemic.  The organization is now supporting over 300 children in the Dagoretti villages.

A full biography is available here.