Luther Alumni Magazine featured our very own Michael and Leah Switzer! Read more about their two years in Kenya where Michael helped start Karibu Loo, the portable sanitation company that supports the charitable mission to help educate kids. “The board of Friends of Ngong Road believes that with the addition of earned income in Nairobi, Kenya through Karibu Loo, our mission of educating some of the world’s poorest children will become much more sustainable.”
March 2017 Trip to Kenya!
A few spots are still available for our March 2017 trip! Meet children in the program who are transforming their lives amidst daily hardships. Meet their parents and caseworkers. Visit a school, a home, the computer lab and library. Participate in Saturday program. And of course, go on a few safaris!
Friends of Ngong Road is partnering with fellow Minneapolis based non-profit Wilderness Inquiry to offer this incredible experience. The trip is 10 days – long enough to have a valuable experience, but doable for many working people or students. Trip cost is $3,995 plus airfare. To learn more contact lacey@ngongroad.org view complete trip details on Wilderness Inquiry’s website.
Notes from Paula-NRCF
Dear Friends,
During the past weeks, Ngong Road Children’s Foundation (NRCF) has been operating without three long-time employees: Executive Director, Peter Ndungu; Secondary Department Head, Naomi Kamanda, and Accountant, Beatrice Theuri. These three people were suspended on May 1, 2016. We expect to communicate the outcome of the forensic accounting review and their future employment by the end of June, or shortly thereafter.
Interim Management Very Engaged
During this time, NRCF has been led by Tunda Lepore, the Primary Department Head, and a core team of employees. Other members of the team include Joy Obiya (Post-Secondary), Kelvin Thuku (Computer Lab), and Mary Muriu (Secondary). This group has met weekly and I have held bi-weekly Skype updates with them. Our contract finance manager Oscar Musovochi has stepped in to handle accounting matters.
The interim leadership team has done a wonderful job of both continuing operations and making progress on long-standing issues. They have created a procurement process that includes seeking wholesale prices for items we buy in quantity, developed a Food Aid Policy to ensure the neediest families receive food aid, and have paid overdue bills and Term 2 school expenses, with most payments, handled electronically. In addition, they have proposed we extend computer lab hours to support the needs of post-secondary students enrolled in colleges.
New NRCF Management Structure in Development
Although this operating approach has worked smoothly, we will be moving to a new organizational structure in the coming months. Rajpreet Bains, NRCF board chair, has agreed that the Kenyan board will play a more active role in the future and we are working together on what that means. She is a human resources consultant and is well-qualified to define NRCF’s new organizational structure.
There will be many more changes in day-to-day operations in Kenya that will collectively make NRCF a better partner for Friends of Ngong Road. Despite the financial issues we have uncovered in NRCF, we know that the core promises of the program have consistently been fulfilled – students have been in school, have been fed, and have received uniforms and the supplies they need to succeed. This newsletter includes several stories of lives transformed. I look forward to sharing more with you about the changes NRCF intends to implement.
New Website and Newsletter Approach
In the meantime, I invite you to check out our new website ngongroad.org and the exciting stories and updates in this newsletter. We have adopted a new look and approach that involves posting stories more frequently–follow us on Facebook or Twitter to stay in the know.
Thank you for your ongoing support.
Paula Meyer
President, Friends of Ngong Road
Annual Report 2015
We are proud to have published the 2015 Annual Report for Friends of Ngong Road. It was an exciting year with highlights including the successful pilot launch of our portable toilet business, Karibu Loo, and our biggest high school graduating class of thirty-nine students.
Karibu Loo was created to generate sustainable income for Friends of Ngong Road and to provide employment opportunities to graduates. Karibu Loo provided 26 students with full-time or part-time employment in 2015, not only providing valuable job experience but also an opportunity to gain or supplement incomes as many of these students entered post-secondary studies. We have supported Karibu Loo’s launch and expansion by both generous contributions from supporters and by utilizing funds from our endowment. Our board of directors believes that investing in a business that will support the sustainability of our mission is a good use of endowment resources.
Each year more of our students are entering post-secondary programs and securing jobs. One recent graduate, George Odhiambo (pictured right), has started working as a full-time intern at Ngong Road Children’s Foundation. He will become a caseworker after receiving his diploma in July.
Bob and Louise Tritt of Kansas City sponsor George. He was a camp team leader for three years and recently volunteered in our NRCF offices. He cleaned the offices each morning and helped caseworkers enter information about NRCF students. George also worked for Karibu Loo, both as an event attendant and with construction projects.
George appreciates the numerous opportunities he has received through the program. He eagerly looks forward to advancing his skills further at NRCF.
Employment at middle-class wages allows students like George to reach the goal of transforming their lives. Discover transformative student stories in the attached annual report and on our new website: www.ngongroad.org. Witness lives changed through education.
This Annual Report is for the U.S.-based entity, Friends of Ngong Road. Our U.S. audit firm has audited and approved these financials. As you know, Ngong Road Children’s Foundation, a separate organization, is undergoing a forensic audit, which will be concluding very soon. We will update you on those audit results by the end of June.
Our focus on education along with the programs that enhance students’ safety and well-being and provide a supportive community are working to make a real impact on impoverished kids in Kenya. Many of our students are now working in good jobs, which is the ultimate measure that our programs are working. Thank you for being part of this mission and for your continued support.
2015 Annual Report (pdf)
Welcome to Karibu Loo, Wickliff
We are excited to announce that Wickliff Ayuku Mutanda has been hired as the Commercial Director of Karibu Loo as Michael Switzer, Volunteer General Manager since Karibu Loo’s inception, is preparing to return to the U.S. this summer. Wickliff is a Kenyan aged 51 years and is a chartered member of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport International.
He holds MBA in Strategic Management, Bachelors of Commerce, degree in Business Administration, Project Management, and Purchasing & Supplies Management diplomas.
He has a strong marketing research and strategic planning background developing routes and systems for Stagecoach International Services, the then-owner of Kenya’s leading public passenger road transport company- Kenya Bus Services. Wickliff also brings relevant experience in the area of freight logistics including, product sourcing, warehousing, transport, distribution, shipping, import, export, and port operations, having worked for SDV – Transami the then-key logistical organization for the United Nations and other NGO’s operating in the Great Lakes Region of Eastern Africa.
Wickliff worked at senior management for 11 years, focusing on quality assurance, business performance, service improvement, and customer care for East Africa’s top travel companies Abercrombie & Kent, Private Safaris, and Pullmans Tours & Safaris before venturing into energy and university administration at Daystar University in Nairobi.
“Karibu” (welcome in Swahili) to Karibu Loo and the NRCF family, Wickliff. And karibu home, Michael! Thank you for your dedicated service to the children of NRCF.