Friends of Ngong Road

We empower Nairobi children living in poverty to transform their lives through education and support, leading to employment.

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The Inspiring Story of Clare

My name is Clare. My name means “shining or bright,” and I was told that it was given to me by my mother because she knew I would be a bright girl in school and she also wanted me to have a bright future. I have four other siblings with whom I share my home, but growing up was not easy.

My grandmother, who has raised me along with my siblings, learned of a sponsorship opportunity at Ngong Road Children’s Foundation and requested assistance there right away. After passing my interview, I was given the opportunity to join the program and started attending one of the program’s focus primary schools for my elementary education, where I sat for my Kenya Certificate of Primary Education. While I was in grades 6 and 7, I was appointed as the class prefect for the corresponding classes, and I thoroughly enjoyed expressing my leadership abilities.

I later enrolled at I later enrolled at a girls’ high school, a national-level girls’ high school in Tharaka Nithi county. I was overjoyed when I entered the school since it is one of the few institutions in the country that consistently achieves high marks in the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) tests, and I knew it would keep me on my toes academically. My favorite subjects have been mathematics, English, and biology, and I’ve done well in my overall academic performance. Apart from academics, I am a member of the school’s football team, debate club, and the Young Catholic Society’s organizing secretary (YCS).

I am now in my senior year of high school and am hopeful that I will graduate with honors and be able to pursue a bachelor’s degree program in aeronautical engineering at the Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT). After finishing my bachelor’s degree, I hope to continue my education and pursue a master’s degree at Oxford University in England.

I work hard not just to create opportunities for myself, but also to express my appreciation to my sponsor and the NRCF program for believing in me and guiding me through my schooling to where I am today. NRCF is actually impacting young people’s lives, and I am pleased to be a part of this life-changing program.

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Waiting Students

Blessing

Blessing is an eight-year-old charming young girl. She lives with her aunt in Kabiria, a village in the Dagoretti constituency.  She has an elder brother, Sean, who lives with another relative. Her mother passed away in 2021 and she has been staying with her aunt since then.

A bright student, she has big aspirations for her future academic life and career. The only thing hindering her success is getting a quality education. Blessing would like to be an educator and she particularly wants to teach literature and Swahili so it is not a surprise that languages are her favorite subjects. She also loves modeling as well as fashion and design and she would like to one day own her clothing line and design beautiful dresses for women and young girls. She is optimistic that her hard work and resilience will definitely bear fruit and that her life will be better. 

Blessing currently studies at Jagiet Academy, which is one of our focus schools. If she joins the program she will continue in the same school. She promises to continue with the good performance that she always has in school if she gets the opportunity for sponsorship.

Ashbel

Ashbel is 9 years old and he lives with his parents and a one-and-a-half-year-old sister by the name of Ivana. Both his parents are casual laborers, so they work hand in hand to provide for their families. 

Ashbel is currently schooling at Ndurarua Primary School but when he gets a sponsor and joins the program, he will join Jagiet Academy, one of our focus schools. As can be seen from the latest school results, Ashbel is a bright student. His favorite subjects are mathematics and English. He enjoys watching animation shows on television during his leisure time at home.  While in school, he loves playing ball games with his friends. He desires to be a pilot and not just a pilot, but the most outstanding pilot in the world after he successfully completes his studies. He loves nature and traveling and being a pilot will enable him to have both experiences while doing what he loves. 

Ashbel would benefit from quality education in the program and work towards fulfilling his dreams. He is a promising young man and education will be a great way to empower him and push him toward a successful future.

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Vatican Trip – Visit with Pope

Tunda Lepore at International Fund for Agricultural Development

Tunda Lepore is the Senior Case Manager in the Primary department. She is an Indigenous woman from the Maasai community. Her early childhood experience where she had to overcome both community and peer pressure to go through female genital cut and early marriage inspired her to become a children’s rights champion. 

Tunda attended the 6th Global forum of indigenous people at the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) in Rome. The Forum is the place for indigenous representatives to give recommendations to IFAD and the Member States of the United Nations regarding IFAD’s programs in the countries. She was honored to present the synthesis of deliberation from the Forum to the Governing Council. She also had an opportunity to visit Vatican City on 10th Feb and talk with Pope Francis. Tunda says that this was a great opportunity to continue learning, networking, and growing in her leadership journey for the work she does at Ngong Road Children Foundation.

NRCF case manager Tunda Lepore meets Pope Francis at Vatican City

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Alumni Camp

The Alumni Camp was held from January 20th to the 22nd at the Duara Flamingo Camp, located in Elementaita, Nakuru (Lake Elementaita Lodge). The camp celebrated the accomplishments of the 2022 post-secondary graduates, welcomed them to the alumni association, and provided their first job preparedness training.

We had a total of 36 campers that included 31 alumni, 3 staff members, and 2 facilitators from the organization. We had a number of activities and training that were meant to develop employability skills and emotional intelligence. There was a training session conducted by Be The Leader (BTL) on job interview skills, digital marketing, entrepreneurship skills, and career development. The objective of the training was to teach them how to be outstanding during an interview, how to make themselves visible to potential employers via social media, and the basics of starting a business. There were also a number of team competition activities like crazy games and olympics. The alumni also had a chance to visit the Kariandusi prehistoric site and African Diatomite Industries Ltd to learn about the mining of diatomite (from skeletons of very tiny animals called diatoms) and its uses.

The camp was a success and we hope that the alumni were impacted positively by all the training and activities.

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Graduation Stories

Emmanuel

Emmanuel joined the program in 2009 and immediately joined one of our focus schools, Jagiet Academy. He performed really well in his Kenya Certificate of Primary Examination (KCPE) and joined Dagoretti High School. He loved mathematics, business, and computer studies, and he developed an interest in actuarial science.

Emmanuel later joined Kenyatta University in September 2019 and was admitted to the Bachelor of Actuarial Science program. After a year, he paused his actuarial science studies and pursued an interest in data science. Both of these courses primarily involve analyzing data and making statistical predictions but Emmanuel wanted a course that would have more opportunities for him and data science offers that.   

He enrolled at Moringa School in August 2021 to pursue data science and the course took 6 months to complete. Upon completion of his course, he joined the TechMates program in August of 2022  as a developer intern. The internship took three months and he later transitioned into a TechMates contractor. While interning under the TechMates program, he secured a freelance contract with Lido Nation and is participating in a developer mentorship program. 

Additionally, Emmanuel is also an entrepreneur. He started his own furniture workshop in March 2020 and it has been doing really well. He makes all types of furniture and has created a good reputation for making quality furniture. This business venture has made it possible for him to support himself and his siblings. He aspires to take a course in business information technology and broaden his skills. We wish him all the best in his future endeavors.

Lavender

Lavender joined the program on April 7, 2008, and was enrolled in Nelson Mandela School. She was attending a local primary school prior to joining the program and was constantly falling behind in her classwork due to being sent home on occasion for failure to pay school fees. Her grades improved significantly after joining the program and enrolling at Nelson Mandela, She scored 342 out of 500 on her Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) when she finished Grade 8.

For high school, she attended Mirithu Girls Secondary School in Kiambu County. After high school, she went to Meru Polytechnic to pursue a diploma in Tourism and Management, a three-year course. She finished her coursework in April 2022 and officially graduated in December of the same year. Lavender is currently working as a salesperson for Unilever Kenya in Nairobi, where she is paid on a commission basis. She enjoys her current job and hopes to advance in her career.

Lavender has always been a hardworking and outgoing girl. Her profession complements her personality. She is easy to get along with and has matured into a charming and content young lady. Lavender is always cheerful and upbeat, and she is self-sufficient and capable of making her own decisions.

She is extremely grateful to her sponsor, Ann, who has supported her throughout her academic journey. Lavender is grateful to Friends of Ngong Road and to Ngong Road Children’s Foundation for providing her with the opportunity for sponsorship because it allowed her to transform her life.

Afline

Afline joined the program in 2009 when she was in grade 2. She lives with both parents and her brother, who is also in the program and in his senior year of high school. Afline attended Le Pic School, a local primary school in the Kabiria area, where they lived, prior to joining the program.

She was enrolled at Jagiet Academy after successfully joining the program. She attended this school until 2015 when she took her Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE). She later enrolled at Mirithu Secondary School, a boarding school for girls in Limuru, Kiambu County. She was a member of the school’s netball team and the music festival group in high school. She was given the opportunity to attend the Kenya Institute of Professional Studies (KIPS) technical college after finishing secondary school.

She enrolled in a supply chain management certificate program at the Nairobi town campus. This course is designed to teach students how to manage the supply chain’s activities effectively and efficiently, as well as the role it plays in an organization’s strategic development. Afline finished the program in November 2022.

She is currently furthering her education and working toward a diploma in the same field. She hopes to finish the course and work for the government. She is grateful to NRCF and her sponsor for allowing her to complete her education to this level.