Friends of Ngong Road

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

By Leave a Comment

Over 20 students have lost their sponsors. Consider sponsoring an additional student. Meet Leon.

Over the past year, more than 20 students have lost their sponsors. This is due to a variety of reasons, including the economic impact of COVID 19. The students are continuing their education, but are in need of a new sponsor.

This is Leon’s story.

Leon is 16 years old and attending Karima High School, a boys-only boarding secondary school that is one of the best national schools. He has been in the program for eight years and his sponsor recently needed to discontinue support.  His sponsor’s support helped him get to this level of education and gain leadership skills through the Life Skills program, summer camp, and the Saturday program. He was a student leader in the primary department and also a squad leader during the 2019 summer camp. Leon has become assertive and gained self-confidence through these leadership roles.

Leon lives with his grandmother and two aunts. The grandmother makes beaded items, sews sweaters, crotchets tablecloths for an income. She also works as a Community Health Volunteer.

Leon’s family lives in a two-roomed house in Ngando slums. The house is made of old rusty iron sheets. Unlike most families in the slum, Leon’s home has electricity so he can study comfortably during school breaks. They buy water for domestic use from a nearby vendor. Leon sleeps on a bed. The family uses charcoal or kerosene stove to cook their meals as they are the most affordable. They share a bathroom and pit latrine with their neighbors.

Leon is an intelligent, focused, and hardworking student. He performs well academically and is usually among the top-performing students in his class. He would like to become a pilot in the future. He is outgoing, confident, and self-driven. 

Sponsors discontinue support for a variety of reasons. We have committed to supporting students who enter our program until they finish their education. So when they lose a sponsor it’s important for us to find a new sponsor. If you already sponsor a student, would you consider sponsoring another one whose sponsor left? We are fortunate that someone has stepped up to sponsor Leon. But there are many other waiting students like him who need your help to ensure they can continue their studies and achieve their dreams. Explore all the waiting students here.

By 3 Comments

Mercy our first nurse

It is the dream of every young girl to be independent and beat all odds to become a successful woman in Kenya. This is the case for our sponsored girls who have the opportunity to transform their lives which is a stepping stone for becoming self-reliant and independent.  Mercy is one just girl and has become our first nurse graduate.

Mercy joined the NRCF program in 2007. She stayed with her aunt, sister, brother, and three cousins. She enrolled at G.S.U primary school in grade 3 where she performed well in the final KCPE (Kenya Certificate of Primary Education) exam and joined Mirithu Girls High school.

While in high school, she maintained focus, kept things neat, and exhibited discipline, all while possessing an independent mind. Excelling in science, she pursued nursing due to her passion for aiding the sick and impoverished in urban slums.

She took the final KCSE (Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education) exam and passed. Following her dreams, she applied to a Nursing program and secured a vacancy at Clive Irvine College of Nursing at Chogoria to study for a Diploma in Nursing. She determinedly pursued her studies. Due to Covid-19, her graduation, originally slated for 2020, was pushed to June 2021.

Mercy recently started an internship at Melkzedek Hospital to gain more experience.  She is a role model to other young women in the program. She has managed to transform her life with the help of NRCF and her dedicated sponsor.

In the outpatient department, her primary role as a triage nurse involves administering drugs, injections, and managing emergency admissions.

We hope that she will be able to secure permanent employment upon completion of the internship which takes 6 months.

By 1 Comment

Asaph-His Story

Asaph is the eldest of two children in his family. Asaph joined the Ngong Road Children’s Foundation program in 2008. He successfully finished high school and joined St. Paul’s University, where he got a two-year degree in business management.

Karibu Loo hired Asaph as an administrative and marketing assistant for two years. While there,  Asaph was offered a higher salary by Patiala Distillers where he was in charge of inventory control for 16 months. He obviously impressed his employers since he was promoted at the end of that assignment. He became the Sales Supervisor in the Mount Kenya region for a year. Recently he was promoted yet again to be an Assistant Key Account Manager in the Nairobi headquarters of Patiala Distillers.  

Asaph’s mother is still alive. He is her sole source of support and both are so grateful that he is able to do so. Asaph demonstrates the grit, determination, and focus one would expect to see in a young man who has moved so quickly upward in his career. 

By 1 Comment

Eric

Eric joined the program in 2007 and was sponsored by Keith and Kathleen Kale. Since a young age, Eric has been a focused, dedicated student and has wanted to make his family proud. However, getting to where he is today hasn’t been easy.

Eric was raised by his mother. His father died when he was young. To make ends meet, Eric’s mother found occasional work near the slums such as working in a salon and making beadwork. With the work, Eric’s mother was able to rent a small two-roomed home in the slums. Home had iron sheets walls, no electricity or running water.

Eric’s mother instilled in her children a strong appreciation for education despite limited material goods.

Eric knew from a young age that his involvement in the Friends of Ngong Road Program, through which he gained access to education, was his vehicle to a transformed life for himself and his family too.

Eric attended G.S.U Primary School, one of our past partner primary schools, St. Joseph’s High School, and then graduated from Kenyatta University with a Degree in purchasing.

Throughout his post-secondary career, Eric was a standout employee at Digital Divide Data, a company Friends of Ngong Road has partnered with in Nairobi with a very similar mission. They provide supplemental income and employment experience for promising secondary school graduates and have included some of our students. Eric’s role at Digital Divide Data was to transcribe handwritten articles to an electronic format for clients such as museums and libraries. In return, Digital Divide Data helped pay for some of Eric’s university tuition.

Upon graduation, Eric was promoted as a full-time Project Manager at Digital Divide Data, managing team and client interactions. He is looking for a new apartment out of the slums. He has made it into the Kenyan middle class.

His sponsors Keith and Kathleen Kale said, “We are very proud of Eric and his accomplishments. By keeping steadily on track, he was able to work his way through university and get his degree. He worked so hard and so many hours, it is inspiring. Congratulations to this fine young man.”

By Leave a Comment

Emmanuel: I Believe I Can!

Emmanuel was nine years old when his parents passed. The end of his parents’ lives meant the end of his education as well. Emmanuel and his siblings moved in with his aunt, who was unable to afford school fees. Emmanuel watched his older siblings come to terms with the reality of their future and lost hope in his own future without an education as well.

In late 2008, his aunt learned of the Ngong Road Children’s Foundation program. She applied for Emmanuel to be accepted, and he joined the program in early 2009 and was sponsored by the Halloran family. Emmanuel remembered the weeks of sitting at home and wishing to go to school before he was accepted to the program, and he pledged to himself that he would make the most of the opportunity. Last year Emmanuel was ranked first in his class of 48 high school juniors! He wrote this essay at Ngong Road Children’s Foundation’s August Camp last year about his memories before being in the program and how he now proudly shouts that, “He believes he can!” 

Emmanuel Titi's Essay I Believe I Can

See Emmanuel’s full I Believe I Can Essay.

He has different goals and perspectives than most young people his age and he makes the most out of every opportunity. He understands that there is more to life than what meets the eye and wants a different future for himself. Keep up the good work, Emmanuel!